A nearly yearlong legal fight between Gateway Church and its founding pastor, Robert Morris, over a multimillion-dollar retirement package ended after both parties decided to drop the case.
The settlement was signed by a judge on May 8 in a Tarrant County court. The case was dismissed without prejudice, according to court documents, meaning it is closed for now, but either Gateway or Morris could refile in the future.
The settlement did not say whether Morris or his wife, Debbie Morris, would receive compensation from the Southlake church.
Morris resigned from Gateway Church in June 2024 after Cindy Clemishire accused Morris of sexually abusing her in the 1980s. At the time, she was 12 years old and he was 22. Clemishire said the abuse lasted more than four years.
After his resignation, Gateway claimed Morris requested the church pay him $1 million and fully fund his retirement “to the tune of $600,000-$800,000 per year for the rest of his and his wife’s lives, in addition to seeking various other benefits,” according to court records.
The settlement comes less than two months after Morris was released from Osage County Jail in Oklahoma. He served six months of a 10-year sentence after pleading guilty to five counts of lewd and indecent acts with a child.
Gateway Church asked Tarrant County courts in May 2025 to pause or suspend arbitration – a process in which a third party helps resolve a dispute between two groups instead of going to court – between Morris and the church.
Gateway Church’s and Morris’ lawyers went back and forth for nearly a year on whether the parties were following a dispute-resolution process that the church claimed was “contractually mandated.”
The church alleged Morris avoided mediation of the dispute and went straight into arbitration, according to court records. Morris alleged that his lawyers filed an arbitration demand after requesting that Gateway’s lawyers propose mediators and did not hear back.
Both parties met for a court hearing in July 2025 to discuss finding a third-party arbitrator that both the church and Morris could agree on. Court records show hearings were scheduled in September and October. The day before Morris’ October hearing, he pleaded guilty to child sex abuse.
After his release, Morris registered as a sex offender in Palo Pinto County, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety.
Morris and Gateway Church still face other legal battles. Clemishire and her father filed a lawsuit seeking $1 million from Morris, his wife and the megachurch last June for defamation and failing to report the alleged abuse.
A trial is set for June 2026.
Marissa Greene is a Report for America corps member, covering faith for the Fort Worth Report. You can contact her at marissa.greene@fortworthreport.org.
At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.
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