Mormon Church Must Face Fraud Lawsuit Over Tithe Spending (1)

A lawsuit over the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints’ spending of tithe money is not a religious dispute, the Ninth Circuit ruled Monday in reversing summary judgment and rejecting the church’s First Amendment defense.

Whether the church misled a long-term church-goer into believing that neither tithe funds nor interest earned would go to a commercial mall property is up to a jury to decide, the court said.

James Huntsman, who says he gave tithe to the church from 1993 until 2015, alleged that the church said that no tithing funds would go to finance ...