NASHVILLE (BP) — Johnny Hunt — longtime pastor of a large Southern Baptist church, former Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) president, author, conference leader and speaker — filed a lawsuit on March 17, 2023, against the SBC, the SBC Executive Committee (EC) and Guidepost Solutions. Two years and two weeks later, a federal judge issued an order dismissing all but one count of the lawsuit.
“We are grateful for this decision and the forward progress in our legal process,” said SBC EC President and CEO Jeff Iorg when the judge released his order on March 31.
The case stemmed from Guidepost Solutions’ report in May 2022, which was the result of an independent investigation requested by Southern Baptists at the 2021 SBC annual meeting to look into allegations of mishandling cases of sexual abuse within the convention. An incident involving Hunt and a young pastor’s wife was discovered during Guidepost’s investigation and included in its report.
Baptist Press reached out to attorneys for Hunt and representatives of Guidepost Solutions, but had not received response as of press time.
Hunt resigned from his vice president position at the North American Mission Board (NAMB) nine days before the report’s release. His name was subsequently removed from association with Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, and his longtime former pastorate, First Baptist in Woodstock, Ga., reiterated support for abuse survivors while addressing the news related to Hunt.
On July 31 of last year, Hunt amended his statement of damages to reflect lost salary and employment benefits, book sales, speaking engagements and other income of “not less than” $15.4 million. He further sought up to $45 million for “reputational harm” and another $45 million for emotional distress.
Altogether, the former pastor’s lawsuit demanded more than $105 million.
SBC Executive Committee President Jeff Iorg referenced mounting legal costs in his comments to EC trustees in February. It is safe to say a significant portion of the $12 million spent by the EC since 2021 was associated with the Hunt case.
Part of that outlay was to cover the legal costs of Guidepost, due to an indemnification clause that was included in the EC’s original contract with the firm.
The lone count that Judge William Campbell did not dismiss concerned a social media post by then-SBC President Bart Barber referring to the seriousness of the allegations against Hunt.
The trial had been scheduled to begin on June 17, the week after this year’s SBC annual meeting in Dallas. It is unclear when the judge will issue his full opinion in this portion of the case.
(EDITOR’S NOTE — Scott Barkley is chief national correspondent for Baptist Press.)
