Church's suit against OneUnited reinstated

Roxburys Charles Street AME Church has won a key legal round against a bank that plans to foreclose on the historic house of worship this month.

The 194-year-old congregation has convinced an appeals court to reinstate the churchs counter-lawsuit against Boston-based OneUnited Bank.

State Appeals Judge Peter Agnes Jr. reversed a lower courts move to dismiss the churchs claims against OneUnited, which plans to seize Charles Streets property on March 22.

OneUnited has scheduled a foreclosure auction because the congregation failed to pay off a $1.1 million balloon mortgage that came due recently.

The two sides have been feuding since 2009, when OneUnited froze a second $3.6 million construction loan the church got to build a community center.

OneUnited sued Charles Street over that debt a move the church maintains made it impossible to refinance the loan on the church proper.

The congregation originally counter sued, but a lower court dismissed Charles Streets claims for lack of evidence.

However, Agnes found that the church might be able to prove the building loans terms violated state consumer-protection laws.

The judge cited the state Supreme Judicial Courts landmark 2008 Fremont decision, which found that state law prohibits mortgages that banks know from the beginning will likely end in foreclosure.

Considered in its totality, the (churchs) allegations are certainly as egregious as those involved in Fremont, Agnes wrote.

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Church's suit against OneUnited reinstated