Texas judge awarded $640K after same-sex wedding dispute

A Texas judge who was disciplined for declining to officiate same-sex weddings received a legal victory, First Liberty Institute said Friday. McLennan County Justice of the Peace Dianne Hensley was awarded $10,000 in damages and $630,000 in attorneys’ fees, according to a district court’s final judgment issued last week. The State Commission on Judicial Conduct will have to pay out the fee. The court also permanently barred the state's judicial oversight agency from any further discipline, sanctions, or investigations against Hensley in this matter.

Hensley, who presides over a jurisdiction that includes Waco, Texas, told local news outlet KERA News that the win protects Texas judges' religious rights. The commission acted out of bias and not in line with the law, Hensley said.

How did the case get to this point? In 2017, the judge told the Waco Tribune-Herald she would not officiate at same-sex weddings due to her Christian beliefs. If a same-sex couple came to her, Hensley referred them to other local wedding officiants who could oversee the ceremonies at a similar price, according to First Liberty Institute.

In 2019, the commission issued Hensley a public warning and accused her of violating the Texas Code of Judicial Conduct. She responded with a lawsuit, alleging the commission’s discipline infringed on her religious liberty rights, First Liberty Institute said. On Sept. 9, 2024, a new set of commissioners chose to withdraw the public warning in response to the Texas Supreme Court’s decision. Then in 2026, the Texas Supreme Court found in a separate case that judges can’t be punished for not performing same-sex weddings for religious reasons. Soon after, the Texas district court ruled in favor of Hensley.

Dig digger: Read Steve West’s report for Roundups on when Hensley was first reprimanded for declining to perform same-sex weddings.