Judge in Texas Wins Massive Payout After Refusing to Officiate Same-Sex Weddings
A judge in Waco, Texas, who declined to officiate same-sex weddings on religious grounds has been awarded $10,000 in damages and more than $630,000 in attorneys’ fees after successfully challenging disciplinary action taken against her.
Judge Dianne Hensley, a Christian, was sanctioned by the State Commission on Judicial Conduct after recusing herself from performing same-sex marriage ceremonies, according to a release from First Liberty Institute, the legal organization that represented her.
Rather than perform those ceremonies, Hensley created a list of other officiants willing to conduct same-sex weddings for the same fee she charged.
Despite that accommodation, the Commission issued Hensley a Public Warning, alleging that she had violated the Texas Code of Judicial Conduct.
After nearly seven years, McLennan County Justice of the Peace Dianne Hensley has prevailed in her lawsuit against the State Commission on Judicial Conduct after she declined to perform same-sex ceremonies as part of her duties. https://t.co/TlCiGsVdid
— The Texan (@TheTexanNews) June 23, 2026
Hensley subsequently sued the Commission, arguing that the disciplinary action violated her rights under the Texas Religious Freedom Restoration Act.
The Commission argued that Hensley could not “welcome to her chambers heterosexual couples for whom she willingly offers to conduct marriage ceremonies” while declining to officiate same-sex weddings because of her sincerely held religious beliefs, according to The Christian Post.
In a separate case, the Texas Supreme Court ruled on Jan. 9 that the State Commission on Judicial Conduct “has no authority under state law to discipline judges who refuse to perform same-sex weddings for moral or religious reasons,” according to First Liberty Institute.
Following that decision, the district court overseeing Hensley’s lawsuit ruled in her favor.
“Judge Hensley always adhered to the law and the legal guidance provided by the Attorney General of Texas,” Hiram Sasser, executive general counsel for First Liberty Institute, said in a statement. “We are grateful that this case has concluded and that Judge Hensley was vindicated.”
Texas Judge Dianne Hensley won $640K after being disciplined for declining to officiate same-sex weddings because of her religious beliefs. #ReligiousLiberty #Texas #FirstLiberty #DianneHensley #ChristianPost
🔗 https://t.co/XZhWohROhn https://t.co/wnKsCbxBvt pic.twitter.com/zXRN1naEnQ
— The Christian Post (@ChristianPost) June 23, 2026
First Liberty Institute also noted that, although Hensley’s litigation has concluded, the Commission remains the defendant in a statewide class-action lawsuit brought on behalf of justices of the peace who stopped performing weddings altogether to avoid potential disciplinary action over same-sex marriage ceremonies.
According to the organization, the lawsuit seeks tens of millions of dollars in damages for income allegedly lost by justices of the peace across Texas.
Hensley has also filed a separate lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas challenging the constitutionality of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, according to The Christian Post.
Her complaint argues that officiating a wedding is a form of protected speech and contends that the Commission violated her constitutional rights by requiring her to perform same-sex marriages as a condition of continuing to officiate weddings. The complaint states: “Officiating a wedding ceremony is speech, and the commissioners are preventing Judge Hensley from engaging in this speech unless she agrees to perform homosexual marriages in violation of her Christian faith and in violation of Texas law.”
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Original Article: Texas Judge Wins Massive Payout After Refusing to Officiate Same-Sex Weddings
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