Legal fight begins between breakaway Diocese of South Carolina, The Episcopal Church

From Charleston SC-

In an effort to retain control of church property that local officials say is worth more than $500 million, the breakaway Diocese of South Carolina, joined by 16 parishes, filed a lawsuit Friday against The Episcopal Church, asserting its historical sovereignty and newly established independence.

The lawsuit, filed in circuit court, also seeks to prevent the church from infringing on the trademarks and identity of the incorporated “Protestant Episcopal Church in the Diocese of South Carolina,” the name disaffected Anglicans aligned with Bishop Mark Lawrence claim for themselves.

The Episcopal Church certainly has a right to maintain a local diocese, said the Rev. Jim Lewis, canon to the ordinary under Lawrence, but it cannot assume the diocese’s legal identity. It will have to come up with a different name, he said.

At the heart of the dispute is the definition of the word “diocese” and the diocese’s legal claim to the physical property located in the region. People loyal to The Episcopal Church say a diocese is an administrative and geographical entity that’s part of a larger institution, and it cannot “leave” the church. Only people can leave the church.

More here-

http://www.postandcourier.com/article/20130105/PC16/130109661/1268/legal-fight-begins-between-breakaway-diocese-of-south-carolina-the-episcopal-church&source=RSS