Lawyers file to dismiss lawsuit over tithing fraud against LDS church, investment arm

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Lawyers file to dismiss lawsuit over tithing ****** against LDS *******, investment arm

NOTE: A lawsuit represents only one side of a story.

SALT LAKE CITY (

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) — A recent court filing by lawyers representing

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investment arm

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claimed the plaintiffs did not provide sufficient proof of ****** related to the use of tithing donations — and the defense is seeking to have the case dismissed.

The lawyers filed the motion and memorandum in Utah’s District Court on Sept. 10, saying the court should dismiss the lawsuit with prejudice, which means the plaintiffs would be unable to refile the same claim in court.

The LDS ******* filed a motion to dismiss the case simultaneously, according to documents.

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The LDS ******* and Ensign Peak are at the center of several lawsuits, with one recently being filed in Jan. 2024. According to the Sept. 10 filing, the *******’s lawyers seek to dismiss a lawsuit

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by Daniel Chappell, Masen Christensen, and John Oaks.

The motion to dismiss argued the plaintiffs were “improperly disparaging the ******* and Ensign Peak” without “any viable claim against the ******* or Ensign Peak.”

The plaintiffs claimed the LDS ******* defrauded them by not immediately using their tithing donations for religion or charity, but instead investing their donations in Ensign Peak and “hoarding,” according to the filing.

“Holding and investing the *******’s reserve fund is a charitable function the law explicitly approves,” the filing argued.

The defense is arguing against each of the plaintiffs’ claims of ****** or fiduciary duty, noting the suit does not show a relationship between the plaintiffs and Ensign Peak.

The plaintiffs filed their suit after Utah’s three-year statute of limitations for ****** cases, according to the motion. The court is also unable to determine “materiality” without violating the First Amendment, the defense said.

Background on the case

The plaintiffs argued that Ensign Peak “breached a common law fiduciary duty it allegedly owed them,” according to the Sept. 10 filing. Furthermore, the plaintiffs argued Ensign Peak helped the LDS ******* breach its fiduciary duty to the plaintiffs.

“When someone has a fiduciary duty to someone else, the person with the duty must act in a way that will benefit someone else financially,”

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.

Against the plaintiffs’ claiming a breach of fiduciary duty, the defense argued that the plaintiffs had no relationship with Ensign Peak — “much less a fiduciary one,” the filing said. The defense further argued that the LDS ******* does not owe its members a fiduciary duty.

The plaintiffs claimed

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against Ensign Peak, meaning one party was tricked into a disadvantageous agreement through fraudulent representations and statements, according to Cornell.

The Sept. 10 filing said the plaintiffs argued Ensign Peak did not fulfill its mission for the LDS *******, but rather collected donations without using them for charity.

The defense argued the plaintiffs ******* to present the necessary factual allegations to plead ******, because the plaintiffs reportedly did not identify any statements made to the plaintiffs by Ensign Peak. Instead, the plaintiffs opted to quote Ensign Peak’s articles of incorporation. The motion to dismiss the case also said Ensign Peak operates “solely to invest the reserve funds for the *******.”

The third cause of action the plaintiffs argued was fraudulent concealment, arguing the LDS ******* and Ensign Peak had the duty to inform donors of the *******’s reserve fund.

The defense argued Ensign Peak did not have a duty of disclosure, and that the plaintiffs did not plead

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. The defense also argued that a judge or jury cannot assess materially without violating the First Amendment and the ******* Autonomy Doctrine.

The plaintiffs also made a claim for

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, saying they were assured their tithing donations would not be used for City Creek Center, a mall in Salt Lake City.

The plaintiffs claimed

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against Ensign Peak, but the defense said the plaintiffs “do not allege that they conferred any benefit upon Ensign Peak.”

The plaintiffs also made allegations about Ensign Peak’s IRS and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filings. However, the defense argued the plaintiffs were unaware of the disclosures until a 2019 letter to the IRS or later, and were unable to plead a “viable claim against the ******* or Ensign Peak.”

Finally, the defense said the plaintiffs’ claims were barred by the three-year statute of limitations that “applies to all claims grounded in ******,” saying the plaintiffs did not identify information that was not available at least three years before they filed suit.

The defense also argued the plaintiffs said they were not aware of Ensign Peak’s existence until 2019, and ultimately said all the claims against Ensign Peak should be dismissed without prejudice.

The motion to dismiss the lawsuit can be read in its entirety below:

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#Lawyers #file #dismiss #lawsuit #tithing #****** #LDS #******* #investment #arm

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