Gallagher v Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
Mummery, Jacob and Neuberger LJJ
Rating — Exemption — Places of public religious worship — Mormon temple and other buildings in extensive grounds — Lands Tribunal holding building containing chapel and chapel hall exempt — Whether appellant entitled to exemption for temple and buildings used for missionary training, accommodation for visiting Church members and other purposes — Appeal dismissed
This appeal from the Lands Tribunal (LT) concerned the temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and its associated buildings, which stood on a site of approximately 15 acres. The site had been developed between 1994 and 1998 and, following its completion, the valuation officer (VO) altered the 1995 rating list to show the hereditament under the description “Temple, Training Centre and Premises” at a rateable value of £1.2 with an effective date of 1 June 1998. In addition to the temple the buildings consisted of the stake centre (a large chapel and hall), the missionary training centre, the patrons’ services building, the grounds building, the patrons’ accommodation and the temple missionaries’ accommodation. The VO excluded from the assessment the stake centre on the basis that it was exempt from rating as a place of public religious worship under para 11(1)(a) of Schedule 5 to the Local Government Act 1988. However, the temple missionaries’ accommodation and two flats, one in the missionary training centre and one in the patrons’ accommodation, were all subject to council tax.
The church appealed, contending before the valuation tribunal that all the buildings, other than those assessed to council tax, were exempt from rating under para 11 of Schedule 5 and that the rateable value ascribed to the hereditament was, in any event, excessive.
Rating — Exemption — Places of public religious worship — Mormon temple and other buildings in extensive grounds — Lands Tribunal holding building containing chapel and chapel hall exempt — Whether appellant entitled to exemption for temple and buildings used for missionary training, accommodation for visiting Church members and other purposes — Appeal dismissed
This appeal from the Lands Tribunal (LT) concerned the temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and its associated buildings, which stood on a site of approximately 15 acres. The site had been developed between 1994 and 1998 and, following its completion, the valuation officer (VO) altered the 1995 rating list to show the hereditament under the description “Temple, Training Centre and Premises” at a rateable value of £1.2 with an effective date of 1 June 1998. In addition to the temple the buildings consisted of the stake centre (a large chapel and hall), the missionary training centre, the patrons’ services building, the grounds building, the patrons’ accommodation and the temple missionaries’ accommodation. The VO excluded from the assessment the stake centre on the basis that it was exempt from rating as a place of public religious worship under para 11(1)(a) of Schedule 5 to the Local Government Act 1988. However, the temple missionaries’ accommodation and two flats, one in the missionary training centre and one in the patrons’ accommodation, were all subject to council tax.
The church appealed, contending before the valuation tribunal that all the buildings, other than those assessed to council tax, were exempt from rating under para 11 of Schedule 5 and that the rateable value ascribed to the hereditament was, in any event, excessive.
On appeal, the LT concluded that the stake centre was exempt from rating on the basis that it was part chapel and part chapel hall and was therefore used both “a place of public religious worship within paragraph 11(1)(a)”, and ” a … chapel hall… in connection with a place [of public religious worship] for the purposes of the organisation responsible for the conduct of public religious worship in that place”, within para 11(1)(b). However, it agreed with the VO that the other buildings on the site were not exempt: see RA/62/2004. The appellant appealed.
Held: The appeal was dismissed.
The LT had been right to conclude that, with the exception of the stake centre, which was exempt because it fell within para 11(1), the other buildings on the site were not exempt since none of them came within para 11.
The court’s perspective, when considering whether a building owned and used by a particular religious group qualified for exemption from rating, had to be external, objective and analytical, not internal, subjective or holistic.
The LT rightly considered that it was bound by the decision of the House of Lords in Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints v Henning (VO) [1964] AC 420, where it was held that, pursuant to the predecessor of para 11 (namely section 7(2) of the Rating and Valuation (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1955), the appellant London temple was not exempt for rating.
The inclusion of the new words “to the extent that” in the opening line of para 11(1) did not justify distinguishing, or failing to apply, the reasoning of the House of Lords in Henning to the facts of the instant case. For the purposes of para 11(1)(a), the essential point was that, as here, although the temple was a place of worship, it was not open to the public for that purpose.
Moreover, the temple was excluded from the ambit of para 11(1)(b) because the sacred nature of its function distinguished it from the primarily non-sacred uses characteristic of a church or chapel hall.
Furthermore, the activities in the temple did not fall within para 11(2)(a) since they were not essential to the conduct of worship in the stake centre or other chapels.
Clive Newberry QC and Richard Glover (instructed by Devonshires) appeared for the appellant; Daniel Kolinsky (instructed by the legal department of the Inland Revenue) appeared for the respondent.
Eileen O’Grady, barrister
