Purpose

The Interdiocesan Tribunal serves as the court of second instance for the Metropolitan Province of Baltimore which includes the Archdiocese of Baltimore and the dioceses of Arlington, VA; Richmond, VA; Wheeling-Charleston, WV; and Wilmington, DE.  The tribunal serves to protect the rights of both the petitioner and the respondent at all levels of the judicial process.

The Interdiocesan Tribunal of the Province of Baltimore serves two canonical purposes.

First, the Interdiocesan Tribunal provides an automatic canonical review of a marriage annulment case. The court ratifies, rejects, or opens a new hearing on the decision rendered by the respective first instance Metropolitan Tribunal.  Church law requires two affirmative decisions for the validity of a declaration of annulment of a marriage. The Interdiocesan Tribunal functions as a collegiate tribunal (three judges) in reviewing the decision of the first instance tribunal.

Second, the Interdiocesan Tribunal provides for a second full hearing of an annulment case at the request of the Defender of the Bond, the Advocate of either the Petitioner or the Respondent, or the Petitioner or Respondent themselves.   A second full hearing of the case usually takes place when one of the parties disagrees with the decision of the first instance (Metropolitan) tribunal and wants to introduce new evidence or requests a new hearing on the matter.  The case is heard by a collegiate court of three judges.

The Church employs a judicial process that seeks to protect the rights of both parties (Petitioner and Respondent) in the annulment process.  A final option in the appeal process is an appeal of the decision of a case directly to the court of the Roman Rota.  This appeal involves special fees and expenses.

Note:  Due to privacy concerns, email cannot be used to conduct any official Interdiocesan Tribunal business.  Please use the telephone or regular mail to contact the Interdiocesan Tribunal for any official matters.

Interdiocesan Judges

Rev. Frederick Annie; Dr. Diane Barr; Ms. Barbara Bettwy; Rev. Thomas Cassidy; Rev. Msgr. William Collins; Rev. Michael C. Connolly, O.S.F.S.; Rev. Frederick Feusahrens; Rev. William Graham, O.F.M., Cap.; Rev. Christian Haydinger; Rev. Jordan, Hite, T.O.R.; Rev. Mark A. Lane; Rev. John S. Ledford; Rev. Martin McGuill; Rev. Christopher Moore; Rev. Eugene Ostrowski; Rev. Msgr. Jospeh Rebman; Rev. Richard A Reissmann; Rev. Robert J. Rippy, V.F.; Rev. William Schardt; Rev. Msgr. Thomas Shreve.

Interdiocesan Defenders of the Bond of Marriage

Rev. Robert E. Avella; Rev. Charles Dillingham; Dr. Michael J. Doiron; Rev. James F. Kauffman; Rev. Thomas J. Lehning, PhD; Rev. Richard Mooney; Rev. Cyprian Rosen, OFM. Cap.; Rev. Richard Shoda; Rev. Gerald T. Weymes.

Notaries

Mrs. Rena Bowman; Ms. Teresa Ewen; Mrs. JoAnn Kubasko; Ms. Kathleen McIntosh; Rev. Frank J. Ready.