A suit seeking to compel the Rt. Rev. Robert Duncan, the clergy and lay leaders of the Diocese of Pittsburgh to uphold the property canons of the General Convention was settled out of court Oct. 17 with both sides expressing satisfaction with the outcome.

Calvary Church, Pittsburgh, and St. Stephen’s, Wilkinsburg, filed suit against Bishop Duncan, the standing committee, and the board of trustees in November 2003 after a special diocesan convention adopted a resolution calling for a policy of releasing diocesan control of property to any congregation which sought to disaffiliate from the diocese [TLC Oct 19, 2003].

The suit alleged that the so-called “Dennis Canon,” Title 1, Canon 7.4, of the Constitution and Canons of the Episcopal Church, prohibited such a policy and sought a court order compelling the bishop to conform to this understanding. The canon states: “All real and personal property held by or for the benefit of any parish, mission or congregation is held in trust for this Church and the diocese thereof in which such parish, mission or congregation is located.”

Settlement negotiations between the diocese and the two parishes began more than a year ago and were codified in a court-approved “stipulation.” The four-page document affirms that title to parish property presently held by the diocese will remain with the diocese, and that title to property held by a parish remains with the parish. Should a parish seek to leave the diocese, the agreement calls for a program of voluntary mediation, which also reserves the right of the parish or diocese to seek redress from civil courts.

The right of Pittsburgh parishes to withdraw from the Anglican Communion Network was affirmed as well. Calvary also agreed to pay $50,000 in escrowed diocesan assessments to the diocese.

As a “stipulation,” the agreement between the diocese and the two parishes does not create legal precedence under Pennsylvania law and does not alter the present canon and civil property law framework in the Commonwealth.

The Rev. Canon Harold Lewis, rector of Calvary, one of the litigants in the case, said he was “pleased that ultimately an amicable resolution” had been reached. The settlement “recognizes and upholds the validity of the major contentions in our lawsuit,” Canon Lewis said in a letter to his congregation.

Bishop Duncan also claimed vindication, noting in a statement released on the diocesan website, “the settlement affirms the competence and responsibility” of the bishop and diocesan leadership to interpret and to fulfill “their fiduciary and property duties” under the diocesan canons.

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