2. Although JW had adamantly stated in their publications that its
direction was "not hierarchical" (see, for example, the book Life
Everlasting in Freedom of the Sons of God (1966) page 169: Qualified
to Be Ministers (1955) pages 289, 290.) In a court case, taking place
in Bonham, Texas, America, in 1986, JW attorneys were authorized to
present its control as "hierarchical" rather than "congregational."
Don Adams, Vice President of the Watch Tower Bible & Tract Society of
New York, submitted an affidavit to this effect stating in point 6:
"To implement their decisions, the Governing Body uses a hierarchical
organization together with corporate entities."
http://www.christianlinks.com/forums/archive/topic/46315.html
The Watchtower Society, prior to Rutherford?s time, was run as a ?congregational? church government, similar to individually and locally owned operated franchises. During Rutherford?s tenure as President of the Society, they required all congregations to register with the Society, and then instituted a hierarchical church government, except for local ownership of Kingdom Halls, which were owned by the local congregation. Then, in the 1980s after the case in Bonham, Texas was lost, it is my understanding that the Society instituted more changes so that in the event of the demise of a local congregation, the Kingdom Hall would become the property of the Society as beneficiary. This tightened the hierarchical control, but the baptism loophole was still wide open. The 1985 change in the baptism vow is obviously designed to make an individual JW a member of the congregation, and accountable to the Watchtower organization by recognizing his/her association with it. Nevertheless, I have no knowledge of whether any case could be won to Nullify one?s baptism on this ground, or to repudiate the religious authority of the Watchtower Society. In actual practice, any legal maneuvers against the Society, even if successful, will likely still result in total shunning and effective disfellowshipping anyway. It will be merely handled orally, with subsequent denials by all parties.