Who owns the steeple?

Religion | Litigation looms over church property as conservative congregations and dioceses consider leaving mainline denominations | Edward E. Plowman

As The Episcopal Church (TEC) finds itself cracking apart, the question on everybody's mind is: "Can departing churches keep their property?"

The answer: It depends. Courts differ in how they handle church property disputes. State corporate laws governing property ownership, deeds, and trusts are far from uniform and may be subject to conflicting interpretations. So, as litigation looms, attorneys on all sides are busy researching case law and assembling briefs.

Many denominations have clauses declaring that property owned by congregations is held in trust for the denomination: A church is free to leave, but not with its property. For many years, most courts routinely deferred to denominational law in property disputes—especially in cases involving "hierarchical" denominations with structured top-down government, including TEC, the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) (PCUSA), and the United Methodist Church (UMC). All three are strife riven over doctrine and discipline—and ownership of church property.