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Upcoming Events
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July 25, 2014 10:00 - 12:00
Texas Association of Counties
1210 San Antonio
Austin, TX 78701
August 22, 2014 10:00 - 12:00
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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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| News
From the Office of Court Administration (OCA)
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JBCC Appointments Announced
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The Supreme Court of Texas appointed 9 members to serve staggered terms on the newly created Judicial Branch Certification Commission (JBCC).
The new commission will combine the certification, registration, licensing and compliance functions for court reporters and court reporting firms, professional guardians, process servers, and licensed court interpreters.
"The objective for creating the Judicial Branch Certification Commission was government efficiency and consistency across the regulated judicial professions," said David Slayton, Administrative Director of the Office of Court Administration. "I am confident the new members will achieve those goals and I look forward to working with them."
While the JBCC is administratively attached to the Office of Court Administration, the Supreme Court appoints members and has rule making authority for the commission.
The commission was created by Senate Bill 966 in the 83rd Legislative Session and begins operations on September 1, 2014. On that date, the Court Reporters Certification Board, Guardianship Certification Board, and Process Server Review Board will cease to exist, and the Licensed Court Interpreter program at the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR) will be transferred to the JBCC. Each profession will continue to have advisory boards.
Members Appointed to the JBCC
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Hon. Lee Hamilton, Chair, 104th District Court, Taylor County, Abilene
- Hon. Garland (Ben) Woodward, 119th District Court, Tom Green, Runnels and Concho Counties, San Angelo
- Hon. Migdalia Lopez, 197th District Court, Cameron County, Brownsville
- Hon. Sid L. Harle, 226th District Court, Bexar County, San Antonio
- Hon. Polly Spencer, Probate Court No. 1, Bexar County, San Antonio
- Velma Arellano, Official Court Reporter, Corpus Christi
- Don D. Ford, Attorney, Houston
- Mark Blenden, Attorney, Bedford
- Ann Murray Moore, Attorney, Edinburg
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WINGS
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In 2013, the Texas Office of Court Administration was selected by the National Guardianship Network to establish one of four state pilot Working Interdisciplinary Networks of Guardianship Stakeholders (WINGS) groups. The state WINGS pilot groups were to assess the state's system of guardianship and alternatives, address policy and practice issues, and serve as an ongoing problem-solving mechanism. The National Guardianship Network has just released the State Replication Guide for Working Interdisciplinary Networks of Guardianship Stakeholders, which is based on the experiences of the 2013 WINGS pilot groups. The Guide provides 10 hallmarks for WINGS and 10 steps for launching and maintaining WINGS.
The Texas WINGS group continues to address adult guardianship issues and improve practice. In addition to the Office of Court Administration and judicial representatives, participating stakeholders in the Texas WINGS group include Disability Rights Texas, Social Security Administration, State Bar of Texas, Texas Department of Aging and Disability Services, Texas Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services, Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, Texas Council for Developmental Disabilities, Texas Guardianship Association, Texas Legal Services, ADAPT of Texas, The Arc of Texas, Alzheimer's Association, and AARP.
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Juvenile Justice and Elder Issues
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Rules Update
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On June 9, in Miscellaneous Docket No. 14-9113, the Supreme Court of Texas approved preliminary amendments to the Rules Governing Admission to the Bar of Texas. The amendments carry out the recommendations of the Task Force on International Law Practice in Texas. The task force was appointed by the Court in 2009 to review Texas's current criteria for admission of foreign-trained lawyers and to recommend changes to the Rules necessary to meet the needs of international practice in Texas. The administrative order sets forth a public comment period that ends September 1. The final amendments will become effective October 1.
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Update on E-Filing
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All counties with a population more than 200,000 are now e-filing in civil cases on eFileTexas.gov. The latest mandate implementation went into effect on July 1. At the trial court level, the E-Filing program covers 74 counties, more than 87% of the state's population. The system continues to grow and now has more than 73,000 registered users. The next round of implementation is Jan 1, 2015. Click here to see the full county mandate schedule.
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eFile Playbook
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The E-file Playbook is now on the website, cdcatexas.org, under the manuals tab!
Efiletexas.gov has provided much of this information online and with their blessing this effort is simply pulling all those things together in a book format as well as adding additional items that may be of help to you as you begin down the EFILE ROAD. The book is designed to be printed and put in a 3 ring binder so as additions develop, they can easily be added. You can even make your own "tab" to keep all your e-file items together.
Things we are already working on to add to the book: 
- An AG section
- Additional Filer Information
- Additional Outreach Ideas
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Webinar on Municipal Court Monthly Report
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Criminal Justice Integrity Unit Moves Forward
| | The Texas Criminal Justice Integrity Unit (TCJIU) met early this summer with stakeholders of the criminal justice system to discuss Brady issues and a state-wide system for notifying people in the wake of an irregularity in a criminal case. The TCJIU has several announcements and projects in the works. For an overview, click here. |
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Rio Grande Valley West Child Protection Court
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Judge Carlos Villalon's Rio Grande Valley West CPC court has been selected to participate in the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges' (NCJFCJ) Implementation Sites Project. By participating, it will be implementing the best practices as written in NCJFCJ's Resource Guidelines and NCJFCJ will be supporting the court and court team members with individualized assessments, specialized training, and technical assistance in child welfare issues and promising practices. Through participation in the project and increased collaboration between stakeholders, the result will be reduced caseloads, better outcomes, and fewer children in care.
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2014 Administrator of the Year
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The Texas State Agencies Business Administrators announced its 2014 Administrator of the Year at its awards luncheon on June 6. OCA is very proud of having Glenna Bowman, CFO, the Administrator of the Year on staff at our agency. The TSABAA award is an extremely prestigious award, and the list of past recipients is impressive (State Auditor John Keel was last year's recipient). Glenna is the first recipient of this award from the judiciary. Below is a candid photo of Glenna and TSABAA President, Carla James as Glenna receives news of her award.
 | | L to R: Carla James and Glenna Bowman |
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New Director of Research and Court Services
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 | | Scott Griffith |
As announced in the June issue of CourTex, Mary Cowherd is retiring at the end of August. As Director of Research and Court Services, Ms. Cowherd plays a critical role in so many of the agency's critical functions and leaves a big hole to attempt to fill. Therefore, finding an outstanding replacement for her has been an extremely high priority over the past few months.
Scott Griffith will be joining OCA on August 11 as the Director of Research and Court Services. Mr. Griffith comes to OCA from the Louisiana Supreme Court, where he currently serves as the Deputy Judicial Administrator for Research and Development. He has served in that role since January 2009. Prior to his current role, Mr. Griffith served as Deputy Judicial Administrator for Drug Courts (2004-2008) and as a Judicial Administrator for the Jefferson Parish Juvenile Court (1999-2004). Mr. Griffith has held several researcher positions as well. He holds a law degree from Loyola University School of Law and a Master of Public Administration from the University of New Orleans. He currently serves as the Secretary/Treasurer of the National Association for Court Management and was previously the president of the Louisiana Court Administrators Association.
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Cases Without Counsel: New Project to Explore Experiences of Self-Representation in U.S. Family Court
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By Robert Thompson and Zachary Willis on June 26th, 2014
Posted in Featured, Honoring Families, Press Release
Denver, Colo. - IAALS, the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System at the University of Denver, announces a first-of-its-kind national project to examine the growing trend of American families who represent themselves in family court.
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Attorney General Opinions
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Appointments
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Gov. Rick Perry has appointed Ernie McClendon of Livingston as judge of the 258th Judicial District Court in Polk, San Jacinto and Trinity Counties for a term to expire at the next general election.
View article...
Gov. Rick Perry has appointed Alicia Franklin of Houston as judge of the 311th Judicial District Court in Harris County for a term to expire at the next general election.
View article...
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Register Today! Using Title IV-E for Juvenile Justice Webinar
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Has your jurisdiction experienced a decrease in juvenile justice funding? Are you looking for funding to support home and community based services (e.g., alternative placements to detention)? Are you interested in learning how other jurisdictions have implemented a Title IV-E claiming program?
Please join us for a webinar on "Using Title IV-E for Juvenile Justice: The Multnomah County Experience" on July 23 at 1:00pm ET.
This webinar will explain how jurisdictions can leverage Title IV-E of the Social Security Act to support programs and services in their juvenile justice system. Participants will learn about Title IV-E, what types of programs and services can receive Title IV-E reimbursement, and how different stakeholders can support the implementation of a Title IV-E claiming program in their jurisdiction. Participants will gain insight into the lessons learned from the thoughtful, collaborative process executed in Multnomah County, Oregon.
Christina McMahan, Director of the Juvenile Services Division at the Department of Community Justice in Multnomah County, Oregon will serve as presenter.
Register now!
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Keeping Kids in School and Out of Court
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Deadline: July 21, 2014
The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) is partnering with the Department of Education and Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration to implement a multidisciplinary initiative to improve school climates, respond early and appropriately to student mental health and behavioral needs, avoid referring students to law enforcement and juvenile justice as a disciplinary response, and facilitate a proactive and supportive school reentry process in the rare instances in which a youth is referred. The larger goal of this program is to enhance collaboration and coordination among schools, mental and behavioral health specialists, law enforcement, and juvenile justice officials at the local level to ensure adults have the support, training, and a shared framework to help students succeed in school and prevent negative outcomes for youth and communities.
This initiative includes two categories, and the eligibility differs for each component:
* Category 1: Local School Justice Collaboration Program. Applicants are limited to local juvenile and family courts (including rural and tribal juvenile and family courts) that can verify that they have a partnership-with a local education agency (LEA) that has applied to the Department of Education's School Climate Transformation Grants-LEA (SCTG) and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration Now Is the Time Project AWARE-LEA program.
* Category 2: School Justice Collaboration Program National Training and Technical Assistance. Applicants are limited to nonprofit and for-profit organizations (including tribal nonprofit and for-profit organizations) and institutions of higher education (including tribal institutions of higher education). For-profit organizations must agree to forgo any profit or management fee.
There will be 5 awards given under this program. Maximum amount per award is $2 million.
Information:
http://www.grants.gov/custom/viewOppDetails.jsp?oppId=255573
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Addressing Trafficking within the Child Welfare Population
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Deadline: July 22, 2014
The Administration for Children and Families will solicit proposals for 60-month projects that will address trafficking within the child welfare population by implementing existing recommendations to prevent, identify, and serve victims of trafficking. This funding is designed to continue the development of child welfare systems; to respond to trafficking through infrastructure building, and to create an evidence base of effective interventions and practices that promote better outcomes for children involved in the child welfare system. Funded projects will be required to use a multi-system approach and coordinate with local law enforcement, juvenile justice, courts systems, runaway and homeless youth programs, Children; Justice Act grantees, child advocacy centers, and other necessary service providers. Eligibility is limited to nonprofits, for-profits, Native American tribes, colleges/universities, state governments, small businesses, special district governments, public housing authorities, school districts, and local governments. There will be $1 million available for 4 awards.
Information:
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Judicial Training Resource Links
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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 by Chapter 72 of the Texas Government Code. www.txcourts.gov
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