The South Carolina Supreme Court agreed Wednesday to hear the appeal of the Episcopal Diocese in South Carolina, the faithful diocese, in the process agreeing with the diocese to bypass the state appellate court. This is the second heartening piece of news for the diocese in recent days. Two weeks ago the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals remanded a false advertising case to the U.S. District Court in Charleston; the district judge had refused to hear that case brought by the faithful diocese until the state case ran its course. (The breakaway diocese on Wednesday appealed the order of 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.)
The S.C. Supreme Court agreed Wednesday to hear a lawsuit over a local Episcopal Church schism involving more than $500 million in church properties, bypassing the state appellate court in the complex case.
The justices set a Sept. 23 date to hear oral arguments.
“We are pleased that the court has agreed to hear the case, and we look forward to presenting our positions on these important issues before the Supreme Court,” said Thomas S. Tisdale, Jr., chancellor of The Episcopal Church in South Carolina, which comprises about 30 parishes that remain with the national church after the split.