Canonical Services

Introduction

In this section of my website you can find most of the canonical services I offer. The services concern all possible areas of Church law. However, the list is not exhaustive so please feel free to contact me even if you do not find what you are looking for. I am always willing to assist you. In the webpage you will find:

Marriage Nullity Consultation

This canonical service is aimed at individuals who are married in the Catholic Church and seeking a declaration for nullity. Several aspects of the persons’ lives need to be discussed in a consultation concerning the marriage nullity. It can be a difficult moment for you. After all, it is about a challenging period of your life. My job is to help you answer these questions so that together, we formulate a petition to present to the competent Ecclesiastical Tribunal. Suppose the Tribunal finds that the petition is well-founded. In that case, the Tribunal will eventually call you to initiate your marriage nullity case. Some of the questions that I can help you answer are:

  • Which Ecclesiastical Tribunal do I contact?
  • What does the process entail?
  • Do I have a ground for nullity?
  • Why go through an Ecclesiastical Tribunal?
  • How much will the entire process cost me?

Clerical Laicisation and Religious Exclaustration Consultation

Like marriage nullity cases, clerical laicisation and religious exclaustration can be daunting for the person involved. Opening up to tell your story to another is no easy task. The process also requires formulating a petition and examining the facts and proofs by a competent Ecclesiastical Tribunal. I can help you answer several questions that might burden you and assist you throughout this challenging journey upon request. Some of the questions I can help you answer are:

  • What does the process consist of?
  • Do I have a good reason to ask for the dispensation?
  • Who should I involve in my case?
  • I was incardinated in different dioceses. Which Ecclesiastical Tribunal is competent?

Petition Formulation

The large number of petitions in the Church concern marriage nullity. However, petitions are needed to initiate any case with an Ecclesiastical Tribunal (e.g. for a priest who seeks to be laicised, or to seek your rights in the Church which you believe are being infringed). Formulating a solid petition takes time and it is crucial because it is the petition that initiates a case. The Tribunal, has the right to refuse it nonetheless. Additionally, canon law asks for specific details that need to be included in a petition. Consequently, the stronger the petition, the higher the chances are for it to be accepted. This is something I can assist you with.

Acting as your Advocate in an Ecclesiastical Process

A canon lawyer can act as an advocate in any Ecclesiastical Process. The role of the advocate is to assist the petitioner (or the respondent) throughout the case by reminding them of their rights and helping them ask the necessary questions to the Tribunal, among other things. In a marriage nullity case, you can choose to have or not to have an advocate. In a penal case, the defendant must always have an advocate specialising in canon law. Some Ecclesiastical Tribunals have a list of persons they allow to be advocates in the cases that fall under their competence. Consequently, I can help you by being your advocate in a case, and I can also help you in finding another canon lawyer that may assist you in your case. You may also feel free to ask questions or contact me even if I am not part of the case.

Advice about Reporting Abuse in the Church

We constantly hear of several kinds of abuse in the Church on the news. Some of us are the ones experiencing such abuse. We must remember that to take action, the Church needs to know what is happening, which is why reporting is crucial. Although it is pretty clear from canon law how the Church deals with abuse, it can vary from one country to the other, depending on the Church-State agreements and status. In this regard, I can assist you by hearing your concerns and advice you on what to expect and where you can report such allegations. I can also assist you in the reporting phase. The process in this case will depend on the type of allegation, proofs and details you can provide me with, whether you want to remain anonymous (which is a possibility), to name a few.

Advice About the Parish

This canonical service is mainly for bishops and parish priests. The parish is a juridic person who has seen many changes throughout the years. The parish priest is the administrator in charge of the parish. The other clerics assist him in all the areas of the parish, especially in liturgical matters. The religious and the laity may also assist him in several areas, particularly in the administrative area, to name just one. As the vocations of the priesthood have been declining globally, the parish has suffered greatly from the lack of priests. Consequently, parishes had to divide, merge or become suppressed. These significant changes require a lot of legal, pastoral and financial thinking. Moreover, each parish has its own reality, meaning that a merger of two or more parishes in one diocese may vary from a merger of two or more parishes in another. I can help you with this reorganisation.

Other Organisational Advice

This canonical service primarily aims to assist bishops. However, it can also benefit the rest of the Christian Faithful. There are several ways I can assist you here. You might be part of a marriage preparation movement or perhaps need an opinion, as a bishop, on how to organise the diocesan vicariates. As part of my canon law studies, I researched in particular about canon law’s role in the catechesis domain. I provide an example of how catechesis can be organised in a diocese. If you want to read more about my research, you may find a soft copy here.

Administrative Advice

This canonical service is to assist Church administrators. Part of my role as a canon lawyer is to help Church administrators formulate or amend statutes, policies and norms to reflect the Church’s mission and laws. Such advice may be crucial because the Church has lost or had to give up many assets throughout the years due to poorly formulated statutes and other equally essential documents. These documents safeguard the future of the Church, the persons involved and the belongings of the Church and other juridic persons. Suppose you are founding a new association or need to revise your statutes. I can help you with this. If you need to create a new set of policies or norms for a council, association, parish, or diocese, to name a few, I can help you with this, too.

Do you have any other questions? Please feel free to contact me through the contact form.