| 1 | 1 | | H.B. No. 1682 |
|---|
| 2 | 2 | | |
|---|
| 3 | 3 | | |
|---|
| 4 | 4 | | AN ACT |
|---|
| 5 | 5 | | relating to the creation of a county court at law in Navarro County. |
|---|
| 6 | 6 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
|---|
| 7 | 7 | | SECTION 1. Subchapter C, Chapter 25, Government Code, is |
|---|
| 8 | 8 | | amended by adding Sections 25.1771 and 25.1772 to read as follows: |
|---|
| 9 | 9 | | Sec. 25.1771. NAVARRO COUNTY. Navarro County has one |
|---|
| 10 | 10 | | statutory county court, the County Court at Law of Navarro County. |
|---|
| 11 | 11 | | Sec. 25.1772. NAVARRO COUNTY COURT AT LAW PROVISIONS. (a) |
|---|
| 12 | 12 | | In addition to the jurisdiction provided by Section 25.0003 and |
|---|
| 13 | 13 | | other law, and except as limited by Subsection (b), a county court |
|---|
| 14 | 14 | | at law in Navarro County has concurrent jurisdiction with the |
|---|
| 15 | 15 | | district court in: |
|---|
| 16 | 16 | | (1) felony cases to: |
|---|
| 17 | 17 | | (A) conduct arraignments; |
|---|
| 18 | 18 | | (B) conduct pretrial hearings; |
|---|
| 19 | 19 | | (C) accept guilty pleas; and |
|---|
| 20 | 20 | | (D) conduct jury trials on assignment of a |
|---|
| 21 | 21 | | district judge presiding in Navarro County and acceptance of the |
|---|
| 22 | 22 | | assignment by the judge of the county court at law; |
|---|
| 23 | 23 | | (2) Class A and Class B misdemeanor cases; |
|---|
| 24 | 24 | | (3) family law matters; |
|---|
| 25 | 25 | | (4) juvenile matters; |
|---|
| 26 | 26 | | (5) probate matters; and |
|---|
| 27 | 27 | | (6) appeals from the justice and municipal courts. |
|---|
| 28 | 28 | | (b) A county court at law does not have general supervisory |
|---|
| 29 | 29 | | control or appellate review of the commissioners court or |
|---|
| 30 | 30 | | jurisdiction of: |
|---|
| 31 | 31 | | (1) suits on behalf of this state to recover penalties |
|---|
| 32 | 32 | | or escheated property; |
|---|
| 33 | 33 | | (2) felony cases involving capital murder; |
|---|
| 34 | 34 | | (3) misdemeanors involving official misconduct; or |
|---|
| 35 | 35 | | (4) contested elections. |
|---|
| 36 | 36 | | (c) The judge of a county court at law must have the same |
|---|
| 37 | 37 | | qualifications as those required by law for a district judge. |
|---|
| 38 | 38 | | (d) The judge of a county court at law shall be paid a total |
|---|
| 39 | 39 | | annual salary set by the commissioners court at an amount that is |
|---|
| 40 | 40 | | not less than $1,000 less than the total annual salary received by a |
|---|
| 41 | 41 | | district judge in the county. A district judge's or statutory |
|---|
| 42 | 42 | | county court judge's total annual salary does not include |
|---|
| 43 | 43 | | contributions and supplements paid by a county. |
|---|
| 44 | 44 | | (e) The judge of a county court at law may not engage in the |
|---|
| 45 | 45 | | private practice of law. |
|---|
| 46 | 46 | | (f) The district clerk serves as clerk of a county court at |
|---|
| 47 | 47 | | law in matters of concurrent jurisdiction with the district court, |
|---|
| 48 | 48 | | and the county clerk shall serve as clerk of a county court at law in |
|---|
| 49 | 49 | | all other matters. Each clerk shall establish a separate docket for |
|---|
| 50 | 50 | | a county court at law. |
|---|
| 51 | 51 | | (g) The official court reporter of a county court at law is |
|---|
| 52 | 52 | | entitled to receive a salary set by the judge of the county court at |
|---|
| 53 | 53 | | law with the approval of the commissioners court. |
|---|
| 54 | 54 | | (h) Jurors summoned for a county court at law or a district |
|---|
| 55 | 55 | | court in the county may by order of the judge of the court to which |
|---|
| 56 | 56 | | they are summoned be transferred to another court for service and |
|---|
| 57 | 57 | | may be used as if summoned for the court to which they are |
|---|
| 58 | 58 | | transferred. |
|---|
| 59 | 59 | | SECTION 2. Notwithstanding Section 25.1771, Government |
|---|
| 60 | 60 | | Code, as added by this Act, the County Court at Law of Navarro |
|---|
| 61 | 61 | | County is created January 1, 2011, or on an earlier date determined |
|---|
| 62 | 62 | | by the Commissioners Court of Navarro County by an order entered in |
|---|
| 63 | 63 | | its minutes. |
|---|
| 64 | 64 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009. |
|---|
| 65 | 65 | | ______________________________ ______________________________ |
|---|
| 66 | 66 | | President of the Senate Speaker of the House |
|---|
| 67 | 67 | | I certify that H.B. No. 1682 was passed by the House on April |
|---|
| 68 | 68 | | 22, 2009, by the following vote: Yeas 149, Nays 0, 1 present, not |
|---|
| 69 | 69 | | voting. |
|---|
| 70 | 70 | | ______________________________ |
|---|
| 71 | 71 | | Chief Clerk of the House |
|---|
| 72 | 72 | | I certify that H.B. No. 1682 was passed by the Senate on May |
|---|
| 73 | 73 | | 20, 2009, by the following vote: Yeas 29, Nays 0. |
|---|
| 74 | 74 | | ______________________________ |
|---|
| 75 | 75 | | Secretary of the Senate |
|---|
| 76 | 76 | | APPROVED: _____________________ |
|---|
| 77 | 77 | | Date |
|---|
| 78 | 78 | | _____________________ |
|---|
| 79 | 79 | | Governor |
|---|