Article I, Volume III
Constitution and Bylaws
Reissued: January 1, 2013
One of the first documents a church should prepare is a constitution or by-laws or both. By-laws contain the rules of the church regarding service, management, procurement and other necessary requirements. Also, guidelines for selection and removal of officers and members to and from various positions.
Without proper guidelines, churches often get entangled in legal matters that they just cannot wiggle out of. These problems can occur in so many ways, including disgruntled employees, church members pressing for something to go their way, when it is clear that the church does not want to make the step.
In a court of law, generally, the first item a judge want to see is the church's constitution or by-laws. If a church does not have either of the documents the matter may fall 100 percent in the hands of the judge to make a decision.
For example, in 1999 a church hired a pastor, but did not enter into a written agreement with him until 2005.The employment agreement contained a provision for a term of two years. This agreement could only be voided with the unanimous consent of both the pastor and the church. In 2006, some members of the church became dissatisfied with the pastor's performance and decided to terminate his employment contract.
The former pastor sued the church for breach of contract and wanted $77,000 for damages. The lower court ruled in favor of the church, and dismissed the lawsuit. However, a state's appeal court reversed the lower court decision and the case was allowed to go to trial.
My point is not who won or loss, but if the contract would have been more specific the church could have avoided all the money spent on the case.
One item that pops out in the contract is that it states that termination would require unanimous consent of the pastor and the church. This in effect, means that there can be no termination unless both parties agree. Surely, the pastor (party #1) is not going to agree to be fired without some compensation.
Often, there is no contract whatsoever. Therefore, it is very difficult to terminate the services of an unwilling pastor in those cases. The firing can be further complicated if the church does not have any bylaws or constitution.
Copyright 2013 Grady E. Bryant, Sr..
