Proposed Amendments:
Primary Synods
Permanent
Judicial Commissions
and the General
Assembly Arbitration
Board
D-5.0101 a. Each Primary Synod (Auburn
Election and
Westminster), each Sub-
Synod, and each Presbytery
shall elect their own Permanent
Judicial Commission from
the
ministers, and elders
subject to their jurisdiction.
Each commission shall be
composed of ministers
and elders in numbers
as nearly equal as possible.
When
the commission
consists
of an odd number
of members, the additional
member
may be either a
minister or an elder.
b. The members
of the
General
Assembly
Arbitration Board shall
be composed of one
member from each
Sub-Synod of each of
the Primary Synods (Auburn
and Westminster). The
Primary Synod Councils
of the Westminster
Primary
Synod and the
Auburn
Primary Synod
shall select one member
from each of their Sub-Synods
to
be the members, and to
constitute the membership of
the General Assembly
Arbitration Board.
c. The Permanent Judcial
Commission
of each of
the Primary Synods
(Westminster and
Auburn), shall be
composed of no fewer
than eleven members
distributed equally,
insofar as possible,
among the constituent
Sub-Synods aligned
with the
Primary
Synod (Auburn or
Westminster), electing
the Permanent Judicial
Commission.
d. The Sub-Synods
of
each
Primary Synod
shall
elect a
Permanent Judicial
Commission
which
shall
be composed of
no
fewer than eleven
members distributed
equally, insofar as
possible, among
the
constituent
Presbyteries aligned
with the same Primary
Synod (Auburn or
Westminster) as the
Sub-Synod.
e. Each Presbytery's
Permanent
Judicial Commission
shall
be composed of no
fewer
than seven members,
with no more than one of
its elder members coming from
any one of the churches
aligned with that Presbytery.
Two
of the members of the
Presbytery
Permanent Judicial
Commission shall be
designated to review
any
petition of original
jurisdiction. The two
members will review
the procedures of the
investigating committee
while the investigation
in a disciplinary case is in
process, and review the
petition and
the evidence to
determine whether to file charges.
These two members shall not
take part in any subsequent
trial.
D-5.0102 The term of each member of
Term each
Primary Synods'
Permanent
Judicial Commission
shall be six years. In each
even
numbered year, each
Primary Synod (Auburn and
Westminster) shall elect members
for
a term of six years to
fill vacancies then occurring,
within that Primary Synod.
Their terms of office shall begin
after their Primary Synod's
Synod General Session,
at which the members of
the Permanent Judicial
Commission, were elected.
They
will then commence
serving as members of
the Permanent Judicial
Commission of their
respective Primary Synod
(either Westminster or
Auburn), The
jurisdiction
of the Permanent Judicial
Commission of each Primary
Synod,
is limited to their Primary
Synod (Auburn or Westminster)
with which they are aligned, and
the lower governing bodies aligned
with
that Primary Synod (Auburn
or Westminster).
The term of
each member
of the General Assembly
Arbitration
Board shall be
six years. In each even-
numbered year, each
Primary Synod (Westminster
and Auburn) shall elect
members
for a term of
six
years to fill the vacancies
then occurring. Their
term of office shall begin with
the adjournment of each Primary
Synod's General Synod
Session, at which the members
of the General Assembly Arbitration
Board were elected.
D-5.0103 In Sub-Synods and
Classes Presbyteries,
commissioners
shall
be elected to their
respective Permanent Judicial
Commission, in two classes,
with
no more than one half
of the members to be elected
in one class. In the first
year,
one class shall serve
for four years, and one
class shall serve
for
six years.
D-5.0104 Any vacancy due to resignation,
Vacancy
death, or any other cause may
be
filled by the electing governing
body, which elected that commissioner,
who caused such vacancy. That
governing body shall elect a person
to fill the unexpired term at any
meeting thereof.
If there is a vacancy on the
General Assembly Arbitration
Board, it may only be filled
by the Primary Synod, (Auburn
or
Westminster), whose
member has resigned, died,
or for any other cause is unable
to assume or continue their
duties on the General Assembly
Arbitration Board.
D-5.0105 No person who has served on a
Eligibility
Permanent Judicial Commission
for a full term of six years shall
be eligible for reelection until
four years have elapsed after the
expired six year term. No person
shall serve on more than one
Permanent Judicial Commission at
the same time. No person shall
serve on a Permanent Judicial
Commission of a Primary
Synod (Auburn or Westminster)
who
is a member of the
other
Primary Synod
(Westminster
or Auburn)
until
that person shall have
resigned such membership.
The Moderator, Stated Clerk,
or
any member of the staff
of a governing body or the
staff of any of its entities or
councils shall not serve on its
Permanent
Judicial Commission.
D-5.0106 All necessay expenses of a
Commission
Permanent Judicial Commission
Expenses shall be paid by the electing
governing body.
D-5.0201 Each Permanent Judicial Commission
Officers
shall meet and elect from its members
a
moderator and a stated clerk.
The General Assembly Arbitration
Board shall meet and elect from
its members a moderator and
a stated clerk.
D-5.0202
Bases of A Permanent Judicial
Commission
Power shall have only the powers prescribed
by, and conduct its proceedings,
according to Chapter D of the
Book of Order, as modified
by these Proposed Amendments
The
General Assembly Arbitration
Board shall only have the powers
prescribed
by, and conduct its
meetings, in accordance with
Chapter
D of the Book
of Order,
as modified by
these Proposed Amendments
D-5.0203 The meetings of the Permanent
Meetings
Judicial Commission shall be held
at such times and places as the
elected governing body shall
direct, or if no directions are given,
at such time and place as the
Commission shall determine.
The meetings of the General
Assembly Arbitration Board
shall be held at such times
and places as the Arbitration
Board shall determine.
D-5.0204 The Quorum of a Permanent
Quorum
Judicial Commission shall be a
majority
of its members, except
that the Quorum of a Presbytery
Permanent
Judicial Commission
for a disciplinary case
shall be a majority of the membership,
other
than the two members assigned
the responsibilities relating to the
cause of action. The quorum of a
Session
for Judicial Process shall be
the moderator of the session and a
majority
of the elder members.
A Quorum for the General Assembly
Arbitration Board shall be a majority
of its members.
D-5.0205 When a church or lower governing
Who shall body
is a party to a case, members
not of the
Permanent Judicial Commission
participate who are also members of that church, or
are also members of that
lower
governing body, shall not
participate in the trail or appeal of
that case.
D-5.0206 If, through absence, disqualification,
Lack of
or disability, a sufficient number of
Quorum the members of a Permanent Judicial
Commission
are not present to
constitute
a quorum, the Permanent
Judicial
Commission shall recess until
a quorum can be obtained.
Inability a. The Permanent Judicial Commission
to reach shall report its inability to reach a
a
Quorum Quorum to the Stated Clerk of the
governing body that elected the
Permanent Judicial Commission.
Roster of b. The Stated Clerk of
the governing
Former body shall keep a
current roster of
Members those members of the Permanent
Judicial Commission whose terms
have expired within the past six
years.
The names shall be arranged
alphabetically
within classes beginning
with the most recent class. Whenever
a
Permanent Judicial Commission
reports its inability to obtain a quorum,
the Stated Clerk shall immediately
select, by rotation, from the roster,
a sufficient number of former members
of the Permanent Judicial Commission
to constitute a quorum. The Stated
Clerk shall report the roster annually
to the governing body.
If the General Assembly Arbitration
Board
fails to assemble a quorum.
All matters shall be continued until
such time as a quorum can be
obtained. The General Assembly
shall reimburse the expenses
reasonably incurred by those
persons required to be
present.
Participant c. If a Permanent Judicial Commission
Expenses is unable to try a case for lack of a
quorum,
the governing body shall
reimburse the expenses reasonably
incurred
by those persons required
to be present.
