Cleveland, Ohio, Feb 27, 2005 / 22:00 pm
An Ohio woman’s fight to save her Catholic marriage from civil no-fault divorce took another important turn when Ave Maria School of Law professor Stephen Safranek submitted an argument to the state court.
His memorandum, submitted on behalf of the defendant, Marie Bai Macfarlane, argues that the divorce case must be transferred to a Catholic Ecclesiastic Tribunal for arbitration.
Safranek argues that Ohio law “favors arbitration agreements and seeks to uphold them.” He cited legal precedents in favor of arbitration, including cases where religious tribunals were the arbitrators.
“A failure of the courts to recognize the arbitration rights of the Catholic Church in this case not only violates the understanding Marie had when she entered upon this marriage, it necessarily entangles this court in issues relating to Catholic law, teaching, faith and belief,” wrote Safranek.