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Upcoming Events
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Jan 29, 2016
10:00am - 12:00pm
Texas Association of Counties - 4th Floor
1210 San Antonio
Austin
Feb 5, 2016
10:00am
John H. Reagan Building
105 W 15th St.,
Room 140, Austin
Feb 19, 2016
10:00am - 12:00pm
Office of Court Administration
205 W. 14th Street
Austin
Feb 19, 2016
1:00pm
Office of Court Administration
205 W. 14th Street
Austin
Feb 25, 2016
1:00pm - 3:00pm
Tom C. Clark, Bldg
1st Floor Conf Rm
205 W. 14th Street
Austin
Feb 26, 2016
10:00am - 12:00pm
Supreme Court of Texas Courtroom
201 W. 14th Street
Austin
Feb 26, 2016
10:00am - 12:00pm
John H. Reagan Building
105 W 15th St., Rm 131
Austin
Feb 26, 2016
1:00pm
John H. Reagan Building
105 W 15th St., Rm 131
Austin
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On twitter?
Follow us @TXCourts - The twitter handle covers news and updates from the judicial branch.
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January 2016
News From the Office of Court Administration
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Texas Judiciary Selected for National Project
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Texas has received an implementation award to receive technical assistance to implement the Conservatorship Accountability Project (CAP). Indiana, Iowa, and Texas were selected to receive implementation awards; New Mexico and Nevada were provided planning awards. This project will use the extensive expertise and experience of the National Center for State Courts to support Texas' efforts in adapting the Minnesota "MyMNConservator" software, which allows conservators (known as guardians of the estate in Texas) to file their inventory and annual accountings electronically, integrating the software with our statewide electronic filing system. The red flag validation and implementation, standardized reports and alerts, and judicial response protocols in the system will greatly improve Texas judges' ability to protect assets and modernize and improve guardianship accounting with limited resources. This project coincides with the Office of Court Administration's Guardianship Compliance Pilot Project.
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Supreme Court seeking public comment for judicial bypass changes
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On December 29, 2015, in Miscellaneous Docket No. 15-9246, the Supreme Court approved amendments to the rules and forms for a "judicial bypass" proceeding under Chapter 33 of the Family Code. In a judicial bypass proceeding, a minor seeks a court order authorizing her to consent to an abortion without notice to, or the consent of, a parent, managing conservator, or guardian. The amendments made by the Court are required by changes to Chapter 33 that were made during the 2015 Legislative session and that took effect January 1. See Act of June 1, 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., ch. 436 (H.B. 3994). The amended rules and forms also took effect January 1.
The Court's order invites public comments on the amendments to the rules and forms and requests that all comments be sent to rulescomments@txcourts.gov by April 1.
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Judicial Appointments
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Governor Greg Abbott has appointed Alyssa Lemkuil of Houston as judge of the 507th Judicial District Court in Harris County for a term set to expire at the next general election in November 2016.
View article...
The Supreme Court of Texas has made appointments to the Permanent Judicial Commission for Children, Youth and Families.
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Attorney General Opinions
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Re: Authority of a commissioners court, after adoption of the budget, to adopt a standing budget policy that automatically reduces the salary line item of an employee of an elected official upon the employee's departure from the position (RQ-0033-KP)
Re: The extent to which firearms may be excluded from buildings that contain courts, offices utilized by the courts, and other county officials (RQ-0040-KP)
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Research & Practice Spotlight - Using Data to Support Your Efforts
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Source: TED
This TED Talk presents Anne Milgram, Vice President of Criminal Justice for the Laura and John Arnold Foundation and former Attorney General of New Jersey. She discusses her ongoing, inspirational quest to bring data analytics and statistical analysis to the US criminal justice system.
Source: Center for Court Innovation
This fact sheet provides six steps to assess your community's needs:
- gather quantitative data
- observe court processes
- interview stakeholders
- convene focus group
- administer surveys
- use data to identify key problems.
Source: Stephanie Evergreen & Ann K. Emery
Data visualization generally refers to techniques used to communicate data in a graphic format. The goal is to communicate information clearly and efficiently. This checklist can be used as a guide for the development of high-impact data visualization.
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Supreme Court Appoints Probate Forms Task Force
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The Supreme Court of Texas has appointed eleven members and named Judge Polly Jackson Spencer as chair of the Probate Forms Task Force. The task force is responsible for developing recommended probate forms for consideration by the Supreme Court. Justice Eva M. Guzman will serve as the Court's liaison to the Task Force. The Task Force is expected to provide a status report to the Court by December 1, 2016.
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TIDC Provides New Resource to Assist Counties with SB 1517 Compliance
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Article 15.18 of the Code of Criminal Procedure was amended this past legislative session by SB 1517, and the changes became effective September 1, 2015. The new requirements affect local practices regarding the appointment of counsel for defendants arrested and jailed on out of county warrants. While the new law clarified the requirements for both the warrant-issuing and arresting county, the implementation has created some challenges in locating relevant documents and transmitting the required information from the arresting to warrant-issuing county. To address these challenges, the Texas Indigent Defense Commission (TIDC) has created an Out-Of-County Arrest Contacts and Affidavit of Indigence Link where officials from arresting counties can determine by court level (juvenile, county, and district court) the appropriate contact person in the warrant-issuing county, as well as the relevant affidavits of indigence for each county.
While the list comprises TIDC's current information for all 254 counties, contact information or the affidavit of indigence for some counties or court levels may be missing. Counties were required to submit their affidavits of indigence to TIDC as part of their indigent defense plans for the first time in 2015. Please review the online contact information and affidavits of indigence for your county to ensure that it is accurate and complete.
Further information can be found on TIDC's website at:
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Funding Availability
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The Criminal Justice Division (CJD) of the Governor's Office is soliciting grant applications for the 2017 grant cycle.
Due Dates
Applications must be certified by the applicant agency's Authorized Official no later than 5 PM CST on the following date(s):
Friday, February 26, 2016
* General Victim Assistance - Direct Services Programs
* Violent Crimes Against Women Justice and Training Projects
* Juvenile Justice Local Grant Program
* Juvenile Justice Statewide Grant Program
* Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Program
* Specialty Court Program
* Residential Substance Abuse Treatment (RSAT) Program
* Coverdell Forensic Sciences Improvement Program
* Crime Stoppers Assistance Fund
Submission Process
There are three phases to development of an application:
Create - direct your Grant Writer to create and complete the initial application;
Submit - your Grant Writer will then submit the initial application to CJD online which notifies the Authorized Official by email;
Certify - once the application content - as submitted by the Grant Writer - has been approved by your organization, ask the individual assigned as the Authorized Official to certify and send the official application for funding to CJD online in eGrants.
IMPORTANT NOTE: An application must be certified by the Authorized Official before it is accepted by CJD for consideration. Applications not certified by the due date/time will not be considered for funding.
eGrants Help Desk
If you need further assistance or clarification on how to complete, submit, or certify an application, please email us at eGrants@gov.state.tx.us. Other services provided include new and existing account management; password resets; navigating within eGrants; and resolving website and other technical issues. Resources
Detailed funding information and a calendar listing the available funding is located here -
Further guidance can be found here -
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SJI Grants: Upcoming Deadlines
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Deadline: February 1, 2016, May 1, 2016 and November 1, 2016
The State Justice Institute (SJI) is announcing the availability of five grant categories for state courts, nonprofits, and educational assistance to judges. The categories are as follows:
Project Grants (up to $300,000 each): to support innovative education and training, demonstration, and technical assistance projects to improve the administration of justice in the nation's courts.
TA Grants (up to $50,000 each): to provide state and local courts with funding to obtain expert assistance to diagnose a problem, develop a response to that problem, and initiate implementation of any needed changes.
CAT Grants (applicants are required to match not less than 50% of the grant amount requested, of which 20% must be cash): to enable courts to modify and adapt or revise curriculum, train instructors, pilot test the new or revised curriculum, and conduct judicial branch education and training programs.
SIG awards are of varying amounts: these grants are initiated by SJI outside the regular grant process. Recent grants have gone for pressing issues including handling of immigration and human-trafficking cases.
ESP ($1,000 awards): to provide tuition assistance for state court judges and court managers.
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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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