Unification Church Loses 14 Year Suit Against Founder’s Son

Preston Moon, son of the late Unification Church founder Rev. Sun Myung Moon, convinced the District of Columbia’s highest court to end an 14 year dispute with church members who said that he defrauded them of $3 billion.

Moon’s lawyers told the DC Court of Appeals that the dispute couldn’t be resolved without breaching church autonomy, under a doctrine that broadly encourages secular courts to avoid delving into religious matters. The case now casts further doubt that those courts will open the door to more church suits.

The plaintiffs claimed Moon inappropriately transferred Church assets through a nonprofit, charitable holding ...