Although The Aquila Report has not (as of 7:00AM Friday) received responses from the principal parties in this case, we believe it is important to report on the contents of the Complaint in the legal case.

As previously reported, an 8 page complaint (with many pages of Exhibits) by Erskine College – identified only as ‘through its undersigned counsel,’ Jack D. Griffeth of Greenville – was filed at the Abbeville Courthouse late Wednesday afternoon. Following is a summary of some of the key points made in that complaint.

In the first part of the complaint, a number of Facts are alleged, including:

1. General Synod ‘resolved to usurp control of the operation of Erskine College” through its actions concerning the Trustees

2. Quotes from the 1980 amendment to Erskine’s Charter concerning Trustees to the effect that “terms of office shall be as set forth in the Bylaws of this Corporation” and that “any change in this section of this charter must have prior approval of BOTH the General Synod… AND the Board of Trustees” (emphasis added by the Plaintiff).

3. The Bylaws are the ‘sole authority’ by which Trustees may be removed and that this required due process, including hearings and appeals. (Editorial Note: This, of course, is a key point of law in the case.)

4. Attempts to change the Board structure ‘causes Erskine College immediate and irreparable harm.’ Some of the specifics of this alleged harm include:

– The Association of Theological Schools has already begun a review of the Synod actions and ‘has threatened to revoke Erskine College’s accreditation.’ (Editorial note: ATS grants accreditation to the Seminary, not to the College. The actual letter from ATS says they are “seeking to determine whether the unique governing action taken by the General Synod…has accrediting implications for Erskine Theological Seminary” and asks if the church has the authority to take these actions.

– The attempts at reorganization “interfere with the ongoing College presidential search. The General Synod’s disruption of the governance damages Erskine’s reputation and standing and inhibits it from attracting and recruiting the caliber of presidential candidate it otherwise would be able to without the interference of the General Synod.”

– The improper termination of 14 members of the Board of the Trustees without due process caused “immediate and irreparable harm to those threatened Trustees”

The next major portion of the Complaint contains a number of ‘Cause of Action’ statements, including:

1. Seeking a “Declaratory Judgment that the General Synod has no authority to remove members of Erskine’s Board of Trustees, that any attempted removal is unlawful and void….and that the Interim Board……be disbanded immediately.”

2. Seeking an Injunction that ‘enjoins the General Synod from engaging in any transaction or activity relating to Erskine or involving the property, funds, or other assets’ and further ‘enjoins the General Synod from removing any Trustees….or calling any meeting of the Board of Trustees or its ‘Interim Board.’”

3. Declaring a Civil Conspiracy in that the General Synod, through its Moderator and Commission (all named) “combined for the purpose of injuring Erskine.’ Further, that ‘through its agents and representatives” the Synod “intended to injure Erskine and damage its mission.” Further, “they intended to lose its academic independence, to lose its standing and accreditation, to creating a perception of instability which would discourage and inhibit the effectiveness of the ongoing College pre3sidential search committee, and allow them to control the presidential search process for their own gain.”

(Editorial note: This section also contains a clause stating that the above described conspiracy “caused special damage to Erskine.” It is presumed that this ‘special damage’ has legal implications if and when damages are awarded.)

4. That, by removing 14 Trustees, “the General Synod effectively takes unauthorized and unlawful control of the Board of Trustees and thus willfully and intentionally converts Erskine’s property for its own use without Erskine’s express or implied permission. As a result of the General Synod’s willful and wanton usurpation of the Board of Trustees in conscious indifference to its rights, Erskine has suffered and will continue to suffer monetary damages in the amount of the value of the property.”

(Editorial note: this is the only place in the Complaint that comes close to assigning any dollar amount which might be involved. Obviously, the value of the property must run into the millions of dollars.”

5. That “the General Synod’s actions in terminating these (14) Trustees caused Erskine irreparable harm and damages.”

6. That “the General Synod’s unlawful takeover of Erskine interferes with…contractual relationships by causing Erskine irreparable damage to its standing and reputation and special damages.”

The final portion of the Complaint seeks the Court to enter a judgment against the General Synod and an Order for the following relief (quoted directly from the Complaint):

A. Restrain and permanently enjoin the General Synod from engaging any transaction relating to Erskine or involving the property, funds, or other assets which rightfully belong to Erskine College;

B. Restrain and permanently enjoin the General Synod from removing any Trustees;

C. Restrain and permanently enjoin the General Synod from calling a meeting of the
Board of Trustees on March 17, 2010, or at any point in the future;

D. Restrain and permanently enjoin the General Synod from assembling its Interim
Board at any time in the future;

E. A declaration that the General Synod has no authority to remove members of
Erskine’s Board of Trustees, that any attempted removal is unlawful and void, and that any Board Members appointed at the March 3, 2010 meeting of the General Synod were improperly appointed as they would exceed the thirty-four (34) Trustees allowed by the bylaws;

F. For an award of actual and punitive damages in an amount to be determined by a Jury;

G. For an award of reasonable attorney’s fees and costs;

H. For such other legal and equitable relief the Honorable Court deems just and proper.

The Aquila Report will continue to seek comment on this complaint from both sides of the dispute and, as such comment is received, will post it as a news story in our Web Magazine.

As a reminder to our readers, while we do not include comment areas in our News section, we do invite Letters to the Editor on this (or any) story we cover. They should be sent to [email protected]