Eight individuals submitted an amicus brief to the Texas Supreme Court attesting to the damaging effect of the Texas Court of Appeals decision in The Local Church et al v. Harvest House et al. The brief pointed out that the court’s decision to ignore the secular definition of the term cult, which was part of the operative definition used in the Encyclopedia of Cults and New Religions would be potentially immensely damaging in parts of the world with repressive governments.
The brief was signed by:
- Ambassador Winston Lord—U.S. Ambassador to the People’s Republic of China, 1985-1989
- Ambassador Nicholas Platt—U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines (1987-1991) and Pakistan (1991-1992);
- Ambassador Burton Levin—U.S. Ambassador to Myanmar, 1987-1990, and U.S. Consul General in Hong Kong, 1981-1986;
- Reverend Choo Chee Wai—Golden Lampstand Publishing Society, Hong Kong;
- Dr. Ed Irons—Director of the Hong Kong Institute for Culture, Commerce and Religion;
- Bette Bao Lord—Author and Human Rights Activist;
- Sidney Rittenberg—Founder and President of Rittenberg Associates, Inc.
- Travis B. Bryan, III—Former District Attorney of Brazos County, former Bryan City Councilman, and a practicing attorney in Bryan, Texas
PDF of Amicus Brief from International Experts (Texas Supreme Court)