[Lnc-business] The Judicial Committee decision and how it effects the Libertarian National Committee

[Tim Hagan]

Can the Judicial Committee's decisions and minutes be placed on the website? I've gotten copies of the 2011 opinions and clarification, but think it would be helpful for LNC members, interested party members, & party historians to have JC decisions, opinions, and minutes archived and conveniently available.

Thanks,Tim Hagan
      From: Nicholas Sarwark <chair at lp.org>
 To: lnc-business <lnc-business at lp.org> 
 Sent: Tuesday, September 15, 2015 8:08 AM
 Subject: [Lnc-business] The Judicial Committee decision and how it effects the Libertarian National Committee
   
All,

I assume that you all have had a chance to read the document forwarded
to this list by the Secretary and myself.

There are a number of procedural defects in how the Judicial Committee
came to meet, whether notice was proper, whether the issue they took
up was actually authorized by the Bylaws, whether the explicit
enumeration of causes in the Bylaws precludes rescinding a prior
decision four years after the fact, etc.  Any one or more of those
would make the decision we received invalid.  If anyone would like to
discuss the specifics of those issues, I'm happy to do so.

However, I think it's more productive to proceed with the decision we
received and leave what to do about the process that allowed it to
occur to the delegates in convention in Orlando in 2016.

By a vote of 4-2, the current Judicial Committee decided to rescind
the decision of the prior Judicial Committee in Wagner v. LNC.  Wagner
v. LNC reversed decisions of the Executive Committee of the LNC that
constructively disaffiliated the Libertarian Party of Oregon without
the appropriate vote of the full LNC by recognizing officers and
bylaws different from those recognized under state law as the officers
of the Libertarian Party of Oregon, which is organized as a political
party under the laws of the state of Oregon.

For reference, the three Executive Committee motions originally adopted are:
"--------------------------Motion 1------------------------
Based upon the available evidence, the Executive Committee of the
Libertarian National Committee finds that the Bylaws of the
Libertarian Party of Oregon (as amended March 14-15, 2009) are the
Bylaws of the Libertarian Party of Oregon, and that these bylaws have
been in effect since March 15, 2009.  (This motion was adopted by a
vote of 6-1.)
--------------------------Motion 2------------------------
Based upon the available evidence, the Executive Committee of the
Libertarian National Committee recognizes as the officers of the
Libertarian Party of Oregon those people elected by the State
Committee during its meeting on May 21, 2011. They are:
Chair:  Tim Reeves
Vice chair:  Eric B. Saub
Secretary:  Carla J. Pealer
Treasurer:  Gregory Burnett
(This motion was adopted by a vote of 6-1.)
--------------------------Motion 3------------------------
The Executive Committee of the Libertarian National Committee urges
the members of the Libertarian Party of Oregon to work together to
resolve their disagreements. (This motion was adopted by a vote of
7-0.)"

It is important to understand what a motion to rescind can and cannot
do to understand the effect of the Judicial Committee ruling.  Under
Robert's, motions to rescind cannot undo what has been done.  If a
body votes to paint a building green, then paints the building green,
a subsequent motion to rescind the decision to paint the building
green does not unpaint the building, nor does it repaint the building
a different color.  New action by the body is required to repaint the
building.

Accordingly, rescinding the decision that reversed the motions of the
Executive Committee listed above has the effect of saying that the
current Judicial Committee disagrees with the decision of the prior
Judicial Committee.  It also reinstates the sense of the Executive
Committee in 2011 that "based on the available evidence" a certain
group of people and a certain set of bylaws were the correct ones for
the Libertarian Party of Oregon.

However, in the subsequent four years, perhaps in the spirit of
"work[ing] together to resolve their disagreements," there has been
extensive litigation in Oregon state courts over who controls the
Libertarian Party of Oregon, a political party organized and governed
by Oregon state law.  The result of that litigation has been that the
Libertarian Party of Oregon is presently chaired by Lars Hedbor.  The
rival group, presently chaired by Ian Epstein, has been ordered to act
as a Political Action Committee, as there may not be more than one
political party referred to as the "Libertarian Party of Oregon."
There is an appeal pending, but the decision of the lower court was
not stayed on appeal, so the lower court decision stands.

The Libertarian Party of Oregon has nominated and run many Libertarian
candidates for public office in the last four years, including placing
Gary Johnson and Jim Gray on the ballot in 2012 as the Presidential
and Vice Presidential nominees, as required by the affiliation
agreement between the Libertarian National Committee and the
Libertarian Party of Oregon.

The LNC affiliates with state Libertarian parties.  Some of those
parties are allowed or required to organize under state laws, some are
not.  In Oregon, the LNC is affiliated with the Libertarian Party of
Oregon, an Oregon political party.

If the members of the Libertarian National Committee feel that the
Oregon political party, the Libertarian Party of Oregon, should no
longer be our affiliate in the state of Oregon, for whatever reason, a
motion to disaffiliate that political party as our state affiliate is
in order.  Until such time as such a motion is moved and passes, it is
my intent as Chair of the Libertarian National Committee to maintain
the affiliate agreement with the Oregon political party, the
Libertarian Party of Oregon.  This would not and will not change
should future litigation change who is in control of that political
party.

Yours in liberty,

Nick

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