Official Statement

Church Issues Statement Regarding Canadian Lawsuit

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints issued the following statement in response to questions from the news media regarding a Canadian lawsuit filed at the Supreme Court of British Columbia on 18 June 2014:

“The lawsuit asks that a small polygamous group change its name to avoid confusion. The group recently changed its name to ‘The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Inc.’ — a name that is far too similar to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which is a worldwide faith with more than 15 million members across the globe. 

“The name change is misleading and has caused confusion. The polygamists and polygamist organizations in parts of Canada have no affiliation whatsoever with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, despite the fact that the term ‘Mormon’ — widely understood to be a nickname for Latter-day Saints — is sometimes incorrectly applied to them.”

Alan Herrington, director of public affairs for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in British Columbia said, “There are more than 190,000 members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Canada, an approximate 30,000 of whom live in British Columbia.”

Style Guide Note:When reporting about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, please use the complete name of the Church in the first reference. For more information on the use of the name of the Church, go to our online Style Guide.