Church Law & Tax Report
January/February 1988
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Articles
Recent Developments
Issues that affect ministers and churches, with Richard R. Hammar
Defamation; First Amendment
Jehovah's Witness congregation could not sue the church for defamation
Charitable Contributions
Charitable Contribution Deductions Were Disallowed in Two Tax Court Decisions
Charitable Contributions; Schools
No Deduction Is Available for a Charitable Contribution of Services
Charitable Contributions
Charitable Contribution Deduction for Tuition Payments Denied
Church Business Meetings
Civil Courts May Never Interfere in the Selection of Clergy
Tax Exemption
Two Religious Organizations Lost Tax-Exempt Status
Church Members; First Amendment
Court Lacked Jurisdiction to Resolve the Claims of Parishioners
Church Property
Church Loses Property after Withdrawing from Denomination
A deed to a church's property may dictate who maintains ownership of the property in the event of a dispute.
Income Taxes - Clergy
IRS Ruled Rabbi Qualified for the Housing Allowance Exclusion
Copyright; First Amendment
Congress Extending Copyright Violated First Amendment
Fair Labor Standards Acts
FLSA Applied to Contractor Used by Church Vocational Program
Freedom of Religion; Schools
Free Exercise Clause Not Violated by Textbooks Used in Public Schools
Charitable Contributions; Payroll Tax Reporting; Tax Exemption
The Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Bill of 1987
Provisions of interest to churches and clergy
Charitable Contributions
Charitable Contribution Cannot Be Substantiated by Oral Testimony
Freedom of Religion
Constitution Bars Civil Courts from Resolving Disputes over Rules Set by Religious Organizations
Civil court barred from resolving a dispute over a parliamentary ruling made at the 1985 Southern Baptist Convention.
Freedom of Religion; Schools
Public School Impermissibly Violated Church School's Religious Freedom
Income Taxes - Clergy; Tax Exemption
Methodist Deacon Failed to File a Timely Application for Exemption from Social Security Taxes
Taxation - Church Property
Church Denied Property Tax Exemption for Failure to File an Application
Church Property; Tax Exemption
Seventh Day Adventists Did Not Qualify for the Exemption of Parsonages under State Law
Church Property
Freedom of Religion; Zoning
Court Struck Down Zoning Ordinance Used to Prohibit Religious Meetings in Private Residences
Freedom of Religion
Court Ruled Priest Could Not Sue Catholic Hospital for Wrongful Discharge
Freedom of Religion; Schools
Court Reversed Ruling Books Constituted an Impermissible Establishment of the "Religion of Secular Humanism"
A federal appeals court reversed a lower court ruling on books used in the Alabama public schools.
First Amendment
Annual Display of a Nativity Violated the First Amendment
