The Horizon Texas Conference has filed a lawsuit against Highland Park United Methodist Church, alleging that the Dallas megachurch quietly altered its governing documents to remove denominational oversight and strip its own congregation of key voting rights.
The lawsuit, filed Aug. 10 in Dallas County state civil court, centers on changes made in 2022 by Highland Park’s church council, as reported by United Methodist News.
According to the lawsuit, the church council changed its articles of incorporation and bylaws to give local leaders complete administrative and pastoral authority, stripping the broader United Methodist Church of its structural oversight.
The lawsuit follows months of failed negotiations. Conference leadership first learned of the alterations in October 2025 and had private discussions with church officials before moving the matter to civil court.
“The life, identity and future of this church are larger than any one leadership team or any one point in time,” Horizon Texas Conference Bishop Rubén Saenz Jr., who also serves as president of the denomination’s Council of Bishops, said in a video statement. “My responsibility extends to those who worship at Highland Park today, those who built and sustained this church across generations, and those who will come after us.”
Saenz added: “Our purpose is not punishment. It is restoration — bringing the original governance structure back into alignment with the Book of Discipline so this church can move forward faithfully.”
The Book of Discipline is the denomination’s governing rulebook.
Leadership at Highland Park has pushed back against the claims, describing the suit as unnecessary.
“For the Horizon Texas Conference of The United Methodist Church to file a meritless lawsuit against our church is both bewildering and disappointing,” the Rev. Matt Tuggle, senior minister of Highland Park United Methodist Church, told United Methodist News. “While we continue to engage with the conference on its allegations, we will remain focused on being who we are as a church — which means ministering to our congregation just as we have over the past 110 years.”
Highland Park boasts more than 15,000 members, making it the largest United Methodist congregation in the conference and the state. Historically known as a centrist institution that brings together diverse political and theological viewpoints, its members have included high-profile figures such as former U.S. President George W. Bush and former First Lady Laura Bush.
Court documents show that behind the scenes in 2022, the church council voted to rewrite the congregation’s legal framework.
The council renamed the legal entity Highland Park Methodist Church and removed all references to the United Methodist Church, the regional conference and the Book of Discipline.
Under the revised structure, the church eliminated the authority of the traditional “charge conference” — a constitutional body that, under United Methodist rules, must meet annually under the supervision of a district superintendent to approve budgets, elect leaders and sign off on governance changes.
Instead, the church council granted itself the power to self-select its members, dictate mission strategy and determine denominational affiliations without congregational input. The changes also transferred sole authority over pastoral hiring, supervision and appointments to a local committee, bypassing the bishop’s traditional appointment power.
The conference argued that the suit was strictly about governance protocols.
“The conference’s position is not that Highland Park must surrender its identity, traditions or distinctive approach to ministry,” Saenz said in his video statement. “The conference’s concern is limited to the church’s governing documents and decisions that were made about the congregation’s governance and denominational standing without transparency and without following the process required of every United Methodist church.”