Cueto
A status hearing in a suit brought by a break-away Catholic church against its former attorneys has been moved to June.
St. Clair County Circuit Judge Lloyd Cueto signed an order March 3 moving a status conference in the case filed by Polish-Roman Catholic St. Stanislaus Corporation to June 13 at 9 a.m.
The defendants in the suit, the St. Louis law firm of Greensfelder, Hemker and Gale P.C., have also filed moves to take the suit across the river to Missouri, claiming that St. Stanislaus engaged in "forum-shopping" when it filed suit against Greensfelder in St. Clair County last year.
St. Stanislaus is also embroiled in a lawsuit in St. Louis.
In the Missouri lawsuit, the Archdiocese of St. Louis is attempting to regain control over St. Stanislaus.
The church broke away from the diocese due to a dispute with former Archbishop Raymond Burke over who controlled the church and its property.
According to the St. Clair County suit, the firm allegedly encouraged St. Stanislaus' former attorney Roger Krasnicki to use his knowledge of the church against it in the dispute with the archdiocese.
The church also claims Krasnicki shared confidential information about his client with his firm and breached the standards of professional conduct governing attorneys.
Greensfelder filed a motion seeking to transfer the case to Missouri. In that Dec. 20, 2010 motion, the law firm alleges that aside from a satellite office it maintains in Swansea, there is no connection between St. Stanislaus' claims and St. Clair County.
Michael Nester represents the Greensfelder firm.
Thomas Keefe Jr. represents St. Stanislaus in the St. Clair County action.
The case was formerly assigned to St. Clair County Circuit Judge Robert LeChien.
The case is St. Clair case number 10-L-545.