AN ACT
1-1 relating to the creation, reorganization, and operation of certain
1-2 district courts.
1-3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-4 SECTION 1. Effective September 1, 1997, Subchapter C,
1-5 Chapter 24, Government Code, is amended by adding Sections 24.540
1-6 and 24.541 to read as follows:
1-7 Sec. 24.540. 395th Judicial District (Fort Bend County).
1-8 The 395th Judicial District is composed of Fort Bend County.
1-9 Sec. 24.541. 396th Judicial District (Tarrant County).
1-10 (a) The 396th Judicial District is composed of Tarrant County.
1-11 (b) The 396th District Court shall give preference to
1-12 criminal cases.
1-13 SECTION 2. Effective January 1, 1999, Subchapter C, Chapter
1-14 24, Government Code, is amended by adding Sections 24.524, 24.538,
1-15 and 24.542 through 24.552 to read as follows:
1-16 Sec. 24.524. 379TH JUDICIAL DISTRICT (BEXAR COUNTY).
1-17 (a) The 379th Judicial District is composed of Bexar County.
1-18 (b) The 379th District Court shall give preference to
1-19 criminal cases.
1-20 Sec. 24.538. 393RD JUDICIAL DISTRICT (BEXAR COUNTY).
1-21 (a) The 393rd Judicial District is composed of Bexar County.
1-22 (b) The 393rd District Court shall give preference to
1-23 juvenile matters.
2-1 Sec. 24.542. 397th Judicial District (Harris County).
2-2 (a) The 397th Judicial District is composed of Harris County.
2-3 (b) The 397th Judicial District shall give preference to
2-4 juvenile matters.
2-5 Sec. 24.543. 398th Judicial District (Galveston County).
2-6 The 398th Judicial District is composed of Galveston County.
2-7 Sec. 24.544. 399th Judicial District (Travis County). The
2-8 399th Judicial District is composed of Travis County.
2-9 Sec. 24.545. 400th Judicial District (Nueces County).
2-10 (a) The 400th Judicial District is composed of Nueces County.
2-11 (b) The 400th District Court shall give preference to
2-12 juvenile matters.
2-13 Sec. 24.546. 401st Judicial District (Tom Green County).
2-14 The 401st Judicial District is composed of Tom Green County.
2-15 Sec. 24.547. 402nd Judicial District (Webb County).
2-16 (a) The 402nd Judicial District is composed of Webb County.
2-17 (b) The 402nd District Court shall give preference to cases
2-18 involving family violence, cases under the Family Code, and cases
2-19 under the Health and Safety Code.
2-20 Sec. 24.548. 403rd Judicial District (Fort Bend County).
2-21 (a) The 403rd Judicial District is composed of Fort Bend County.
2-22 (b) The 403rd Judicial District shall give preference to
2-23 cases under the Family Code.
2-24 Sec. 24.549. 404th Judicial District (Cameron County).
2-25 (a) The 404th Judicial District is composed of Cameron County.
3-1 (b) The 404th Judicial District shall give preference to
3-2 juvenile matters.
3-3 Sec. 24.550. 405TH JUDICIAL DISTRICT (SMITH COUNTY). The
3-4 405th Judicial District is composed of Smith County.
3-5 Sec. 24.551. 406TH JUDICIAL DISTRICT (BEXAR COUNTY).
3-6 (a) The 406th Judicial District is composed of Bexar County.
3-7 (b) The 406th District Court shall give preference to civil
3-8 cases.
3-9 Sec. 24.552. 407TH JUDICIAL DISTRICT (BEXAR COUNTY).
3-10 (a) The 407th Judicial District is composed of Bexar County.
3-11 (b) The 407th District Court shall give preference to
3-12 criminal cases.
3-13 SECTION 3. Subsection (f), Section 24.151, Government Code,
3-14 is amended to read as follows:
3-15 (f) In Webb County, the clerk of the district courts shall
3-16 file all civil cases, except tax suits, on the Clerk's Civil File
3-17 Docket and shall number the cases consecutively. All tax suits
3-18 shall be assigned and docketed in the 49th District Court. All
3-19 cases involving family violence, all cases under the Family Code,
3-20 and all cases under the Health and Safety Code shall be assigned
3-21 and docketed in the 402nd District Court. All other [Each] civil
3-22 cases [case, except tax suits,] shall be assigned and docketed at
3-23 random by the district clerk according to the following
3-24 percentages: 49th District Court, 20 percent; 111th District
3-25 Court, 60 percent; and the 341st District Court, 20 percent. The
4-1 clerk shall keep a separate file docket, known as the Clerk's
4-2 Criminal File Docket, for criminal cases and a separate file
4-3 docket, known as the Clerk's Tax Suit Docket, for tax suits. [Each
4-4 tax suit shall be assigned and docketed in the 49th District
4-5 Court.] The clerk shall number the cases on the Clerk's Tax Suit
4-6 Docket consecutively with a separate series of numbers and shall
4-7 number the cases on the Clerk's Criminal File Docket consecutively
4-8 with a separate series of numbers.
4-9 SECTION 4. Section 24.384, Government Code, is amended to
4-10 read as follows:
4-11 Sec. 24.384. 205TH JUDICIAL DISTRICT ([CULBERSON,] EL PASO
4-12 COUNTY[, AND HUDSPETH COUNTIES]). (a) The 205th Judicial District
4-13 is composed of [Culberson,] El Paso County[, and Hudspeth
4-14 counties].
4-15 (b) [The 205th District Court shall give preference to
4-16 criminal cases.]
4-17 [(c)] Section 24.136, relating to the 34th District Court,
4-18 contains provisions applicable to both that court and the 205th
4-19 District Court.
4-20 (c) The 205th District Court has jurisdiction of the
4-21 community supervision and corrections department that serves
4-22 Hudspeth and Culberson counties.
4-23 SECTION 5. Section 24.185, Government Code, is amended to
4-24 read as follows:
4-25 Sec. 24.185. 83RD JUDICIAL DISTRICT (PECOS, TERRELL, REAGAN,
5-1 VAL VERDE, AND UPTON COUNTIES). (a) The 83rd Judicial District is
5-2 composed of Pecos, Terrell, Reagan, Val Verde, and Upton counties.
5-3 (b) The 83rd and 112th district courts have concurrent
5-4 jurisdiction in Pecos, Reagan, and Upton counties.
5-5 (c) The 83rd and 63rd district courts have concurrent
5-6 jurisdiction in Terrell and Val Verde counties.
5-7 (d) The terms of the 83rd District Court begin:
5-8 (1) on the second [ninth] Monday [after the first
5-9 Mondays] in January and July;
5-10 (2) in Reagan County on the 14th Monday after the
5-11 first Mondays in January and July; and
5-12 (3) in Upton County on the 12th Monday after the first
5-13 Mondays in January and July.
5-14 (e) [(d)] In each of the counties of Pecos, Terrell, Val
5-15 Verde, and Upton, a petition or other pleading filed in the
5-16 district courts is sufficient if addressed "To The District Court
5-17 of Pecos County, Texas," or "To The District Court of Terrell
5-18 County, Texas," or "To The District Court of Upton County, Texas,"
5-19 or "To The District Court of Val Verde County, Texas,"
5-20 respectively, without giving the number of the district court in
5-21 the address.
5-22 [(e) The secretary of state shall submit the changes made to
5-23 this section by H.B. 3235 of the 74th Legislature, Regular Session,
5-24 to the U.S. Justice Department for preclearance under Section 5 of
5-25 the federal Voting Rights Act of 1965 as amended (42 U.S.C. Section
6-1 1973 et seq.). The changes made to this section by H.B. 3235 of
6-2 the 74th Legislature, Regular Session, become inoperative if the
6-3 U.S. Justice Department files a timely objection pursuant to
6-4 Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 as amended.]
6-5 SECTION 6. Section 43.133, Government Code, is amended to
6-6 read as follows:
6-7 Sec. 43.133. 63RD JUDICIAL DISTRICT. (a) The voters of the
6-8 63rd Judicial District elect a district attorney.
6-9 (b) The district attorney for the 63rd district also acts as
6-10 district attorney for the 83rd Judicial District in Terrell and Val
6-11 Verde counties.
6-12 SECTION 7. (a) The local administrative district judge
6-13 shall transfer all cases from Culberson and Hudspeth counties that
6-14 are pending in the 205th District Court on the effective date of
6-15 this Act to the 394th District Court.
6-16 (b) When a case is transferred from one court to another as
6-17 provided by Subsection (a) of this section, all processes, writs,
6-18 bonds, recognizances, or other obligations issued from the
6-19 transferring court are returnable to the court to which the case is
6-20 transferred as if originally issued by that court. The obligees in
6-21 all bonds and recognizances taken in and for a court from which a
6-22 case is transferred, and all witnesses summoned to appear in a
6-23 court from which a case is transferred, are required to appear
6-24 before the court to which a case is transferred as if originally
6-25 required to appear before the court to which the transfer is made.
7-1 SECTION 8. The initial vacancies in the offices of judges of
7-2 the 379th, 393rd, and 397th through 407th judicial districts shall
7-3 be filled by election. The offices exist for purposes of the
7-4 primary and general elections in 1998. Vacancies after the initial
7-5 vacancies are filled as provided by Section 28, Article V, Texas
7-6 Constitution.
7-7 SECTION 9. The importance of this legislation and the
7-8 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
7-9 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
7-10 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
7-11 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.
S.B. No. 20
________________________________ ________________________________
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I hereby certify that S.B. No. 20 passed the Senate on
April 24, 1997, by a viva-voce vote; May 27, 1997, Senate refused
to concur in House amendments and requested appointment of
Conference Committee; May 29, 1997, House granted request of the
Senate; May 31, 1997, Senate adopted Conference Committee Report by
a viva-voce vote.
_______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
I hereby certify that S.B. No. 20 passed the House, with
amendments, on May 23, 1997, by a non-record vote; May 29, 1997,
House granted request of the Senate for appointment of Conference
Committee; June 1, 1997, House adopted Conference Committee Report
by a non-record vote.
_______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
Approved:
________________________________
Date
________________________________
Governor