 The government of the diocese affecting both clergy and laity was vested entirely in the bishop , who appointed officers to the ecclesiastical , criminal and civil courts . The bishop , assisted by his chapter , produced the church laws and regulations for the bishopric and these were enforced at occasional diocesan synods by the bishop or , in his absence , by the dean . Appointed officials adjudicated at consistory courts looking at matters affecting tithes , marriages , divorces , widows , orphans , wills and other related legal matters . In Moray , these courts were held in Elgin and Inverness . By 1452 the Bishop of Moray held all his lands in one regality and had Courts of Regality presided over by Bailiffs and Deputies to ensure the payment of revenues from his estates . 
