Erika E. Cole, Esq., known as The Church Attorney®, and host of Church Law podcast, is one of only a handful of attorneys in the nation who practices exclusively in the area of church law. Erika has dedicated her life to being willing to help churches of all denominations and sizes ensure that their legal affairs are in order so they can focus on spreading their message, serving their communities, and growing their ministries.

For nearly two decades, Erika has partnered with ministries to address everything from church planting and new leadership transitions to buying and selling property, succession planning, and helping leadership address the spectrum of governance matters. Leading churches and denominations have selected her to serve as their General Counsel. When she isn’t serving as General Counsel for her clients, she has also assisted churches and ministries in obtaining 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status with a 100% success rate.

Whether handling an unexpected legal crisis or legal audit or helping churches through the buying, selling, and construction of property, Erika’s philosophy has remained the same: to provide the same level of excellence, diligence, and counsel across the board.

She has shared her skills by teaching the next generation of lawyers and community leaders as a past professor at the University of Baltimore School of Law and Loyola College of Maryland in their MBA program.

Her calling to support churches and empower its leaders propelled her to join a year-long mission in Latin America where she worked with churches and their members and advanced human rights. Upon returning, she started a missions ministry at her own church and subsequently participated in almost a dozen other mission trips.

Erika’s reputation as a thought leader in the church law community has attracted a myriad of opportunities, such as:

2011: Appointed to the Panel of Legal Experts for the Commission of Accountability for Religious Organizations.

2013: Appointed to Board of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability.

2016: Admitted to the Bar of the Supreme Court.

2017: Combined her law firm with Whiteford, Taylor & Preston, LLP, a law firm with more than 160 attorneys, providing an expanded platform for her services as The Church Attorney®.

Erika became an Editorial Advisor for Church Law & Tax in 2017, and a Senior Editorial Advisor in 2020.

Erika and her husband Brien are happily married and are the loving parents of two sons.

Lisa A. Runquist has more than 40 years of experience as a transactional lawyer, both with nonprofit organizations and business organizations. She has working knowledge of corporate law, securities law, franchise law, intellectual property law, employment law, tax law, and constitutional law (First Amendment).

Lisa graduated from the University of Minnesota Law School in 1976. She was admitted to the Minnesota Bar in 1977 and the California Bar in 1978. Her firm, Runquist & Associates, is based in Northridge, California.

Lisa’s work has included forming, maintaining, merging, and dissolving organizations; writing contracts; negotiating; dealing with regulatory agencies; drafting securities offerings; advising clients; analyzing problems; and constructing solutions.

Lisa has served in numerous capacities for a variety of organizations, including adjunct professor at both Trinity Law School and Shiloh University; various committees with the California Bar; several councils and committees of the American Bar Association; and numerous director and board roles with several professional and educational organizations, such as the advisory board of The Exempt Organization Tax Review and the publications board of the American Bar Association’s Business Law Section.

Throughout her career, Lisa has received numerous awards and honors and was the first person to receive both the “Outstanding Lawyer Award” and the “Vanguard Award” for lifetime achievement presented by the ABA’s Business Law Section. In 2011, Runquist was appointed by the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability (ECFA) to serve on the legal experts panel for the Commission on Accountability and Policy for Religious Organizations, which was formed at the request of Senator Charles Grassley (R-Iowa). She has been rated “AV Preeminent” by Martindale Hubbell for more than 25 years, and she was selected in 2013 as a “Super Lawyer” for Southern California.

Lisa became an Editorial Advisor for Church Law & Tax in 2014, and a Senior Editorial Advisor in 2020.

Midgett S. Parker, Jr., began practicing law in 1985. He developed and refined his legal acumen in commercial real estate and business law while in private practice with law firms in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan region. In February 2020, Midgett opened the Law Office of Midgett S. Parker, P.A., in Prince George’s County, Maryland

Midgett’s practice involves counseling clients on a variety issues ranging from government regulations to internal operations. He has led numerous land-use cases before local zoning officers, boards, commissions, and councils. Midgett has worked with government officials at federal, state, and local government levels on matters as diverse as tax legislation, affordable housing, and land-use regulations.

Midgett has provided legal counsel to business, church, and developer clients in land acquisition, land-use regulations, financing, construction contracts, and dispute resolution in the construction process. His involvement with churches and other religious institutions includes legal representation through zoning and subdivision; permits and interaction with building inspectors; acquisition contracts, loan negotiation, and refinancing; tax exemptions; arbitration of post construction claims; and final acceptance of the new facility. Midgett has earned and maintained for over 25 years the highest rating (AV) in Martindale-Hubble peer review for strong legal ability and ethical standards.

Midgett became an Editorial Advisor for Church Law & Tax in 2009, and a Senior Editorial Advisor in 2020.

Vonna Laue has worked with ministries and churches for more than 25 years. Vonna was a partner with a national CPA firm serving not-for-profit entities through audit, review, tax, and advisory services. She then held the role of executive vice president for a Christian ministry that works to enhance trust in the church and ministry community. Vonna now focuses her time on financial and operational consulting for churches and ministries.

Vonna became an editorial advisor for Church Law & Tax in 2009, and a Senior Editorial Advisor in 2020.

Vonna earned her B.S. degree from Black Hills State University and her MBA degree in leadership and human resource management from the University of Colorado. She has served on local and national boards and has published articles in multiple national publications as well as co-authored three books . In 2010, Vonna was inducted into The Church Network’s Church Management Hall of Fame. Her speaking experience includes a variety of regional and national conferences.

Mike Batts is the managing partner of Batts Morrison Wales & Lee (BMWL).  Mike has more than 30 years of experience serving hundreds of nonprofit organizations in a variety of ways.  He has served on and chaired the boards of nonprofit organizations, both nationally and locally.  Mike is a member and former chairman of the board of ECFA, an organization that accredits Christian organizations in the areas of board governance and financial integrity. 

He advises nonprofit organizations on matters related to board governance, financial oversight, tax compliance and strategy, risk management, corporate structure, international activities, and related topics.  Mike has actively engaged in nonprofit legislative matters at the federal and state levels.  He served as chairman of the Commission on Accountability and Policy for Religious Organizations, a national legislative advisory commission convened to address tax policy recommendations for Congress, the Treasury Department, the nonprofit sector, and the giving public. 

Mike has authored several books covering a variety of topics important to nonprofit organizations, including books addressing board member responsibilities, financial administration, and unrelated business income.  Mike’s newest book is entitled Nonprofit Finance: The Field Guide for Financial Operations of Ministries, Schools, and Other Public Charities (Accountability Press, 2023).  Together with its companion book Church Finance: The Church Leader’s Guide to Financial Operations (Christianity Today, 2019), the two work in tandem to cover the topic of nonprofit finance – one written primarily for churches and one written for ministries, schools, and other public charities. 

Mike became an Editorial Advisor for Church Law & Tax in 2009, and a Senior Editorial Advisor in 2020.

Mike is a summa cum laude graduate of Stetson University, where he studied accounting.  He received state and national recognition for scoring the highest in the state on the Florida CPA examination.  Mike leads BMWL’s national headquarters office in Orlando as well as their Dallas office.

James F. Cobble, Jr., co-founded the Church Law & Tax Report and Church Finance Today print newsletters—the precursors to ChurchLawAndTax.com—in 1987 and 1993, respectively, and other related resources with Richard R. Hammar.

Jim received his master of divinity degree from McCormick Theological Seminary, and also holds doctoral degrees from both Princeton Theological Seminary and the University of Illinois. He combined his training as a pastor and educator with extensive research and writing in the field of church administration, writing or co-writing 20 books and receiving induction into the church management “hall of fame” by The Church Network. He is now retired.

Frank Sommerville is an attorney who served for about 30 years at the law firm of Weycer, Kaplan, Pulaski & Zuber, P.C. in Houston and Dallas, Texas. He received his bachelor’s degree in business from Texas Wesleyan University. He received his master’s degree in professional accounting with an emphasis on taxation from the University of Texas at Arlington. His law degree is from the University of Houston Law Center.

Frank holds a license as a Certified Public Accountant. He is also Board Certified in Tax Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. He is rated AV (highest possible) by Martindale-Hubbell Legal Directory.

Frank brings more than thirty years of experience to bear in all his representations. Frank has served nonprofit institutions of all sizes as a bookkeeper, accountant, auditor, tax advisor and advocate, litigator, and legal advisor. He has represented many nonprofit organizations before the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). He also has represented nonprofit organizations under examination by the Texas attorney general.

Frank has presented seminars on nonprofit taxation since 1981. Due to his significant contributions to the church administration profession, Frank was inducted into The Church Network’s “Hall of Fame” in 2003. He contributed to PPC’s Nonprofit Tax & Governance Guide: Helping Organizations Comply (Thomson Reuters, 2011), and also served on the Panel of Legal Experts in 2011 to assist Senator Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) and the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability’s Commission for Accountability and Policy for Religious Organizations.

Frank became an Editorial Advisor for Church Law & Tax in 2009, and a Senior Editorial Advisor in 2020.

He is married to Elaine Sommerville, and they reside in Grand Prairie, Texas. Frank and Elaine have three daughters, one son, three sons-in-law, and four grandchildren. They are longtime members of Gospel Lighthouse Church in Dallas.

Elaine L. Sommerville is licensed as a certified public accountant by the State of Texas. She has worked in public accounting since 1985. Her practice has and continues to be centered primarily on the tax compliance aspects of nonprofit organizations and churches. She has assisted in the representation of several large case IRS exams as well as other IRS examinations of smaller organizations. Elaine devotes her time to handling various IRS issues for individuals and for exempt organizations of various types. She actively consults on many IRS compliance issues for churches and other nonprofit organizations and prepares information returns of all types for tax exempt organizations.

Elaine is the author of Church Compensation: From Strategic Plan to Compliance (Christianity Today, 2021).

Elaine holds a Bachelor of Business Administration in Accountancy and Information Systems from the University of Texas of the Permian Basin. She is the sole shareholder of the CPA firm of Sommerville & Associates, P.C. Located in Arlington, Texas, the firm employs 10 staff members who provide tax, accounting, and consulting services to over 300 churches and nonprofit organizations.

Elaine’s CPA practice is not only centered on nonprofit organizations in areas of tax compliance, but she also has a passion for training those who work for churches and nonprofit organizations and those who work with churches and nonprofit organizations. She is a regular speaker for the Texas Society of CPAs, The Church Network, the Houston Church Coop, and she is an instructor for the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants (AICPA). As an instructor for the AICPA, she teaches eight-hour classes to other CPAs in areas of tax planning for nonprofit organizations and in the preparation of the Form 990. She is a contributing author to various publications produced by Christianity Today and by Thomson Reuters/PPC, including the PPC Nonprofit Tax and Governance Guide.

Elaine is a member of the AICPA, the Texas Society of CPAs, and The Church Network. She also serves on the board of Alive at Last, a ministry dedicated to rescuing young women out of the bondage of sex trafficking.

Elaine became an Editorial Advisor for Church Law & Tax in 2009, and a Senior Editorial Advisor in 2020.

She is married to Frank Sommerville, and they reside in Grand Prairie, Texas. Frank and Elaine have three daughters, one son, three sons-in-law, and four grandchildren. They are longtime members of Gospel Lighthouse Church in Dallas where they are frequent growth group leaders and Elaine serves in the worship ministry. When not consumed by work, church, and/or family, they make their way to Galveston to enjoy the beach.