A Dallas County judge has outlined the next steps in a $1 million defamation lawsuit filed by Cindy Clemishire against Gateway Church and former Pastor Robert Morris, who was convicted of sexually abusing her four decades ago when she was a child.

Judge Emily Tobolowsky scheduled hearings in October and November for attorneys to argue whether current and former church elders and staff should be dismissed from the suit and whether Clemishire's legal team may proceed with discovery.

Multiple defendants involved

The defendants include Gateway Church; Robert and Debbie Morris; and current and former elders Thomas Miller, Tra Willbanks, Kevin Grove, Jeremy Carrasco, Kenneth Fambro, Gayland Lawshe, Dane Minor, and Steve Dulin. Lawrence Swicegood, who directed the church's communications team, is also named in the suit.

So far, online court records show that neither the church nor Robert or Debbie Morris has filed a motion to be removed from the litigation.

The suit alleges that Morris, his wife Debbie, and church elders made false statements in an effort to cover up the abuse.

Current church leaders have said that four of the former elders, Thomas Miller, Jeremy Carasco, Kevin Grove, and Gayland Lawshe, were aware of the details involving Morris and Clemishire, who was 12 when the abuse began.

Guilty plea in Oklahoma

On Oct. 2, Morris entered a guilty plea to five charges of lewd and indecent conduct in an Oklahoma Court. He is currently serving six months of a 10-year sentence in the Osage County Jail.

The church and Morris also have two other cases pending.  The first, in Tarrant County, is over the millions of dollars Morris claims the church owes him as part of a retirement agreement.  There is also a federal class-action lawsuit filed by former members that accuses Gateway and Morris of failing to honor promises to give 15 percent of donations to global missions and misleading congregants with assurances of refunds.