Texas Judicial System



Appendix: Texas Judicial System

Trial Courts

State District Courts:

Number of Courts: As of September 1, 2007, there are 443 judicial districts/courts with one judge per district/court. Each judicial district encompasses one or more of the 254 counties in Texas. All court proceedings are conducted in the county seat.

Jurisdiction/Appeal: General jurisdiction courts. Though 33 district courts in Texas are designated by statute as “Family District Courts,” all district courts have jurisdiction over child protection cases. Appeals are to the courts of appeals.

Judges:

Regular Judges: District judges serve 4-year terms and are selected by partisan election.

Associate Judges Appointed Under Chapter 201, Family Code:

Appointed by District Judges: District court judges are authorized to appoint associate judges to assist them with their caseload. In the larger urban areas it is very common for one or more associate judges to help the district judges with divorce or child protection cases. These associate judges are county employees and serve in the county in which they are appointed. They hear cases that district judges have referred to them.

Appointed by Regional Presiding Judges: Texas is divided into nine administrative judicial regions. Each region is presided over by a regional presiding judge who is appointed by the Governor to serve a four-year term. The regional presiding judge may be a sitting, former or retired district judge or a former or retired appellate judge who has district court experience. The regional presiding judges are also authorized to appoint associate judges to assist the courts in a particular county or judicial region.

Child Protection Court Judges: Child Protection Courts, formerly known as Cluster Courts, are not courts in the traditional sense of the word. They are specialized dockets composed of child protection cases that have been referred from a district or statutory county court. The “courts” always cover more than one county and primarily serve rural areas and there are currently 17 CPCs.[1] The docket is heard by an associate judge appointed by a regional presiding judge or a former or retired judge assigned by the regional presiding judge to hear the specialized docket. Although district judges may also appoint associate judges to hear a child protection case docket in a county, the term Child Protection Court or cluster court is used to identify the courts that are staffed by associate judges who are appointed by a regional presiding or by a former or retired judge assigned by the regional presiding judge. These associate judges are state employees of the Office of Court Administration (OCA).

Jurisdiction/Appeal: Subject to the limitations placed on their jurisdiction/ authority by Chapter 201 of the Family Code, associate judges have the jurisdiction conferred upon them by the order of the district or regional presiding judge appointing them associate judge. An appeal of an associate judge’s report is to the referring district or statutory county court judge.

Statutory County Courts:

Number of Courts: As of September 1, 2007, there are 222 statutory county courts and 18 probate courts in operation in 84 Texas counties. Approximately 113 of these courts have concurrent jurisdiction with the district courts in family law matters. Each court has one judge and has jurisdiction in the county in which the court was created. All court proceedings are conducted in the county seat.

Jurisdiction: Jurisdiction varies. Some exercise concurrent jurisdiction with district courts in certain matters, such as family law, and may hear child protection cases.

Judges: The judges serve 4-year terms and are selected by partisan election.

Appellate Courts:

Intermediate Appellate Courts:

Courts of Appeals:

Number of Courts: There are 14 courts of appeals districts with one court per district. Jurisdiction: Intermediate appellate jurisdiction in civil and criminal cases from trial courts.

Judges: Each court has one chief and from two to 12 additional justices for a total of 80 justices statewide. The justices serve 6-year terms and are selected by partisan election.

Appellate Courts of Last Resort:

1. Supreme Court:

Number of Courts: One.

Jurisdiction: The Supreme Court of Texas is the highest appellate court for civil and juvenile cases.

Judges: The court has one chief and eight justices. They serve 6-year terms and are selected by partisan election.

2. Court of Criminal Appeals:

Number of Courts: One.

Jurisdiction: The Court of Criminal Appeals is the highest appellate court for criminal cases.

Judges: The court has one presiding judge and eight judges. They serve 6-year terms and are selected by partisan election.

Judicial Administration:

Office of Court Administration: OCA is a judicial agency of the state and operates under the direction of the Supreme Court and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. It provides consultative, legal, technology, funding and support services to the judiciary. It also regularly compiles and publishes court statistics and other pertinent judicial information.

The associate judges appointed to the Child Protection Courts are OCA employees and paid by state funding.

Judicial Council: The Texas Judicial Council is the policy-making body for the state judiciary. The Council was created in 1929 to continuously study and report on the organization and practices of the Texas judicial system. The administrative director of OCA is the executive director of the Council. The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court serves as Chair of the Council and the Presiding Judge of the Court of Criminal Appeals serves as the vice-chair. The Council is composed of 14 ex officio members who are legislators and judges and six citizen members, three of which must be members of the State Bar and two of which may not be licensed to practice law.

The Council studies methods to simplify judicial procedures, expedite court business, and better administer justice. It examines the work accomplished by the courts and submits recommendations for improvement of the system to the Legislature, the Governor and the Supreme Court. The Council receives and considers input from judges, public officials, members of the bar, and citizens.

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[1] For a 2009 map of the counties covered by a child protection court, see .

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