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Upcoming Events
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3rd Court of Appeals Courtroom
209 West 14th Street
Austin, TX
March 14, 2014 (Tentative)
Board of Regional Judges for Title IV-D
9:30 AM
Tom C. Clark Bldg.
205 W. 14th St., Suite 605
Austin, TX
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On twitter?
Follow our new account @TXCourts - The twitter handle covers news and updates from the judicial branch.
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From the Office of Court Administration (OCA)
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First Judicial Council Meeting of 2014
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Chief Justice Nathan Hecht presided over his first Judicial Council meeting as chief on February 21. We had great attendance and participation from council members including legislative members Sen. Robert Duncan, Sen. Royce West and Rep. Tryon Lewis. The council covered many topics including the release of the annual statistical report for the judiciary and legislative interim charges that may impact the judiciary. Click here to view the materials presented at the meeting.
 | | L to R: Presiding Judge Sharon Keller, David Slayton, Chief Justice Nathan Hecht, Nina Hess Hsu |
 | | L to R: Nina Hess Hsu, Sen. Robert Duncan, Sen. Royce West, Rep. Tryon Lewis |
The State Bar of Texas provides live and archived video webcasts of the Supreme Court of Texas Oral Arguments and some of the Texas Judicial Council (TJC) meetings. To search Texas Supreme Court Meetings, click on the following link or copy and paste the link into your browser: http://www.texasbarcle.com/CLE/TSCSearch2.asp
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Rules Update
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On February 10, 2014, in Miscellaneous Docket No. 14-9047, the Supreme Court of Texas issued final approval of a set of forms for use in expedited foreclosure proceedings under Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 736. The forms are required by the Act of May 27, 2013, 83rd Leg., R.S., ch. 1044 (HB 2978), and section 22.018 of the Texas Government Code. In December 2013, Misc. Docket No. 13-9171, the Court approved a set of draft forms and requested public comments. The Court revised the draft forms after the public comment period. The final forms include three versions of an application for an expedited order under Rule 736, a supporting affidavit or declaration, citations for service under Rule 736 or Rule 106, a military status affidavit or declaration, and a default order.
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Judicial Branch Certification Commission (JBCC) Rules Submitted to Court for Approval
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The process of developing rules and procedures for the Judicial Branch Certification Commission (JBCC) has picked up speed. Under Senate Bill 966, the JBCC will handle certification and licensing for court reporters and court reporting firms, professional guardians, process servers, and court language interpreters beginning on September 1, 2014. On that date, the JBCC will be created, while the Guardianship Certification Board, Court Reporters Certification Board, and Process Servers Review Board will cease to exist. The Licensed Court Interpreter program at the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation will also be transferred to the JBCC on September 1. The Supreme Court of Texas will appoint the nine members of the JBCC, as well as members of an advisory board for each of the professions that will be regulated by the JBCC, which will advise the JBCC on policy and regulatory matters. A special Task Force comprised of representatives from each profession developed proposed rules for the JBCC, addressing such matters as application procedures, examinations, continuing education requirements, complaints, and disciplinary proceedings. The Task Force published the rules for comment in November, made changes to the rules based on comments received, and sent the proposal to the Supreme Court on January 22. SB 966 requires the Supreme Court to approve the final rules before September 1.
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Judicial Committee on Information Technology (JCIT)
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Due to weather, JCIT met "virtually" on January 24th using teleconferencing and GoToMeeting for presentations. The committee received an update from OCA's eFiling vendor about the program with details around the mandate that went into effect on January 1st. The group also heard from various stakeholder groups including clerks, attorneys, paralegals, legal assistants and eFiling service providers about the various issues experienced with the program. Most of the issues are caused by the decentralized nature of the courts in Texas. The standards sub-committee committed to work on a revised technology standard for adoption by the Supreme Court that would standardize the filing codes seen by filers across all 254 counties. The standards subcommittee meets every other week and hopes to have standards for JCIT to vote on sometime in March. The goal of the subcommittee is to keep the list as small as possible in order to make it easier for filers. JCIT also committed to setting up a filer efiling issues group in the same manner as the Clerks eFiling Issues group and eFiling Service Provider Issues group.
JCIT's next meeting is Friday, April 25th, 2014 at the Texas Association of Counties from 10AM-Noon. The meeting is open to the public and those interested in court technology are encouraged to attend.
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With two months under our belts with mandatory eFiling, we can now see the system works. In the month of January, we prevented more than 1.6 million pieces of paper from entering the courts. The system is now handling on average more than 14,000 documents a day and boasts more than 56,000 registered users. The program supports JCIT efforts to standardize filing codes to improve the filer experience. OCA also delivered the first list of enhancements to Tyler Technologies for inclusion in the next major release of the system. Improvements were enumerated and prioritized from the various JCIT committees and combined by OCA. Tyler is currently analyzing the requests to gauge the level of effort and a timeline for release.
OCA recommends that counties get started early with eFiling. This allows everyone to get used to the system and to identify any changes to your business processes that may be needed. Waiting until just before becoming mandatory runs with great risk. If you're ready to dip your toe into the eFiling pool, please contact brian.mcgrath@tylertech.com and he'll get you on the list!
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eFileTexas Media Conference at Tyler Technologies
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 | | David Slayton and Chief Justice Hecht at Tyler Technologies headquarters in Plano |
Texas Supreme Court Chief Justice Nathan Hecht, Texas Office of Court Administration Administrative Director, David Slayton and elected court officials from the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex highlighted the progress of e-filing at Tyler Technologies in Plano on January 31, 2014. For more pictures and video from the event click here.
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Now that all the intermediate appellate courts are using TAMES, the Supreme Court has mandated that all clerk records and court reporter records be submitted electronically. These documents are submitted through the TAMES Records Submission Portal. You can submit records to all 14 appellate courts through the same portal. If you're a clerk or court reporter, you can request an account here.
We're also seeing many of the appellate courts eliminating paper notices as well. Several courts are now e-mailing notices out to parties as well as clerks and trial court judges. This saves each court roughly $10,000 annually in postage and allows for a more timely delivery.
Next up for TAMES is the Court of Criminal Appeals. It has a special version to process writs in addition to all the other stuff courts normally do. We expect them to launch later this spring.
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Clerks and OCA Collaborate on 2013 District Clerk Manual Revision
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The District Clerk Procedure Manual is a reference guide covering the various duties, responsibilities and procedures of District Clerks in Texas. After each Legislature, the District Clerk Manual is reviewed and revised to incorporate statutory and other necessary changes. The County and District Clerk Association's District Clerk Procedure Manual Committee for the 2013 revision are: Patti Henry, District Clerk for Chambers County (Chair); Donna Brown, District Clerk for Liberty County; Beverly Crumley, District Clerk for Hays County; Brenda Hudson, District Clerk for Swisher County; Debra Johnson, District Clerk for Panola County; Sandra Roblez, District Clerk for Yoakum County; and, Kim Vera, District Clerk for Hansford County. The revision project was completed under the direction of Judy Speer, OCA Assistant General Counsel, and with the invaluable assistance of Shelly Ortiz, OCA Administrative Assistant. The 2013 District Clerk Manual may be viewed at:
http://www.txcourts.gov/pubs/Manuals/dclerk/dcmanual2013.pdf
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TIDC Discretionary Grant Program
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On January 15, the Texas Indigent Defense Commission announced the availability of funds to improve indigent defense services in Texas counties. The FY15 Grant packet (RFA) was sent to all 254 constitutional county judges. Additionally, a courtesy letter was sent to all local administrative district and statutory judges as well as county financial officers informing them of the availability of grant funds. The RFA and the Commission's administrative rules found in Texas Administrative Code, Title 1, Chapter 173 establish the guidelines for the administration of grant funds and the application submission process and are available at www.tidc.texas.gov.
The Discretionary Grant Program is separate from any formula grant counties may be eligible to receive.
Since FY2003, Texas counties have received over $41 Million in discretionary grant funds to improve their indigent defense systems from the Texas Indigent Defense Commission. Examples of the types of programs that counties may implement with these funds include direct client services programs such as managed assigned counsel systems or public defender offices. Other improvements that have been made with discretionary grant awards include the creation of indigent defense coordinator positions or videoconference systems to increase the quality of contact between defendants detained in jail and their attorneys.
In FY14, the Commission funded Tarrant County to work with eight other counties and the Conference of Urban Counties TechShare program to develop an electronic indigent defense process management system to improve indigent defense by streamlining appointments, processing attorney fee vouchers, and tracking key data and processes. The project builds upon the previously developed Bell County indigent defense system. Please contact the grant administrator-- Bryan Wilson at 866.499.0656 for more information to develop an application for this process.
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TIDC FY2013 Annual and Expenditure Report
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The Texas Indigent Defense Commission (TIDC) provides financial and technical support to counties to develop and maintain quality, cost-effective indigent defense systems that meet the needs of local communities and the requirements of the Constitution and state law. In January TIDC staff finalized and distributed the FY2013 Annual and Expenditure Report as directed by the legislature. In FY2013 counties spent $217.1 million on indigent defense, and the state reimbursed $27.4 million of those expenditures. Total indigent defense costs across the state increased by 4.6% or $9 .6 million over the previous year, and the number of indigent defense cases that received court appointed counsel have increased from approximately 324,000 in FY2002 to over 471,000 cases in FY2013. Since the state first created the Task Force on Indigent Defense (now TIDC) in 2001, total indigent defense costs in Texas have risen from $91.4 million to $217.1 million.
In addition to the fiscal year expenditure report, the Annual and Expenditure Report contains information on TIDC's grant programs; policies and standards; education, publications, and online resources; policy and fiscal monitoring; and the innocence program. The annual report can be accessed on TIDC's webpage, and you can Follow us on Twitter at TIDC_News.
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| Attorney General Opinions |
GA-1042
Re: Calculating the minimum salary of a county court at law judge under Government Code section 25.0005 ( RQ-1146-GA)
GA-1039
Opinion: (GA-1039) The proper expenditure of pretrial intervention program funds accumulated in accordance with Code of Criminal Procedure article 102.0121 (RQ-1141-GA)
GA-1044
Re: Whether justice courts are authorized to charge a fee for filing a petition to apply for an occupational driver's license (RQ-1148-GA)
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Judicial Appointments
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Chief Justice Nathan L. Hecht has appointed Judge Scott Jenkins of Austin to the Texas Judicial Council to fill the unexpired term of Judge Orlinda Naranjo.
Gov. Rick Perry has appointed Bret Griffin of Friendswood as judge of the 212th Judicial District Court in Galveston County for a term to expire at the next general election. View article...
Gov. Rick Perry has appointed Lindsey Scott of Nederland as judge of the 252nd Criminal District Court in Jefferson County for a term to expire at the next general election. View article...
Gov. Rick Perry has reappointed Billy Ray Stubblefield of Georgetown as presiding judge of the Third Administrative Judicial Region. View article...
 | | Chief Justice Nathan Hecht swears in Judge Stubblefield |
Gov. Rick Perry has appointed David L. Evans of Benbrook as presiding judge of the Eighth Administrative Judicial Region to replace recently retired Judge Jeff Walker. View article... |
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**NEW**Substance Abuse Grants for At-Risk Youth Projects
Deadline: March 21, 2014
These Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration (SAMHSA) implementation grants help governments improve and expand services for children and youth with serious emotional disturbances. Priority is given to applicants who can have the biggest impact in improving service delivery to children with serious emotional disturbances. Bigger awards will be considered for jurisdictions with high-density populations or serving large geographic areas. Eligibility is limited to states and federally recognized tribal governments. There will $23 million available under this program for 23 awards of $1 million each.
**NEW**Expanding Substance Abuse Treatment Capacity in Certain Therapeutic Courts
Deadline: May 17, 2014
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT) is accepting applications for fiscal year (FY) 2014 Grants to Expand Substance Abuse Treatment in Adult Tribal Healing to Wellness Courts and Juvenile Treatment Drug Courts. The purpose of this program is to expand and/or enhance substance abuse treatment services in existing adult Tribal Healing to Wellness Courts (which are the tribal version of adult drug courts) and in Juvenile Treatment Drug Courts (tribal or non-tribal) which use the treatment drug court model in order to provide alcohol and drug treatment (including recovery support services supporting substance abuse treatment, screening, assessment, case management, and program coordination) to defendants/offenders. Grantees will be expected to provide a coordinated, multi-system approach designed to combine the sanctioning power of treatment drug courts with effective treatment services to break the cycle of criminal behavior, alcohol and/or drug use, and incarceration or other penalties. Grant funds must be used to address gaps in the continuum of treatment for those individuals in these courts who have substance abuse and/or co-occurring disorders treatment needs. Grant funds must be used to serve high risk/high need populations diagnosed with substance dependence or addiction to alcohol/other drugs and identified as needing immediate treatment. Grant funds may be used to provide services for co-morbid conditions, such as mental health problems, as long as expenditures remain consistent with the drug court model which is designed to serve individuals needing treatment for substance dependence or addiction to alcohol/other drugs. SAMHSA will use discretion in the allocation of funding the awards, taking into consideration the specific drug court models (tribal healing to wellness courts and juvenile treatment drug courts) as appropriate and the number of applicants received per model type.
Eligibility is limited to state and local agencies, special purpose local courts, and federally recognized tribes. There will be $4.55 million available under this solicitation. Up to 14 awards will be given out. Proposed budgets cannot exceed $325,000 in total costs in any year of the proposed project. Length of projects can be up to 3 years.
Information:
http://beta.samhsa.gov/grants/grant-announcements/ti-14-003
Kenneth W. Robertson, 240/276-1621
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
kenneth.robertson@samhsa.hhs.gov
Eileen Bermudez, 240/276-1412
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
eileen.bermudez@samhsa.hhs.gov
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Judicial Training Resource Links
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New Judicial Education Course
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The American Judges Association proudly announces the newly developed and free online domestic violence education program for judges. This innovative learning tool was developed with the assistance of Futures Without Violence and the National Center for State Courts. Please refer to the AJA website (http://www.amjudges.org/) for complete information and to access the training.
This course contains interactive modules on key topics which will allow judges to learn at their own pace from leading national experts.
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About the OCA
OCA is a state agency in the judicial branch that operates under the direction and supervision of the Supreme Court of Texas and the chief justice and is governed primarily byChapter 72 of the Texas Government Code. www.txcourts.gov
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