Procedural Conference March 18

Yesterday I attended a procedural conference in the Rector, Wardens, and Vestry cases downtown at the Los Angeles Superior Court. The elected vestry's attorneys had argued that they wanted to try the case with live witness testimony, in addition to written declarations. Lancaster and Anastasia (who said at the conference that they represent the ACA, the Diocese of the West, the appointed vestry, and, interestingly, Marilyn Bush, Diane Kang, and Keith Kang) opposed this.

The basis of the opposition was the same that Lancaster argued unsuccessfully in the January 16 post-remittitur conference: this new trial is actually just another phase of the existing case, that there had been an agreement in the first trial that only written declarations would be used; the whole issue of the case (now that the ecclesiastical question has been thrown out) is the narrow question of validity of the August 6, 2012 vote by the parish to leave the ACA; the procedures in the original trial must be followed, and those used simply to determine the one remaining narrow issue.

Having now attended several of Judge Mary Strobel's calendar sessions, I've gotten an impression of what happens. A lot of the cases are pretty trivial, and there is a certain proportion of bumbling attorneys. (One yesterday morning had his shirt tail out; luckily, he was facing the judge, and she may not have seen it.) Judge Strobel adopts a firm but patient tone with the bumblers, but she has them bumbling out of the courtroom in short order.

Judge Strobel, I've come to notice, adopts the same tone with Mr Lancaster. As best I can reconstruct it, she told him, firmly but briefly, "Mr Lancaster, the appeals court has sent this case back on remand. This is not just a new phase of the earlier trial. We are starting over with a new trial. The elected vestry is entitled to call witnesses." And that was just about it.

Since legal strategies are confidential, and I'm just a friend and supporter of the elected vestry, the parish, and Fr Kelley, I simply don't know what witnesses their attorneys intend to call, nor what they mean to establish. But clearly they've prevailed on this issue.

There will be a final status conference on April 7, and the trial will begin April 14. Naturally, I plan to attend both. However, Judge Strobel will be assigned to the appeals court then, and a substitute judge will preside over the trial. I'd come to like Judge Strobel!

Mr Lancaster wore black pinstripes yesterday; every other time I'd seen him, it was the same gray suit.