Re: Witnessing in Public Places
February 26, 2017
Page 2
4. Site Permission and Insurance Coverage: In some public locations, permission may be needed from a manager or secular authority before setting up a literature display. The service overseer or someone else designated by the body of elders should determine what may be legally required, if anything, in the way of permissions, permits, and insurance coverage. Any application to use a mobile cart or to set up a table or kiosk to display literature must be filled out in the name of an individual publisher, not in the name of the congregation, any corporation used by the organization, or “Jehovah’s Witnesses.” If a small administrative fee is needed in order to acquire space in a public area, it is to be paid by the individual publisher, not the congregation. Publishers should carefully review any such applications to see what responsibility they are taking upon themselves with respect to liability and possible proof of insurance coverage. Publishers who apply to distribute literature at these areas are doing so on their own initiative as part of their personal ministry.
5. At times, administrators or managers have waived insurance requirements when the voluntary and non-commercial nature of our Bible educational work was explained to them. Any meeting that is held with a location’s manager should be informal, such as one between neighbors in a community, and not a discussion of legal rights. If this meeting is unsuccessful or an excessive fee is required, the body of elders should identify other public areas within their congregation’s territory where public witnessing equipment could be used effectively