January 11, 2005

Diocese, state head to court

MANCHESTER (NH)
The Union Leader

By KATHRYN MARCHOCKI
Union Leader Staff

MANCHESTER — The state and Roman Catholic Diocese of Manchester yesterday said the agreement they reached in 2002 is valid and should be enforced, although they remain at odds over how the diocese's child protection policies and procedures should be evaluated.

In dispute is a provision requiring annual audits to determine if the diocese is in compliance with the agreement's terms and diocesan policies.

To date, no audits have been done as both sides wrangled over what the scope of the audit should be.

The matter went to court last September. Judge Carol A. Conboy questioned whether the agreement is void if both sides never reached a "meeting of the minds" required for a contract to be effective.

In briefs filed in Hillsborough County Superior Court, both sides said the language clearly shows the agreement is valid; they detailed positions they will make during oral arguments set for Jan. 20.

Posted by kshaw at January 11, 2005 07:52 AM