Texas Court Awards Judge Dianne Hensley $640,000 in Same-Sex Wedding Case

3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Jun 24

A Travis County district court awarded Texas justice of the peace Dianne Hensley more than $640,000 after finding her religious-freedom rights were violated when she was disciplined over same-sex weddings.
The award includes $10,000 in damages and about $630,000 in attorneys' fees tied to a dispute that began in 2018, when the State Commission on Judicial Conduct warned her over her refusal to officiate such ceremonies.
Hensley said she stopped performing same-sex weddings because of her Christian faith but set up a referral system so couples could obtain another officiant without extra cost or delay.
First Liberty Institute, which represented Hensley with attorney Jonathan Mitchell, called the ruling a victory for people of faith; the judicial conduct commission declined comment.
The case ran for eight years and comes after Texas' high court and legislature changed judicial rules and commission structure to allow more room for religious accommodation.