'property' Tagged Posts
Update on Oral Arguments Before the Texas Supreme Court
On October 16, 2012 the Texas Supreme Court heard oral arguments in our diocesan case involving a faction of former leaders who broke ties with The Episcopal Church but continue to hold themselves out as leaders of the Episcopal Diocese with access to its historic property. Immediately following those arguments, the Court heard arguments in the Masterson case involving a similar breakaway faction from Good Shepherd Episcopal Church, San Angelo. Thomas S. Leatherbury, a partner of Vinson & Elkins, LLP,…
Orange County Court grants two Los Angeles properties to diocese, Episcopal Church
[The Episcopal News, Los Angeles] Final Judgments in favor of the Diocese of Los Angeles and the Episcopal Church in cases regarding Long Beach and North Hollywood property disputes have been entered by the Orange County Superior Court. “The judgments conclude the trial court portion of the cases and declare that the diocese holds the properties in trust for the current and future mission of the Episcopal Church,” said diocesan attorney John R. Shiner. “It is ordered, adjudged and decreed…
Texas Supreme Court sets date to hear oral arguments
The Texas Supreme Court has set October 16, 2012, as the date to hear oral arguments in the direct appeal by the breakaway defendants of the trial court ruling in the property litigation by the Episcopal Parties, first filed in April 2009. Arguments will begin at 9:00 a.m. and each side will be allotted 20 minutes. This is the same date the Court set previously to hear a similar case involving a church in San Angelo. In Masterson, a San Angelo…
Tennessee Court Rules in Favor of Episcopal Diocese in Property Dispute
On April 25, 2012 the Court of Appeals of Tennessee in Nashville issued an opinion in favor of The Episcopal Church’s Diocese of Tennessee in a property dispute with a breakaway group from St. Andrew’s Parish, Nashville. A copy of the opinion is HERE. St. Andrew’s Parish, Nashville asserted its intention to leave The Diocese of Tennessee. The Diocese filed a declaratory judgment action to determine whether it or the local congregation owned and controlled the real and personal property where…
New filings for hearing on October 20
In preparation for the hearing scheduled for October 20, the Episcopal Plaintiffs and the breakaway Defendants filed additional materials for the court’s consideration, including proposed orders: Plaintiffs’ Amended Motion to Tender Order, with proposed order (filed 10/13/11); Defendants’ Motion to Sign Supersedeas Order and for Temporary Injunction Relief, with proposed order (filed 10/13/11); (Please note that some of the pages are upside down, which is how the file itself was transmitted. We advise you to print the file and make…
Hearing on Supersedeas Recessed
At the hearing in May 19 on the supersedeas and injunction motions, Judge John P. Chupp heard testimony from witnesses for the Local Episcopal Parties, including experts on real property and forensic accounting; considered affidavits from the Defendants; and heard legal arguments from attorneys on both sides. Before announcing his ruling, Judge Chupp invited the parties to confer in the hope of reaching an agreement on these issues. The attorneys met in the jury room, with Bishop Ohl present, and…
Judge Chupp Resets Supersedeas Hearing for May 19, Orders Discovery
On April 28, Judge John P. Chupp granted in part the Local Episcopal Parties’ Motion to Continue and for Additional Protection and reset the hearing on the Defendants’ Motion to Set Supersedeas and the Local Episcopal Parties’ Motion for Additional Protection for May 19, 2011. Because the hearing has been continued for a date after May 5, he also, with agreement of the Episcopal parties, stayed (suspended) until further order the effective date of the permanent injunctions included in the…
Episcopalians Seek Additional Protection for Church Property While on Appeal
On April 25, 2011 the Southern Cone Parties filed in the 141st District Court of Tarrant County a motion to set supersedeas bond at zero dollars ($). The Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure provides a remedy for a party that appeals a judgment to stop the implementation of the judgment, e.g. surrendering possession of property, against them if they post a bond or provide other protection to the winning party. The Southern Cone Parties seek a direct appeal to the…
Bishop Ohl Files Motion to Compel Southern Cone Faction to Produce Property Ownership Records
On Thursday, December 16, 2010, counsel for Bishop C. Wallis Ohl filed a motion to compel the Southern Cone faction’s production of documents related to ownership of diocesan and parish property in the case pending before Judge John P. Chupp, presiding judge of the 141st District Court of Tarrant County, Texas. On November 9, 2010, Bishop Ohl had requested that the Southern Cone faction produce all documents showing descriptions of and any ownership interests in the properties that the Southern…
California Appeals Court Recognizes Episcopal Church’s Determinations in San Joaquin Litigation
On November 18, 2010, the Court of Appeal of the State of California, Fifth Appellate District, issued its long-awaited opinion on the appeal from the partial judgment rendered in the dispute between the Episcopal Diocese of San Joaquin and its former bishop. The decision strongly affirms the position of the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth in its pending litigation with its former bishop and other former diocesan officials. A copy of the opinion and a news release from the Episcopal…
Episcopal Parishes and Missions Join Diocesan Litigation
On Friday, November 12, 2010, ten continuing Episcopal parishes and 38 continuing missions of the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth were added as parties to the diocesan litigation pending in the 141st District Court of Tarrant County in Fort Worth. Bishop C. Wallis Ohl filed an amended petition on behalf of the 38 diocesan missions; parishes filed a plea in intervention through members of their vestries and/or clergy. View copies of the Individual Plaintiffs’ Fifth Amended Original Petition and the Original Plea in…
Virginia Supreme Court Rules for Episcopal Church and Diocese of Virginia
The Supreme Court of Virginia issued an opinion on June 10, 2010 in favor of The Episcopal Church and the Diocese of Virginia. The decision addressed a dispute over the property of nine parishes whose leaders had left The Episcopal Church and had affiliated with the Anglican Province of Nigeria and its Convocation of Anglicans in North America (“CANA”). This decision turned on whether the specific dispute involving those parishes authorized those former Episcopalians to invoke the remedies of a…
Diocese of San Joaquin seeks return of property held by breakaway congregation
By Pat McCaughan, February 10, 2010 [Episcopal News Service] The Episcopal Diocese of San Joaquin went back to court Feb. 8 in an attempt to regain parish property held by a breakaway congregation, according to a diocesan press release. “Unfortunately, such litigation became necessary after the invitations of the diocesan bishop, the Rt. Rev. Jerry Lamb, to discuss the orderly return of the Churches were largely ignored,” according to the Feb. 10 release. “It is particularly disappointing given the recent…
San Diego Superior Court Rules in Favor of Episcopal Diocese
The San Diego Superior Court ruled in favor of the Episcopal Diocese of San Diego on Tuesday, November 10 in a property dispute involving the congregations of two churches that claimed to leave the Episcopal Church, taking church property with them. The dissenting congregations in the San Diego Diocese were members of St. Anne’s in Oceanside and Holy Trinity in Ocean Beach. In January 2006 and September 2006 respectively, leaders of these congregations renounced their membership in the Episcopal Church…
U.S. Supreme Court declines to review California property decision
By Mary Frances Schjonberg, October 05, 2009 [Episcopal News Service] The U.S. Supreme Court October 5 refused to grant a petition of review from St. James Anglican Church in Newport Beach, which broke away from the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles. The court’s order came on the opening day of its fall term and was made public without comment in a 91-page list of procedural decisions it has made affecting the agenda for the term. The breakaway congregation in June…
Meeting for members of St George’s Episcopal Church in Macomb, IL who wish to remain Episcopalian
MACOMB, IL (Sept. 3, 2009) — Members of St. George’s Church in Macomb who wish to remain Episcopalian will hold a service at 3:30 pm on Sunday, Sept. 13, at Trinity Lutheran Church at 123 S. Campbell in Macomb. Fr. John Throop, former interim priest of St. George’s, will lead the service. A light supper will follow in the church basement. All are welcome. After St. George’s parishoners voted 25-15 on March 29 to leave the Episcopal Church (TEC) and…
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