Katholisch-Apostolische Kirche Europa

Judicial Proceedings and Decisions

Introduction

This page documents judicial proceedings and decisions concerning the Catholic Apostolic Church Europe or its Archbishop.

The purpose is to provide an objective, transparent, and verifiable presentation of the legal proceedings, enabling visitors to form their own opinion on the basis of the original documents.

In accordance with the biblical principle, “Test everything; hold fast what is good” (1 Thessalonians 5:21), the position of the Catholic Apostolic Church Europe, that of the Roman Catholic Church, and the contents of the judicial decisions are presented.

The position of the Catholic Apostolic Church Europe

The Catholic Apostolic Church Europe is an independent Christian Church with its own ecclesial leadership, liturgy, and canon law. It understands itself as an apostolic Church and, according to its own ecclesial self-understanding, considers its bishops to stand in apostolic succession.

The position of the Roman Catholic Church

The Roman Catholic Church holds a different canonical and theological assessment. It does not recognize the Catholic Apostolic Church Europe as part of its ecclesial communion and does not recognize its ministers as ministers of the Roman Catholic Church.

The judicial proceedings

In connection with publications by the Diocese of Aachen, proceedings took place before the Regional Court (Landgericht) Aachen and subsequently before the Higher Regional Court (Oberlandesgericht) Cologne. The courts were not called upon to decide questions of faith or apostolic succession, but rather the legal permissibility of particular statements and publications.

The judicial decisions

The decisions were made on the basis of state law. They concern the legal arguments presented by the parties in the specific proceedings and do not replace an ecclesial or theological assessment.

Official designation in the decision of the Higher Regional Court Cologne

In the decision of the Higher Regional Court Cologne dated 17 June 2025, case no. 15 U 21/25, Gioacchino Collica is designated in the caption as “Herr Erzbischof Gioacchino Collica” (“Mr Archbishop Gioacchino Collica”).

The complete decision and the other original documents are published on the website so that every interested person may verify them independently.

Summary

The Catholic Apostolic Church Europe supports transparency and openness. For this reason, it makes the judicial decisions available in full and advocates respectful dialogue, respect for differing ecclesial positions, and an objective presentation of the facts.