In a guest post, Shirani Herbert, Legal Correspondent of the Church Times, reviews the errors, irregularities and illegality following the removal of pews under licence

Re: Church of St Michael, Bath, Twerton-on-Avon, [2024] ECC B&W 1

What happens when property belonging to a church is disposed of unlawfully by a third party and is unlikely to be retrieved?  In those circumstances, a confirmatory faculty seems completely ineffective, and the Consistory court has to accept the reality of the situation and hope for the best. The court refused to grant a faculty which would include “bestowing a cloak of subsequent legality to cover a wrongdoing”. Continue reading →