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Archbishop Byrnes Takes Rms to Court over Yona Property

By Janela Carrera
Pacific News Center
January 25, 2017

http://www.pacificnewscenter.com/local/12436

Although the church's legal counsel says the lawsuit is a protective measure, they do have reason to believe that the RMS may attempt to claim interest or ownership in the property.

Guam - Archbishop Michael Byrnes has taken legal action against the Redemptoris Mater Seminary and if successful would force the RMS to completely give up any interest or ownership of the disputed property where the RMS sits on.

 

It's been silent on the hill on any kind of actions on the Yona seminary property since Archbishop Michael Jude Byrnes took critical steps to take back ownership of the multimillion dollar property.

 

But now, even amid silence from either parties, a lawsuit was filed against the Redemptoris Mater Seminary operators who had previously held a deed restriction that conveyed the title to their name.

 

Attorney Ignacio Aguigui, who's representing the Archdiocese of Agana and Byrnes in this matter, says this lawsuit was filed as "protective action."

 

We asked that in the absence of any concrete response from the RMS faction, whether legal action is necessary. 

 

"Well as with any legal action, there are decisions that have to be made about what particular actions to take, whether they are transactional documents that need to be executed and filed or court action," noted Aguigui.

 

The dispute over the Yona property had been brewing for years. It became the subject of protests and backlash from the community. Archbishop Anthony Apuron refused to deed the property back to Archdiocese control and insisted that the deed restriction to the RMS was a measure taken to protect the asset and that it did not give the property away.

 

But after the removal of Apuron from his post over allegations of sexual abuse and the appointment of Byrnes as coadjutor archbishop, that all changed. Byrnes immediately took action, abolishing the RMS board and signing documents to return the property. 

 

"I think prior to the lawsuit, of course this is an issue of public concern in the community, and so I think there may have been some disagreements in the past before the archbishop had actually taken over," said Aguigui.

 

The complaint states that Byrnes is "informed and believes and thereon alleges that one or more of defendants may claim or continue to claim, through one or more recalcitrant individuals purporting to act on their behalf, an interest in the Yona Property adverse to the plaintiff's ownership and interest."  

 

In their lawsuit, the archdiocese is asking to quiet the title solely in its name and prohibit the RMS from having any enforceable interest in the property through a preliminary and permanent injunction.

 

They are also asking for a judgment declaring the archdiocese as having sole and exclusive legal title to the Yona property, among other requests.

 

You can read the complaint in full by clicking on the file below.

 

 

 

 

 




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