The Diocese Asks Judge for New Hearing

Earlier today, on behalf of The Diocese of South Carolina (also known as The Episcopal Church in South Carolina), Chancellor Tom Tisdale sent a letter to First Circuit Court Judge Edgar Dickson requesting a hearing on the Enforcement Petition filed in May 2018 (the Amended Petition from May 16, 2018, can be viewed here). The letter was sent after the court-ordered mediation on September 26 ended with the declaration of an impasse.

The petition, in part, requested protective relief for breach of trust and acknowledged that a grant of such relief (and enforcement of the trust interest in real and personal property) is an urgent issue and part of enforcing the South Carolina Supreme Court decision from August 2, 2017. 

Today’s letter also included the recent order by U.S. District Court Judge Richard Gergel that was published on September 19, 2019. That federal court ruling unequivocally recognized The Episcopal Church in South Carolina as the historic Diocese of South Carolina. 

​The last hearing before Judge Dickson was on July 23, 2019. The mediation was ordered at that time.