Hawthorne v. Couch

• Decision Date: 20 December 2006
• Docket Number: No. 41,603-CA.,41,603-CA.
• Citation: 946 So.2d 288
• Parties: Ivan HAWTHORNE and Healthworks International, LLC, Plaintiff-Appellant v. Michael R. COUCH, Defendant-Appellee.
• Court: Court of Appeal of Louisiana — District of US

946 So.2d 288

Ivan HAWTHORNE and Healthworks International, LLC, Plaintiff-Appellant v. Michael R. COUCH, Defendant-Appellee.

No. 41,603-CA.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Second Circuit.

December 20, 2006.

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

James A. Rountree, for Appellants, Ivan Hawthorne and Healthworks International, LLC.

Cook, Yancey King & Galloway, by Herschel Erskine Richard, Jr., Shreveport, John Tucker Kalmbach, Jason B. Nichols, for Appellees, Michael R. Couch and The Apostolic Tabernacle, Inc.

Before STEWART, DREW and LOLLEY, JJ.

DREW, J.

Ivan Hawthorne and Healthworks International, LLC, of which Hawthorne is a member, appeal a judgment dismissing their suit against defendants, Michael Couch and Apostolic Tabernacle, Inc., the church where Couch is pastor.¹ The trial court granted defendants' exceptions of res judicata and lack of subject matter jurisdiction, and awarded attorney fees and expenses of $22,852.19 to defendants after dissolving plaintiffs' writ of sequestration. We affirm.

FACTS

Much of the relevant background in this case can be gleaned from an opinion in a previous appeal involving a lawsuit ("Hawthorne I") brought by Hawthorne against these same defendants:

This case is solely one regarding tithes paid by Hawthorne to the Apostolic Tabernacle, Inc. In July 2004, Ivan Hawthorne filed suit against Michael R. Couch and the Apostolic Tabernacle, Inc. (the "Apostolic Tabernacle"). In his petition, Hawthorne sought repayment to him of tithes he paid the church, in addition to damages, reasonable attorney fees, and costs of the proceedings. The petition alleged that Couch, the pastor of the Apostolic Tabernacle, obtained Hawthorne's tithe by exerting a powerful influence over members of his church, demanding total submission to his authority, and gaining complete control of the members' minds and money. Hawthorne further alleged that Couch involved himself in the day-to-day business of Healthworks International, LLC, "the business plaintiff shared with Sam Noble" ("Healthworks"). According to Hawthorne, Couch exerted "complete control over the minds of plaintiff and Noble and other executives in Healthworks International." In particular, Hawthorne alleged that Couch told him and Noble that they had to increase their tithes, and that Couch convinced them to pay tithes on the gross income of Healthworks; Couch allegedly threatened Hawthorne with "judgment and hell" if he did not pay up.

Hawthorne stated in his petition that Couch knew his teaching was not biblical, but that Couch was "overwhelmed with greed and power" and at some point had the idea that he would take over Healthworks. Hawthorne alleged that the effort to comply with Couch's false teaching was bankrupting the company, and when Couch felt he had the owners and the company "on their knees," he offered to purchase the business for a nominal sum.

Hawthorne indicated that he always intended to tithe on his income, as opposed to the gross receipts of Healthworks, that Hawthorne gave money to the appellees under duress, and that Hawthorne felt he did not have free will. Hawthorne also asserted that Couch's "misrepresentation of the Bible" was fraud, that Couch knew his teaching was false, and that Couch knew Hawthorne was relying upon that teaching in making excessive contributions to the appellees' enrichment. Finally, Hawthorne asserted that when Couch had "sucked [Hawthorne] dry," he turned on Hawthorne and attempted to drive a wedge between Hawthorne and his wife who remained a member of the Apostolic Tabernacle.

* * * * *

The exceptions came on for hearing at the trial court. After hearing witness testimony and considering argument of counsel, the trial court took the matter under advisement. Ultimately the exceptions filed by Couch and the Apostolic Tabernacle were granted. As to the exception of no right of action, the trial court noted that Hawthorne had conceded he must amend his petition to include Healthworks as a party-plaintiff. The exception of lack of subject matter jurisdiction was also granted, with the trial court noting that under both federal and state jurisprudence, civil courts are prohibited from resolving church disputes requiring the interpretation of church laws and practices, as well as being prohibited from interfering with ecclesiastical and administrative church matters. . . .

Hawthorne v. Couch, 40,162 (La.App.2d Cir.9/21/05), 911 So.2d 907, 908-9 (footnote omitted). This court affirmed the judgment granting the defendants' exception of no right of action and lack of subject matter jurisdiction.

While that appeal was pending, Hawthorne and Healthworks filed suit ("Hawthorne II") against Couch on July 1, 2005. It was alleged in Hawthorne II that Couch was in possession of a bulldozer, a welding machine, and a trailer that belonged to one or both plaintiffs.² Plaintiffs complained that when they attempted to recover these items from Couch, he asserted that the equipment had been donated by Healthworks to him. Plaintiffs also alleged that they had a lessor's lien on an airplane that had been stored in their hangar until shortly before the petition was filed. The remedies sought by plaintiffs were an award of rent for Couch's possession of the bulldozer, welding machine, and trailer, and use of the hangar, and the issuance of a writ of sequestration against the three pieces of equipment and the airplane. The trial court subsequently ordered the seizure of the airplane, bulldozer, trailer, and welding machine.

Couch filed a motion to dissolve the writ of sequestration on July 12, 2005. Among the grounds that Couch cited in support of his motion was that the writ should be dissolved as to the bulldozer, trailer, and welding machine because he did not assert any interest in any of that property. He also contended that the writ should be dissolved as to the airplane because plaintiffs had not asserted the existence of a lease to support their claim of a lessor's privilege.

On July 25, 2005, in response to plaintiffs' main demand in the petition, Couch filed the exceptions of res judicata, lack of subject matter jurisdiction, prescription, no cause of action, and lack of procedural capacity. On July 27, 2005, the trial court granted leave to Hawthorne and Healthworks to amend their petition to add Apostolic Tabernacle, Inc., as a defendant.

Following a hearing in which the trial court heard testimony and accepted various documents into evidence, the trial court granted the exceptions of res judicata and lack of subject matter jurisdiction, dissolved the writ of sequestration, and dismissed Hawthorne and Healthworks' claim with prejudice. Regarding the dissolution of the writ of sequestration, the trial court awarded attorney fees of $22,582.19 to defendants. Hawthorne and Healthworks appealed, complaining that the trial court erred in sustaining the exceptions of lack of subject matter jurisdiction and res judicata, and in awarding attorney fees related to the dissolution of the writ of sequestration.

DISCUSSION

Lack of Subject Matter Jurisdiction

In Glass v. First United Pentecostal Church of DeRidder, 95-1442 (La.App. 3d Cir.6/12/96), 676 So.2d 724, 728-9, the court discussed the prohibition against courts refereeing disputes that are grounded upon matters of ecclesiastical doctrine. Attached as an appendix to that opinion were the trial court's reasons for judgment, which set forth the relevant law on that issue:

The First Amendment of the United States Constitution and Article 1, Section 8 of the Louisiana Constitution both guarantee religious freedom and have been interpreted to forbid courts from interfering in the ecclesiastical matters of religious groups. The Serbian Eastern Orthodox Diocese for the U.S. and Canada v. Milivojevich, 426 U.S. 696, 96 S.Ct. 2372, 49 L.Ed.2d 151 (1976); Wilkerson v. Battiste, 393 So.2d 195 (La.App. 1 Cir.1980). This prohibition extends to matters of religious discipline, faith, or custom, as well as to the appointment and removal of ministers. Milivojevich, supra; Joiner v. Weeks, 383 So.2d 101 (La.App. 3 Cir.1980). However, there are limits to this prohibition, and in those cases where religious doctrine is not involved, or may be deferred to, civil courts retain the power to resolve disputes. LeBlanc v. Davis, 432 So.2d 239 (La.1983); Bourgeois v. Landrum, 396 So.2d 1275 (La.1981); Thomas v. Craig, 424 So.2d 1090 (La.App. 1 Cir.1982); Rose Hill Baptist Church v. Jones, 425 So.2d 348 (La.App. 3 Cir.1982); Wilkerson v. Battiste, supra.

Although Hawthorne II is concerned with the donation of equipment instead of money as in Hawthorne I, this suit once again involves the parties in a controversy that is ecclesiastical in nature. At the hearing on the exceptions and the motion to dissolve the writ, the trial court listened to testimony from Couch, Hawthorne, Sam Noble (the other member of Healthworks), and Mark Batterton (the manager of Healthworks).³ The trial court found that there was no doubt that the equipment and hangar space had been donated to satisfy a tithing obligation, and that backtithing was at the core of the parties' positions as to the property at issue.

The transfer of ownership of the equipment is evidenced by three acts of donation that were executed on May 22, 2003, and were signed on behalf of Healthworks by Batterton as CFO. These acts of donation list Healthworks as the donor and Apostolic Tabernacle, Inc., as the donee. Couch then wrote three letters on May 27, 2003, to Healthworks to serve as receipts of the donations for tax purposes.

Hawthorne testified that he was not aware of these donations until May or June of 2005. Hawthorne stated that Batterton lacked authority to donate Healthworks' property, and that he never authorized Batterton to execute the donations. Noble stated that he did not become aware of the acts of donation until a few weeks prior to the hearing on the exceptions. Batterton testified that Noble had said...