A.S. Haley: No News from Texas; Sad News from Virginia

Friday, June 14, 2013

As of today, June 14, the Supreme Court of Texas has yet to issue its opinion in the Fort Worth direct appeal brought by Bishop Iker and his co-trustees of the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth. Such decisions are normally released on Fridays, although toward the end of the term the Court also releases some decisions earlier in the week. For those who would like to monitor the page where any opinion will appear, here is the link.

This same day brings unhappy news, however, from the Supreme Court of Virginia, which has entered a one-page order denying the petition of The Falls Church for a rehearing. In doing so, it leaves intact the troubling decision which I discussed in this previous post. The opinion, however, is based almost entirely upon (a misreading of) Virginia law, and so the grounds for review by the United States Supreme Court are virtually nil. For churchgoers in Virginia, the problems created by the Supreme Court's interpretation of a State statute will be for the Virginia legislature to address and resolve. the rest

Another California Judge Denies Summary Relief to ECUSA (Updated)