Christians and Lawsuits
Posted by steve on Monday, August 14 2006

Author: Matthew B. Tozer

May a Christian sue another Christian? Does the Bible permit Christians to sue at all? This condensed summary briefly discusses these important matters and provides Biblical answers to these questions.

Summary: According to 1 Corinthians 6:1-8, a Christian is not to civilly sue another Christian in a secular court of law. Rather, the disputed matter should be arbitrated or judged by a wise Christian or Christians. In our modern societal system, there are exceptional situations that may not fall squarely within this principle. Such special circumstances may be found in the full text of this article (titled "Two Wrongs Don't Make a Right") located at: http://www.christian-attorney.net/christians_lawsuits.html .

Sometimes, the issue is not black and white. In those "gray area" cases, ask God and yourself these questions:

"Is a lawsuit in secular court my only reasonable option, or is there another way to remedy my situation?"

"Do I have an improper motive in filing a lawsuit such as revenge, anger, hurt feelings, stubbornness, impatience, or greed?"

"Is the church equipped to resolve this legal dispute with my brother?"

"Are there Christian lawyers, retired Christian judges, or other professionally trained Christian mediators available to negotiate and/or adjudicate this legal dispute with my fellow Christian?"

Secular Courts are ordained by God (Romans 13:1-7).
Therefore, there is no prohibition against a Christian suing a non-Christian in a secular court.



About the author:
About the author: Matthew B. Tozer is a Christian attorney located in southern California. His website is http://www.christian-attorney.net.

To read other articles written by Matthew Tozer relating to Christianity and the law, go to http://www.christian-attorney.net/christian_legal_chronicles.html