What happened
The Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia ruled on November 4 that a lower court could not reopen a lawsuit brought by 33 United Methodist congregations against the denomination’s West Virginia Conference. Justice Charles S. Trump IV wrote the opinion, stating that the dispute concerns internal church governance and denominational law, which fall outside the authority of secular courts.
The congregations alleged that conference officials assured them they could leave the United Methodist Church while keeping their properties, including by waiting until after the denomination’s 2024 General Conference. That conference removed longstanding prohibitions on same-sex weddings and the ordination of noncelibate gay clergy. By the time the churches sought to disaffiliate, the temporary provision allowing thousands of other congregations to depart with their property had expired.
The lawsuit included claims of fraud, breach of fiduciary duty, breach of contract, and conspiracy. The state’s highest court did not rule on whether those allegations were true, concluding instead that examining them would require civil courts to interpret the denomination’s governing rules.
The ruling adds to a broader trend of United Methodist churches separating from the denomination. The denomination reported losing approximately 174,000 members in the United States during 2025 alone.
