Overview
- All eight justices approved an official comment to Canon 4 stating it is not a violation for a judge to publicly refrain from performing a wedding based on a sincerely held religious belief.
- The order took effect immediately on Oct. 24 and was filed with the Texas secretary of state for publication in the Texas Bar Journal and the Texas Register.
- The clarification arose from litigation involving McLennan County Justice of the Peace Dianne Hensley and Jack County Judge Umphress, and it directly informs those cases.
- Advocacy groups and legal observers say the move conflicts with existing anti-bias provisions in the judicial canons and could drive further state and federal challenges.
- In Texas, judges are permitted but not required to officiate marriages, which underpins the court’s view that declining ceremonies on religious grounds does not breach judicial impartiality rules.