British court upholds removal of Celestial Church Shepherd

By Trumpet Media Group

EXCLUSIVE

The High Court in London resolving a dispute between Trustees of Celestial Church of Christ (CCC) Edward Street Parish London and its sacked Shepherd-in-Charge and Pastor's Representative - Prophet Dennis Olumide Lawson, has upheld the latter's removal.

His Honour Judge Hodge QC also made an Interim Payment Order against Lawson for 80% of the £130,000 legal costs of the Church Trustees in the sum of £90,000.

As an alternative to the granting of an injunction sought by the Church Trustees, Lawson was offered an opportunity to give an undertaking to restrain from any future passing-off or use of the name "Edward Street Parish," or entry into the Parish's church building.

The dispute which began in 2013, led to in-fighting and a highly-polarised congregation; and saw police officers visiting the church on a number of occasions to maintain peace.

The Church Trustees dragged Lawson to court to seek (in summary) orders:

(1) restraining the defendant (Prophet Lawson) from passing off his activities, or those of his congregation which are not those of the claimants (Trustees of  CCC Edward Street) or their congregation, as the activities of the claimants by the use of the words "Edward Street Parish."

(2) an injunction restraining Prophet Lawson from entering or using the claimants' church building at Edward Street, London SE14.

(3) declarations that from March 2014, Prophet Lawson has ceased to be a trustee, member or employee of the Parish, and

(4) if Lawson still remains a trustee of the Parish, an order removing him from that position.

On the other hand, Lawson in his amended defence and counter claim, had insisted that he remains the Shepherd-in-Charge of the Parish and, as such, that he is one of the persons "having the general control and management of the administration of" the Parish within the meaning of section 177 of the Charities Act 2011 together with damages to be assessed in respect of the Parish's failure to pay his stipend following the purported termination of his appointment.

Based on a number of inconsistencies in Lawson's testimony in court, Judge Hodge stated that: "I find that I cannot treat the defendant (Lawson) as a witness of truth or as a reliable and credible witness. In cross-examination, I found him to be a combative witness who was reluctant to answer questions; and I am satisfied that he was not being honest with the court. At one point on the afternoon of the final day of his evidence I observed the defendant laughing and smiling when denying the proposition that he was lying when asserting that he was happy to work with the members of the church who disagreed with him and had never sought to intimidate them."

Judge Hodge added that: "I find that the Parish cannot properly function as a church and as a religious charity with the defendant in his role as Shepherd and as a member of the church."

Genesis of the crisis

The genesis of the crisis in the church can be traced back to 8 May 2013, when the elders of the Parish wrote to the overall and Supreme Head of the Celestial Church of Christ Worldwide - Pastor Emmanuel Oshoffa, referring to a "deteriorating state of affairs" at the Parish "with quarrels, infighting, police involvement, threat of court cases and even a threat of Charity Commission involvement etc". In order "for peace and stability to reign and progress ensured in" the Parish, they proposed that:

(1) Prophet Lawson's "irrational attitude towards the Elders and unguided utterances during devotional services are unhelpful towards peace and harmony in the church and he should be called to order by you, in order to avoid unmanageable situation";

(2) the Parish would not accept the appointment of Mr Yinka Akande (now late) as Assistant or Deputy Shepherd; and

(3) the Parochial Committee and the Elders should be consulted before any appointment was made concerning the spiritual and administrative leadership of the Parish.

On 1 September 2013, seven members of the Parochial Committee Executive and eight members of the Elders' Council wrote to Pastor Oshoffa stating that they had totally lost confidence in the defendant and had concluded that they had had enough. They wanted "to formally call for a new Shepherd who will become a new light and future guide for the innocent congregation to be appointed in your capacity as the Pastor in charge".

On 5 September 2013, a Parochial Committee Executives Meeting attended by eight members and chaired by Mr Olufemi Shorinolu voted unanimously in favour of suspending Prophet Lawson for four weeks in order to conduct an investigation into the allegations levelled against him.

The eight members of the Parochial Committee wrote a letter to the Trustees of the Parish asking them to hold a meeting to deliberate on the defendant's suspension as matter of urgency.

Trustees met on 7 September 2013 and voted unanimously in favour of the Parochial Executives' decision to suspend Prophet Lawson from his duties as Shepherd. This was said not to be a disciplinary sanction: during the period of suspension, the defendant would continue to be paid his salary in the usual way. It was said that suspension was being implemented because the allegations were of gross misconduct and serious in nature, relating to the defendant's conduct towards members of the church and his unauthorised use of church funds and property. During the period of his suspension, Prophet Lawson was not to be permitted to attend the church premises.

On 20 September 2013, the trustees of the Parish issued proceedings against Prophet Lawson in the Bromley County Court, but at an interim injunction hearing on 24 September, the District Judge held that the application contained no cause of action and directed that it should be struck out unless, by 11 October 2013, the Trustees filed amended particulars of claim setting out clearly a cause of action, the facts relied upon and the remedy sought. Following a further court hearing on 12 December 2013, the county court claim was eventually struck out on 14 April 2014 on the grounds of the Trustees' non-compliance with this order, with the Trustees being ordered to pay Prophet Lawson's costs.

On 4 October 2013, Mr Shorinolu wrote a further letter to Prophet Lawson inviting him to attend a meeting of the committee appointed to carry out the proposed investigation into the allegations levelled against him - a meeting Prophet Lawson did not attend.

The period of suspension was extended for six weeks because of Prophet Lawson's alleged "wilful refusal to comply with the terms of his suspension and non-cooperation."

Prophet Lawson told the court that he had not received this letter and that he had not been aware of the terms of his suspension.

On 6 October 2013, 93 members of the Parish wrote to Prophet Lawson asserting their support for him and stating that they had passed a vote of no confidence and had dissolved with immediate effect, the current Parochial Committee led by Mr Shorinolu.

On 14 October 2013, solicitors acting for Lawson, wrote to the Parish confirming that the defendant would not be attending the meeting that day and stating that the defendant was very concerned that those bringing the complaints against him were also the very people purporting to conduct the inquiry.

On 17 October 2013, the same solicitors wrote a further letter to Miss Adeola Bangbose on behalf of the Trustees of the Parish. The letter included reference to the defendant - Prophet Lawson having seen "various posters around the church which seek to belittle and humiliate him". This was a reference to notices stating that the defendant had been suspended as Shepherd with effect from 13 September 2013 pending investigation into the allegations made against him, that he was not permitted to carry out his duties whilst he was on suspension, and that the Trustees had applied for a court order against him.

In the meantime, on 18 October 2013, Pastor Oshoffa, as Pastor and spiritual head of the Celestial Church Worldwide, had written to Lawson, the Parochial Committee, the Trustees and all elders and members of the Parish confirming his support for Lawson as Shepherd-in-Charge of the Parish, temporarily suspending the Parochial Committee for 3 months, and setting up a seven man interim committee to work with the Trustees. The Pastor was said to be arranging to send to the Parish some eminent and highly responsible elders of the Celestial Church to look into the dispute and recommend measures that would bring peace, love and understanding into the life of the Parish. The Shepherd was to allow the Fact Finding and Reconciliation Committee to perform their duties, and their agenda was to include a full scale audit of the Parish's accounts over the previous seven years by an independent and trusted auditor.

Superior Evangelist Amos Fatusin, the UK and Northern Ireland Diocesan Head, was to supervise the administration of the Parish in the meantime.

According to a letter to Superior Evangelist Fatusin from Shorinolu dated 1 December, the Pastor's letter was not supplied to the Parish but was read out by Fatusin at a church service when he visited the Parish on 1 December 2013.

On 6 December 2013, the Parish's solicitors wrote to Fatusin advising him that he was not to enter the Parish premises at any time or for any reason, and that he had no authority in relation to the Parish and was not entitled to interfere in its affairs; and to Pastor Oshoffa stating that the Trustees did not accept his authority, or that of the Nigerian Diocese or the Celestial Church's international headquarters, to interfere with or meddle in the affairs of the Parish.

On Sunday 8 December 2013, a serious disturbance took place during the church service and the police were called. This was not the first time there had been disturbances necessitating the invitation of police. A video recording of this incident was produced and played a number of times during the course of the trial.

In his judgement, Judge Hodge, criticised the altercation which took place during the church service on 8 December 2013, saying it "discloses a thoroughly disgraceful state of affairs which does no credit to any of those involved."

He added that "The behaviour of many of those shown on the video is confrontational, aggressive and wholly inappropriate to a place of worship. I am entirely satisfied that it was the defendant's disagreement with his suspension from office that was the cause of this altercation; but the response of those opposed to the defendant was disproportionate and clearly exacerbated the situation, causing it to mushroom out of control to such an extent that the police had to be called. No organisation, still less a church, can function in such a disorderly manner."

On 17 February 2014, a fire caused extensive damage to the church and Trustees resolved to close the church building whilst investigation, assessment by loss adjustors and the necessary remedial works were carried out. On the same day, in spite of the fire incident, Lawson held a service at the church.

Constitutions

Central to this case, have been the place of the governing documents (Constitutions) of the CCC Edward Street Parish which is registered as a Charity in England and Wales, and that of the Nigeria Diocese or the "CCC Worldwide."

Judge Hodge accepted the submission of the Trustees' Counsel that "it is only the spiritual authority of Pastor Oshoffa that has ever been recognised by the Parish; it has never recognised him as having legal authority over the Parish."

The Trustees' Counsel also argued that on its proper construction, the Parish's constitution permits the charity trustees to identify (by appointing and dismissing) the Shepherd-in-Charge of the Parish in the exercise of its duty to further its religious objects.

In the past, according to evidence presented to the court: The Parochial Committee, the Trustees and the Elders have canvassed the views of the congregation, who have sought the agreement of the individual they have treated as the Pastor to the appointment of the Shepherd.

When the individual occupying the role of the Shepherd appeared to these bodies to be inappropriate, they again sought the agreement of the Pastor.

"It is said that a practical recognition by the Parish of the spiritual authority of the Pastor (but not an unfettered legal authority) can co-exist with ultimate legal authority over who occupies the position of the Shepherd remaining with the claimants, and such an arrangement is said to fall within the proper construction of the Parish's constitution."

The judge held that "in the normal course of events, there will be no tension between any spiritual authority and any legal authority. However, ultimately the identification of these individuals by the charity trustees is a matter for them in the pursuit of the Parish's objects."

Judge Hodge agreed with the Trustees' Counsel that the Constitution of CCC Worldwide was not inadmissible; but the weight to be accorded to it was very limited.

In this case, he agreed with the Church Trustees, that the Worldwide constitution was needed "merely to understand the proper functions and significance of the Shepherd-in-Charge."

He agreed that Trustees needed the Parish's constitution to "identify the objects of their charity, their powers and any limitations upon them, and the discretions available to them."

Judge Hodge also disagreed that the Pastor (Pastor Oshoffa) alone can appoint, and remove, the Shepherd-in-Charge. This power, he said resides with "the Parochial Committee to appoint and dismiss the Shepherd without the need to look to the authority of the Pastor as conferred by the worldwide constitution."

Lawson as Trustee

Judge Hodge agreed with Lawson's Counsel that a proper interpretation of the constitution and of the Shepherd's role within it, are sufficient to make Lawson a charity trustee as a person "having the general control and management of the administration of" the Parish within the definition contained in section 177 of the Charities Act 2011 together with the Parochial Committee and the Trustees.

He noted that this was also how Lawson had been viewed both by the Board of Trustees when (on 5 March 2014) they resolved that the defendant should be removed as a Trustee of the church upon his dismissal as Shepherd and also by the Charity Commission.

Judge Hodge also found that Lawson's role as a charity trustee was consequential upon his appointment and continuing role as Shepherd and would automatically terminate when his role as Shepherd-in-Charge was terminated.

Lawson's employment status

In spite of the fact that Lawson was treated and paid (and taxed) by the Church as an employee, the Judge found "that prior to his dismissal as Shepherd, the defendant was an officer, and not an employee, of the Parish."

This was premised on among other reasons:

(1) There is no written agreement of any kind with the defendant other than by virtue of his membership of the Parish.

(2) There is no evidence of any discussion or decision about the defendant's role by the Parochial Committee or any other body. As against that, it is validly said by the claimants that there was no need for this because, as the late former Shepherd's deputy, Lawson was fully conversant with the nature of the role.

(3) There is no evidence of any control exercised by the Parish over the Shepherd other than in the attempt to discipline him.

(4) The fundamental purpose of the office of Shepherd is spiritual.

(5) The defendant was appointed by the Pastor, albeit at the instigation and with the agreement of the Parish; and there was no agreement between the Parish and the defendant capable of giving rise to a contract between the parties.

Judge Hodge said: "In my judgment, the defendant as shepherd, was not performing a service for the Parish nor was he subject to its control to a sufficient degree to make the Parish his master. Rather he was there to shepherd the Parish, to lead the congregation to Christ and to see to the effective teaching of the Bible within the Parish. I therefore hold that the defendant was an officer and not an employee of the Parish and that his remuneration was properly to be viewed in the nature of a stipend rather than a salary."

Fairness

Judge Hodge also held that the Church acted fairly in its process of dismissing Lawson. He stated that it "is clear on the evidence that I have heard that this was a church congregation polarised between opposition to, and support for, the position of the defendant as the Shepherd-in-Charge. It would have been impossible to have found a representative body of persons within the Parish who had not already made up their minds about the dispute which had riven their church in two. That is clear from the video I viewed and the history of disturbances within the church during the latter half of 2013. The problem for the defendant is that those in the majority on the Parochial Committee were opposed to his continuing role in the church; and they were the democratically elected body seised by the constitution of the Parish with the duty of resolving the stalemate within the Parish. This could not be left to elders from other congregations of the Celestial Church or to the Pastor. It was for the Parochial Committee to do the best they could in the circumstances. On the evidence, I am satisfied that this is what they sought to do in what they considered to be the best interests of the Parish and in accordance with, and in the furtherance of, its charitable objects.

Goodwill

The judge also stated that it "was not disputed before me that the claimants have made extensive use of, and as a result have acquired substantial goodwill in, the name "Celestial Church of Christ, Edward Street Parish" as an organisation operating as a registered charity, conducting religious services and handling donations, governed by rules and for whose conduct the claimants, as trustees, are ultimately responsible. I am satisfied that it would constitute the tort of passing-off for the defendant to represent himself as the Shepherd-in-Charge of the Parish or to misrepresent his services and other activities as those of the Parish."

The Celestial Church of Christ was founded by its first Pastor and Supreme Head - Reverend Samuel Oshoffa, in the Republic of Benin in 1947. It was incorporated in Nigeria in 1958.

The Edward Street Parish was founded in 1990 as an offshoot of CCC's first parish established in the UK, and its UK National Headquarters - Harton Street Parish whose church had burnt down.

Lawson was then only about 25 years of age but as Chairman of the Caretaker Committee, he was influential in founding the new Parish with younger members of the congregation from Harton Street and also in persuading its existing shepherd, Superior Evangelist F.O. Salu to become its first Shepherd.

Lawson left for the USA in about 1998 returning to the Parish in 2007 as Deputy Shepherd. Following the death of Superior Evangelist Salu in July 2011, 156 members of the Parish signed a petition recommending and supporting Lawson to the Parochial Committee, the Trustees and the Pastor for appointment as the Shepherd-in-Charge. He was duly appointed by Pastor Emmanuel Oshoffa by letter dated 11 November 2011; and his appointment was confirmed by a further letter from Pastor Emmanuel Oshoffa dated 11 February 2012.