On 13 December 1980, the priests of the Shōshinkai sent a document to Nikken casting doubt on the legitimacy of his office. They then filed suit with a local government court on 21 January 1981 seeking to annul Nikken's appointment on the grounds that he had never been named successor by Nittatsu. Nikken demanded that the Shōshinkai priests retract their accusations or face excommunication. Some two hundred priests refused. Upon the publicized notice of excommunication, a number of them filed a lawsuit seeking reinstatement, but the local court ruled that all religious claims, including the petition for annulment of Nikken's status were internal Nichiren Shoshu matters to be resolved within the sect itself.