LCMS Commission on Constitutional Matters — Minutes St. Louis, Missouri — November 6–7, 2010, Page 10

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3.9.2.1.1 The Commission on Constitutional Matters shall be appointed in the following manner:
(a) Candidates shall be nominated only by the district boards of directors and shall be
presented to the Council of Presidents through the Office of the Secretary.
(b) The Council of Presidents shall select five candidates for each vacant position and
present them through the office of the Secretary of the Synod to the President of the Synod.
(c) The President of the Synod, in consultation with the vice-presidents of the Synod, shall
appoint the members of the commission from the list presented by the Council of
Presidents.
(d) Thereafter the appointments shall become effective upon ratification by a majority vote
of the members of the Council of Presidents.
(e) Vacancies in appointed positions shall be filled by following the procedure set forth
above.
3.9.2.2

The Commission on Constitutional Matters shall interpret the Synod's Constitution, Bylaws,
and resolutions upon the written request of a member (congregation, ordained or commissioned
minister), official, board, commission, or agency of the Synod.
(a) A request for an opinion may be accompanied by a request for an appearance before the
commission.
(b) The commission shall notify an officer or agency of the Synod if a request for an
opinion involves an activity of that officer or agency and shall allow that officer or agency
to submit in writing information regarding the matter(s) at issue.
(c) An opinion rendered by the commission shall be binding on the question decided unless
and until it is overruled by a convention of the Synod. Overtures to a convention that seek
to overrule an opinion of the commission shall support the proposed action with substantive
rationale from the Constitution, Bylaws, and resolutions of the Synod. All such overtures
shall be considered by the floor committee to which they have been assigned and shall be
included in a specific report to the convention with recommendations for appropriate
action.
When an opinion pertains to business, legal, or property matters and the Board of Directors
of the Synod concludes that such opinion of the commission is contrary to the laws of the
State of Missouri, the board and the commission, or their respective representatives, shall
meet jointly to discuss the issue(s) and seek resolution thereof. If agreement cannot be
reached on whether the matter is governed by the laws of the state of Missouri, that
question shall be presented to a five-member panel consisting of three hearing facilitators
(Bylaw 1.10.12) chosen by blind draw by the Executive Director of Internal Audit of the
Synod from the pool of hearing facilitators; one person appointed by the Commission on
Constitutional Matters; and one person appointed by the Board of Directors. At least one of
the hearing facilitators shall be an attorney, and the appointees of the commission and
board shall not be members of the groups that appointed them. The decision of the panel in
support of the Commission on Constitutional Matters or the Board of Directors shall be
binding on the issue(s) unless and until it is overruled by a convention of the Synod.

3.9.2.2.1 The Commission on Constitutional Matters shall examine all reports, overtures, and resolutions
to the Synod asking for amendments to the Constitution and Bylaws of the Synod or which in
any manner affect the Constitution and Bylaws, to determine their agreement in content with
the Constitution and Bylaws of the Synod.

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