The Civil Law Court at the Sixth Judicial Circuit has issued an interim ruling directing that the Stephen Trowen Nagbe United Methodist Church be reopened, even as a heated legal fight over its control and governance continues.
The order, signed by Assigned Circuit Judge George W. Smith, instructs Bishop Samuel Jerome Quire Jr., Father Henry Brunsun, and other officers of the United Methodist Church Liberia Annual Conference to restore the status quo ante, meaning the ST. Nagbe congregation must be allowed to return to the 13th Street edifice for worship and meetings until the case reaches a final conclusion.
This development comes while another related matter is still being handled at the Monrovia City Court. That proceeding, which stems from a writ of summons that temporarily closed the church, was argued earlier this week. The ruling in that case has been reserved for Thursday.
During Monday’s hearing at the city court, defense counsel Atty. Jeremiah Samuel Dugbo I argued that the move for a temporary closure was legally misplaced. He told the court that even if the United Methodist Church and its Liberia Annual Conference hold ownership of the building, the appropriate legal pathway would have been an ejectment action or a summary proceeding to reclaim possession, rather than a closure petition.
Dugbo urged the court to dismiss what he called an “unmeritorious petition,” stressing that the dispute properly belongs before the Civil Law Court, where a petition for declaratory judgment is already pending.
In their presentations, both sides were given ten minutes each to argue, without legal references attached. The petitioners pointed to Chapter 25, Section 25.3 of Liberian law, while the respondents leaned on several provisions of the Civil Procedure Law, including Sections 3.31, 16.1, and 62.1, as well as Article 20(a) of the Constitution.
At the core of the ongoing case is a request by the ST. Nagbe congregation for a declaratory judgment. The petition seeks clarity on leadership authority within the church and interpretation of key doctrines, particularly those concerning marriage and governance in the denomination.
For now, the interim order ensures that the congregation regains access to its church while the broader legal questions remain unresolved.
