Texas Government (GOVT 2306) -- The Judiciary

1. The Judiciary
GOVT 2306
Chapter 10

2. State Law in Texas
 Texas courts have the responsibility of interpreting and
applying state, and sometimes federal, law.
 With more than 3,000 justices and judges, and almost that many
courts, Texas has one of the largest judicial systems in the
country.
 It is the role of the state’s judges to interpret and apply state
constitutional provisions, statutory laws, and agency regulations
 These interpretations attract less public attention than their legislative
and executive counterparts
 However, their decisions affect Texans every day

3. State Law in Texas
 Preliminary Terms
 Civil Law – body of law concerning noncriminal matters, such as
business contracts and personal injury
 Criminal Law – body of law concerning felony and misdemeanor
offenses by individuals against other persons or property
 Felony – a serious crime punished by fine and prison confinement
 Misdemeanor – Classified as A, B, or C, a misdemeanor may be
punished by fine and/or jail sentence
 Jurisdiction – a court’s authority to hear a particular case

4. State Law in Texas
 FeloniesFelony Penalty
Capital Death or life in prison without parole
1st Degree 5 to 99 years in a state prison
and/or a fine of not more than
$10,000
2nd Degree 2 to 20 years in a state prison
and/or a fine of not more than
$10,000
3rd Degree 2 to 10 years in a state prison
and/or a fine of not more than
$10,000
State Jail 180 days to 2 years in a state jail
and/or a fine of not more than
$10,000

5. State Law in Texas
 FeloniesMisdemeanor Penalty
Class A Not more than 1 year in a
county jail and/or a fine of
not more than
$4,000
Class B Not more than 180 days in
a county jail and/or a fine of
not more than
$2,000
Class C A fine of not more than
$500

6. State Law in Texas
 Sources of Law
 These sources include
 the provisions of the Texas Constitution
 Includes federal statutes that are applicable to the state
 statutes enacted by the legislature
 regulations adopted by state agencies
 judge-made common law based on custom and tradition dating back to
medieval England.
 A court may apply a statute, constitutional provision regulation,
and common law all in the same case
 Procedures for filing a case, conducting a trial, and appealing a
judgment depend on whether the case is civil or criminal

7. State Law in Texas
 Code Revision
 In 1963, the Texas Legislative Council was charged with
systemizing the array of Texas laws into an organized code.
 This has been a work in progress for more than 40 years
 The legal code is found in Vernon’s Texas Codes Annotated.

8. State Law in Texas
 Code in Texas
 Texas Constitution
 Agricultural Code
 Alcoholic Beverage Code
 Auxiliary Water Laws
 Business/Commerce Code
 Business Organization Code
 Civil Practice and Remedies Code
 Code of Criminal Procedure
 Education Code
 Election Code
 Estates Code
 Family Code
 Finance Code
 Government Code
 Health and Safety Code
 Human Resources Code
 Insurance Code
 Labor Code
 Local Government Code
 Natural Resources Code
 Occupations Code
 Parks and Wildlife Code
 Penal Code
 Probate Code
 Property Code
 Special District Local Laws Code
 Tax Code
 Transportation Code
 Utilities Code
 Water Code
 Vernon’s Civil Statutes

9. Courts, Judges, Lawyers, and
Juries
 The Texas judicial system is a very complex structure, ranging
from local courts to the state supreme courts.
 All courts have jurisdiction established by law.
 Original jurisdiction
 the authority of a court to hear a case first.
 Appellate jurisdiction
 the authority of one court to review the decision of a lower court.
 Exclusive jurisdiction
 Authority of only one court to hear a particular type of case
 Concurrent jurisdiction
 Authority of more than one court to try a case
 Ex. A civil dispute involving more than $500 but less than $5,000 may be
heard in either a justice of the peace court, a county court, or a district court

10. Court Structure of
Texas

11. Texas Judges
and Justices

12. Texas Judges and
Justices

13. Courts, Judges, Lawyers, and
Juries
 Trial and Appellate Courts
 Local Trial Courts
 Minor trial courts are courts of limited jurisdiction and include municipal
courts and justice of the peace courts.
 These judges also serve as magistrates of the state, issuing warrants
and conducting hearings.
 Independent judges who are capable of issuing warrants, reviewing arrests,
conducting hearings, etc.
 Almost all other judges are also designated magistrates.

14. Courts, Judges, Lawyers, and
Juries
 Trial and Appellate Courts
 Local Trial Courts
 Municipal Courts
 Municipal court judges are elected, appointed, or ex-officio, depending on their city
charter.
 Mayors of a general law city have the authority to serve as judges
 Usually, municipal court judges of home-ruled cities are named city councils for 2
year terms
 Do not have to be licensed attorneys (unless presiding over a municipal court
of record)
 Courts of record have a court reporter or some means to record testimony and
proceedings
 Municipal courts are often referred to as traffic courts.
 Their judges hear minor criminal cases extending to violations of city ordinances and
class C misdemeanors, which occur within the limits of the municipal jurisdiction.

15. Courts, Judges, Lawyers, and
Juries
 Trial and Appellate Courts
 Local Trial Courts
 Justice of the Peace Courts
 JPs are elected for a four-year term, and no previous legal or judicial training is
required.
 They hear minor criminal and minor civil cases and often perform marriages,
act as a notary public, and act as coroner.
 Juries may be used if requested by one of the parties in the case.
 Small Claims Courts
 Small-claims court occurs when the JP hears some minor civil cases.
 Handles damages claims of $10,000 or less
 Procedure in small-claims court is less formal than that for the ordinary civil
jurisdiction of the justice of the peace court.

16. Courts, Judges, Lawyers, and
Juries
 Trial and Appellate Courts
 Local Trial Courts
 Justice of the Peace
 Elected by voters residing in a precinct with boundaries created by the county
commissioners court
 Texas Constitution mandates between 1 to 8 JP precincts according to
population
 Each precinct can have 1 to 2 JPs
 Position requires neither previous legal training or experience
 Approx. 10% of Texas’ JPs are lawyers and engage in private practice while
serving as a justice of the peace
 A JP who is not a lawyer must undergo an 80-hour course in performing the
duties of office within the first year
 An additional 20 hours of professional instruction are carried out every
year

17. Courts, Judges, Lawyers, and
Juries
 Trial and Appellate Courts
 County Trial Courts
 Each of Texas’s 254 counties has a county court as prescribed by the
state constitution.
 More than eighty counties have one or more additional county-level
courts created by statute.
 All are courts of record.
 Judges of constitutional county courts need not be attorneys.
 Statutory county court judges must be experienced attorneys.

18. Courts, Judges, Lawyers, and
Juries
 Trial and Appellate Courts
 County Trial Courts
 Constitutional County Courts
 Each county has a county judge who, in areas of small population, hears cases
in county court and serves as presiding officer of the commissioners court.
 Most county courts have original, appellate, civil, and criminal jurisdiction.
 County courts also serve as probate courts.
 Less than 15 percent of constitutional county judges are licensed attorneys.

19. Courts, Judges, Lawyers, and
Juries
 Trial and Appellate Courts
 County Trial Courts
 County Courts at Law
 In counties with a large population, the legislature has authorized the creation
of county courts at law to relieve the county judge from the burden of hearing
cases in county court.
 Probate Courts
 In the ten most heavily populated counties, one or more probate courts
determine the validity of wills of deceased persons, determine mental
competency, and designate guardians over the persons and/or estates of minor
children or incompetent adults.
 Counties with Probate Courts
 El Paso (2), Denton (1), Collin (1), Tarrant (2), Dallas (3), Travis (1), Bexar
(2), Harris (4), and Galveston (1)

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