Canon Law and American Courts: Church Autonomy and the Ministerial Exception

Watson v. Jones (1872)

The law knows no heresy, and is committed to the support of no dogma, the establishment of no sect.

Watson v. Jones, 80 U.S. (13 Wall.) 679, 728 (1872)

Watson involved a dispute over a Presbyterian church in Louisville. The Court held that civil courts must accept the decisions of a hierarchical church’s highest tribunal on questions of “discipline, or of faith, or ecclesiastical rule, custom, or law.”

Serbian Orthodox Diocese v. Milivojevich (1976)

The Illinois Supreme Court had set aside a bishop’s removal as “arbitrary.” The U.S. Supreme Court reversed, relying on “the constitutional mandate that civil courts are bound to accept the decisions of the highest judicatories of a religious organization of hierarchical polity on matters of discipline, faith, internal organization, or ecclesiastical rule, custom, or law” (426 U.S. 696, 713). It found no “arbitrariness” exception.

Jones v. Wolf (1979)

We therefore hold that a State is constitutionally entitled to adopt neutral principles of law as a means of adjudicating a church property dispute.

Jones v. Wolf, 443 U.S. 595, 604 (1979)

Under this approach, a court may look at deeds, state statutes, local charters and the general church constitution, as long as it decides no question of doctrine.

The ministerial exception

The Establishment Clause prevents the Government from appointing ministers, and the Free Exercise Clause prevents it from interfering with the freedom of religious groups to select their own.

Hosanna-Tabor Evangelical Lutheran Church & School v. EEOC, 565 U.S. 171, 184 (2012)

In Hosanna-Tabor, the Court unanimously recognized a “ministerial exception” barring employment-discrimination suits by ministers against their churches. Later, in Our Lady of Guadalupe School v. Morrissey-Berru, 591 U.S. 732 (2020), it applied the exception to Catholic school teachers with religious duties, explaining that “What matters, at bottom, is what an employee does.”

Researching church autonomy in your state

To research church autonomy for a real matter, start with the primary sources. For example, read the statute, the rule and the documents in your own file. Then look for recent appellate decisions from your state, because they control how local courts read the law. After that, compare what you found with the federal rules that may also apply. Our state procedures guide and the Research Center can help you find and check each source.

Sources and further reading

Official sources used on this page:

• static.case.law
• static.case.law
• static.case.law
• static.case.law
• law.cornell.edu

Related reading on Lawtopolis:

• What Is Canon Law? Definition, Sources and Scope
• Church Tribunals and Declarations of Nullity (Annulments)
• Separation of Powers: Legislative, Executive and Judicial Branches