Tribunal

The Diocesan Tribunal Office, as defined in canon law, is an extension of the bishop’s judicial ministry in the diocese; and as such, is concerned in a special way with the quest for justice. Grounded upon and obedient to the Magisterial teaching of the Church, the Tribunal serves as a means of delineating responsibilities and protecting rights as they are authentically proclaimed and legitimately codified in Church Law. In addition to studying petitions for declarations of nullity and Privilege of the Faith cases, the Tribunal offers these other services:

• acts as a resource to the bishop for canonical matters
• serves as a consultative agency for priests, religious, and laity in canonical policy or programs related to marriage
• assists agencies and institutions of the diocese with information of policy or programs related to marriage
• serves as a public relations agency and/or a source of information with regard to canonical matters, especially marriage
• serves as First Instance Court of petitions challenging the validity of marriage and judges by trial the rights of physical and juridical persons.