We are excited to share a recent legal victory achieved by Shareholder John Safarli and associate John Stevenson in Midland County. Representing a prestigious private school and three administrators, our firm sought a summary judgment dismissal of plaintiffs’ entire lawsuit.
Our legal team filed a plea to the jurisdiction based on the ecclesiastical abstention doctrine; a legal principle that deprives courts of subject matter jurisdiction over claims involving religious matters. The court dismissed the three individual administrators with prejudice on both summary judgment and ecclesiastical abstention grounds. The court also dismissed with prejudice five of the six claims brought against the school, dealing a devastating blow to plaintiffs’ case.
The remaining cause of action is for defamation, for which plaintiffs did not support with any evidence of significant damages during discovery, as their attorneys were focused almost entirely on the other causes of action that did not survive. The rulings significantly narrowed the scope of the lawsuit and were celebrated by the clients.
The outcome also reflects Macdonald Devin’s proficiency at litigating the ecclesiastical abstention doctrine, a vital legal defense to protect private schools, churches, and other religious entities from claims that infringe on First Amendment rights.
