Presbytery sues its
own lawyers, and loses
The Layman, October 4, 2010
Having lost its property claim against Hudson Presbyterian Church (HPC) in Hudson, Ohio, Eastminster Presbytery accused its former attorneys of malpractice and took them to court.
But the presbytery’s quest for retribution was unsuccessful as a Summit County judge ruled Sept. 24 in favor of defendants Stark & Knoll, which represented Eastminster in its case against HPC. The court also ordered the presbytery to pay the legal costs.
Eastminster turned on its attorneys after a magistrate ruled that there was no evidence to support the claims that the Hudson church’s property belonged to the presbytery. The legal wrangling began in 2006 after HPC declared its intent to leave the Presbyterian Church (USA), which prompted legal action by both parties. Hudson sought to protect its property, while Eastminster sought to claim it using the PCUSA’s so-called trust clause.
A magistrate later ruled that there was no evidence that such a trust existed and that Hudson’s affiliation was voluntary, and thus it had the right to disaffiliate. Eastminster lost on appeal in early 2009.
Blaming its attorneys for the loss, Eastminster accused them of professional negligence for failing to ensure that a copy of the PCUSA’s Book of Order was included in an exhibit binder.
According to the ruling, the presence of the Book of Order in the evidence wouldn’t have a made a difference.
“The general presbyter of the Eastminster Presbytery admitted in deposition in the underlying case that there was no express trust,” the ruling states. “While this may also be a legal conclusion within purview of the court, it is significant that a ranking representative of the party that would be the purported beneficiary would concede that neither its own Book of Order nor the HPC articles of incorporation and bylaws considered jointly or separately, created an express trust.”
Hudson Presbyterian Church, which was not a party in the most recent Eastminster court case, now is affiliated with the Evangelical Presbyterian Church (EPC).