LCMS Commission on Constitutional Matters — Minutes St. Louis, Missouri — October 2, 2002, Page 7

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panelists from himself as well as from the respective disputants at the same time as the
information is supplied by the Secretary of the Synod to the panelists?”
Opinion: This question has two parts. The first is "a reconciliation panel proceeding" which the
Commission assumes to be a Dispute Resolution Panel, and the second, a "disqualification proceeding"
which the Commission assumes to be the three-member panel to rule on disqualification (Bylaw 8.17).
Bylaw 8.07 f states:
f. Upon conclusion of the formal reconciliation meeting or meetings, the reconciler
shall prepare a written report which contains the actions of the reconciler, the facts agreed
to, the facts remaining in dispute and whether reconciliation has been achieved. Attached
to the report shall be:
1. the statement of the complainant as to informal reconciliation efforts;
2. the statement of the matter in dispute;
3. any reply by the respondent.
The report and the attachments shall be forwarded to the parties to the dispute and the
Secretary of the Synod or District as appropriate.
Bylaw 8.07 h states:
h. If the complainant requests formation of a Dispute Resolution Panel, the Secretary
of the Synod or his representative shall within 21 days select such a panel in the
prescribed manner and then forward to each panel member a copy of the report of the reconciler with its attachments.
Thus, the Bylaws require the Secretary to simultaneously forward the same material to both parties to the
dispute as well as to the members of the Dispute Resolution Panel.
Bylaw 8.17 relates to a procedure to be followed when a party to a dispute alleges that one or more
members of a Dispute Resolution Panel have actual partiality or the appearance thereof. The bylaw states
that if the panel member does not agree to the disqualification, “the decision shall be made by a separate
three-member panel of reconcilers drawn for that purpose.” The bylaw is silent as to the procedure to be
followed by this panel. However, since the Bylaws require that the same material be forwarded to the
parties to the dispute as are forwarded to panel members after a Dispute Resolution Panel is formed, the
Commission rules that the same practice must be followed upon formation of the three member panel to
rule on the allegation that an individual chosen to be a member of a Dispute Resolution Panel is
disqualified by reason of actual partiality or the appearance thereof.
Question 4:

“If a party in a dispute requests a face to face meeting with a dispute panel once formed,
should not that request automatically be honored by the chairman of the panel?”

Opinion: Several portions of the Bylaws are relevant to this question:
a. The Dispute Resolution Panel shall meet in person, or by telephone conference,
within 30 days after its appointment, for the purpose of selecting a chairman and
secretary. After the chairman confers with the parties to the dispute, the Dispute
Resolution Panel shall choose a location and a date for the formal hearing of the matter
(Bylaw 8.09 a).
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