A federal judge has dismissed a defamation lawsuit against Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and its former president Paige Patterson after the parties reached an out-of-court settlement.
Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas. (Photo by Michael-David Bradford/Creative Commons) / Insert of Paige Patterson
The plaintiff, known as Jane Roe, and the defendants agreed to dismiss the case, with each side agreeing to “bear their own costs, expenses and fees.”
“Southwestern Seminary is grateful that this matter has been amicably resolved for all involved,” the seminary said in a statement to Baptist Press. “The [s]eminary has consistently denied any liability or wrongdoing, and the rulings in the case are a matter of public record. We are thankful to put this chapter behind us and to remain focused on our mission.”
Roe, a former SWBTS student, filed the defamation lawsuit in 2019. She alleged she was attacked and raped on campus multiple times and reported the assaults to then-President Patterson. She said neither Patterson nor the seminary sought to protect her.
Patterson was terminated in May 2018, at least in part, due to his mishandling of the sexual assault allegations.
As part of the defamation lawsuit, Roe claimed a donor letter defamed her and minimized her claims. Roe argued that the “Loveless Letter,” as it has been called, supported Patterson’s reinstatement and falsely accused Roe of lying about her rape, engaging in sexual activity in seminary buildings, and providing nude photos to the man who raped her.
After the case was dismissed, the seminary confirmed to Baptist Press that the settlement involved no seminary funds.
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“This matter has been amicably resolved,” Roe’s attorney, Sheila Haddock, told Baptist Press. “The parties’ positions are well-documented in the voluminous court records of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, the Texas Supreme Court and the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.”
This dismissal follows another legal win for the SWBTS. In May, a jury ruled in the seminary’s favor in a lawsuit over whether its insurance carrier could deny coverage in the Roe case, Baptist Press reported.
The jury awarded the seminary $7.1 million based on Hanover Insurance Co.’s attempt to deny coverage.
“For more than a decade, Southwestern Seminary paid The Hanover Insurance Company millions of dollars in premiums for the very protection it would later need,” SWBTS’ attorney Michael D. Anderson said. “When that moment came, Hanover chose to fight against the institution it had been paid to defend.”
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