Texas 2011 - 82nd Regular

Texas House Bill HB3475 Compare Versions

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1	1	By: Gallego (Senate Sponsor - West) H.B. No. 3475
2	2	(In the Senate - Received from the House May 12, 2011;
3	3	May 12, 2011, read first time and referred to Committee on
4	4	Jurisprudence; May 21, 2011, reported favorably by the following
5	5	vote: Yeas 5, Nays 0; May 21, 2011, sent to printer.)
6	6
7	7
8	8	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
9	9	AN ACT
10	10	relating to the recusal and disqualification of municipal judges.
11	11	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
12	12	SECTION 1. Chapter 29, Government Code, is amended by
13	13	adding Subchapter A-1 to read as follows:
14	14	SUBCHAPTER A-1. RECUSAL OR DISQUALIFICATION OF MUNICIPAL JUDGES
15	15	Sec. 29.051. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
16	16	(1) "Active judge" means a person who holds office as a
17	17	district court judge or statutory county court judge.
18	18	(2) "Presiding judge" means the presiding judge of a
19	19	municipal court, including a municipal court of record.
20	20	(3) "Regional presiding judge" means the presiding
21	21	judge of the administrative judicial region appointed under Section
22	22	74.005.
23	23	Sec. 29.052. MOTION FOR RECUSAL OR DISQUALIFICATION. (a) A
24	24	party in a hearing or trial in a municipal court, including a
25	25	municipal court of record, may file with the clerk of the court a
26	26	motion stating grounds for the recusal or disqualification of the
27	27	municipal judge. The grounds may include any disability of the
28	28	judge to preside over the case.
29	29	(b) A motion for the recusal or disqualification of a
30	30	municipal judge must:
31	31	(1) be filed at least 10 days before the date of the
32	32	hearing or trial, except as provided by Subsection (c);
33	33	(2) be verified; and
34	34	(3) state with particularity the alleged grounds for
35	35	recusal or disqualification of the judge based on:
36	36	(A) personal knowledge that is supported by
37	37	admissible evidence; or
38	38	(B) specifically stated grounds for belief of the
39	39	allegations.
40	40	(c) A motion for recusal or disqualification must be filed
41	41	at the earliest practicable time before the beginning of the trial
42	42	or other hearing if a judge is assigned to a case 10 or fewer days
43	43	before the date set for a trial or hearing.
44	44	Sec. 29.053. NOTICE. A party filing a motion for recusal or
45	45	disqualification under this subchapter shall serve on all other
46	46	parties or their counsel:
47	47	(1) copies of the motion; and
48	48	(2) notice that the movant expects the motion to be
49	49	presented to the judge three days after the filing of the motion
50	50	unless the judge orders otherwise.
51	51	Sec. 29.054. STATEMENT OPPOSING OR CONCURRING WITH
52	52	MOTION. A party may file with the clerk of the court a statement
53	53	opposing or concurring with a motion for recusal or
54	54	disqualification at any time before the motion is heard.
55	55	Sec. 29.055. PROCEDURE FOLLOWING FILING OF MOTION; RECUSAL
56	56	OR DISQUALIFICATION WITHOUT MOTION. (a) Before further proceedings
57	57	in a case in which a motion for the recusal or disqualification of a
58	58	municipal judge has been filed, the judge shall:
59	59	(1) recuse or disqualify himself or herself; or
60	60	(2) request the regional presiding judge to assign a
61	61	judge to hear the motion.
62	62	(b) A municipal judge who with or without a motion recuses
63	63	or disqualifies himself or herself:
64	64	(1) shall enter an order of recusal or
65	65	disqualification and:
66	66	(A) if the municipal judge is not the presiding
67	67	judge, request the presiding judge to assign any other judge of the
68	68	municipal court, including the presiding judge, to hear the case;
69	69	(B) if the municipal judge is the presiding
70	70	judge, request the regional presiding judge to assign another judge
71	71	of the municipal court to hear the case; or
72	72	(C) if the municipal judge serves in a
73	73	municipality with only one municipal judge, request the regional
74	74	presiding judge to assign a judge of another municipal court in the
75	75	county to hear the case; and
76	76	(2) may not take other action in the case, except that
77	77	a judge who recuses himself or herself for good cause may take other
78	78	action as stated in the order in which the action is taken.
79	79	(c) A municipal judge who does not recuse or disqualify
80	80	himself or herself:
81	81	(1) shall forward, in original form or certified copy,
82	82	an order of referral, the motion, and all opposing and concurring
83	83	statements to the regional presiding judge; and
84	84	(2) may not take other action in the case during the
85	85	time after the filing of the motion for recusal or disqualification
86	86	and before a hearing on the motion, except for good cause stated in
87	87	the order in which the action is taken.
88	88	Sec. 29.056. HEARING ON MOTION. (a) A regional presiding
89	89	judge who receives a request for the assignment of a judge to hear a
90	90	motion to recuse or disqualify shall:
91	91	(1) immediately set a hearing before the regional
92	92	presiding judge, an active judge, or a judge on the list of judges
93	93	who are eligible to serve on assignment under Section 74.055;
94	94	(2) cause notice of the hearing to be given to all
95	95	parties or their counsel; and
96	96	(3) make any other orders, including orders on interim
97	97	or ancillary relief in the pending cause as justice may require.
98	98	(b) A judge who hears a motion for recusal or
99	99	disqualification under Subsection (a) may also hear any amended or
100	100	supplemented motion for recusal or disqualification filed in the
101	101	case.
102	102	(c) If none of the parties to an action object, a hearing
103	103	under Subsection (a) or (b) may be conducted by telephone.
104	104	Sec. 29.057. PROCEDURE FOLLOWING GRANTING OF MOTION. (a)
105	105	If a motion for recusal or disqualification is granted after a
106	106	hearing is conducted as provided by Section 29.056, the judge who
107	107	heard the motion shall enter an order of recusal or
108	108	disqualification, and:
109	109	(1) if the judge who was the subject of the motion is
110	110	not the presiding judge, request that the presiding judge assign
111	111	any other judge of the municipality, including the presiding judge,
112	112	to hear the case;
113	113	(2) if the judge who was the subject of the motion is
114	114	the presiding judge, request the regional presiding judge to assign
115	115	another judge of the municipality to hear the case; or
116	116	(3) if the judge subject to recusal or
117	117	disqualification is located in a municipality with only one
118	118	municipal judge, request the regional presiding judge to assign a
119	119	judge of another municipal court in the county to hear the case.
120	120	(b) If the presiding judge is unable to assign a judge of the
121	121	municipality to hear a case when a municipal judge is recused or
122	122	disqualified under Section 29.055 or 29.056 because there are not
123	123	any other municipal judges in the municipality or because all the
124	124	municipal judges have been recused or disqualified or are otherwise
125	125	unavailable to hear the case, the presiding judge shall request the
126	126	regional presiding judge to first assign a municipal judge from
127	127	another municipality in the county or, if necessary, assign a
128	128	municipal judge from a municipality in an adjacent county to hear
129	129	the case.
130	130	(c) If the regional presiding judge is unable to assign a
131	131	judge to hear a case when a municipal judge is recused or
132	132	disqualified under Section 29.055 or 29.056 because there are not
133	133	any other municipal judges in the county or because all the
134	134	municipal judges have been recused or disqualified or are otherwise
135	135	unavailable to hear the case, the regional presiding judge may
136	136	assign a municipal judge from a municipality in an adjacent county
137	137	to hear the case.
138	138	Sec. 29.058. APPEAL. (a) After a municipal court of record
139	139	has rendered a final judgment in a case, a party may appeal an order
140	140	that denies a motion for recusal or disqualification as an abuse of
141	141	the court's discretion.
142	142	(b) A party may not appeal an order that grants a motion for
143	143	recusal or disqualification.
144	144	Sec. 29.059. CONTEMPT. If a party files a motion to recuse
145	145	or disqualify under this subchapter and it is determined by the
146	146	judge hearing the motion, at the hearing and on motion of the
147	147	opposing party, that the motion to recuse or disqualify is brought
148	148	solely for the purpose of delay and without sufficient cause, the
149	149	judge may in the interest of justice find the party filing the
150	150	motion in contempt under Section 21.002(c).
151	151	Sec. 29.060. COMPENSATION. (a) An active judge who is
152	152	assigned to hear a motion to recuse or disqualify a municipal judge
153	153	under this subchapter is not entitled to additional compensation
154	154	other than travel expenses. A judge assigned to hear a motion to
155	155	recuse or disqualify who is not an active judge is entitled to:
156	156	(1) compensation of $450 per day of service, prorated
157	157	for any day for which the judge provides less than a full day of
158	158	service; and
159	159	(2) travel expenses.
160	160	(b) A municipal judge assigned under this subchapter to hear
161	161	a case in a court other than the one in which the judge resides or
162	162	serves is entitled to compensation provided by law for judges in
163	163	similar cases and travel expenses.
164	164	(c) The municipality in which a case subject to this
165	165	subchapter is pending shall pay the compensation and travel
166	166	expenses due or incurred under this subchapter.
167	167	SECTION 2. Subchapter A, Chapter 29, Government Code, is
168	168	amended by adding Section 29.013 to read as follows:
169	169	Sec. 29.013. REPORT TO TEXAS JUDICIAL COUNCIL. (a) The
170	170	secretary of the municipality in a municipality with a municipal
171	171	court, including a municipal court of record, or the employee
172	172	responsible for maintaining the records of the municipality's
173	173	governing body shall notify the Texas Judicial Council of the name
174	174	of:
175	175	(1) each person who is elected or appointed as mayor,
176	176	municipal court judge, or clerk of a municipal court; and
177	177	(2) each person who vacates an office described by
178	178	Subdivision (1).
179	179	(b) The secretary or employee shall notify the judicial
180	180	council not later than the 30th day after the date of the person's
181	181	election or appointment to office or vacancy from office.
182	182	SECTION 3. The following sections are repealed:
183	183	(1) Section 29.012, Government Code; and
184	184	(2) Section 22.073(c), Local Government Code.
185	185	SECTION 4. Subchapter A-1, Chapter 29, Government Code, as
186	186	added by this Act, applies only to a hearing or trial initially
187	187	filed in a municipal court on or after the effective date of this
188	188	Act.
189	189	SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2011.
190	190	* * * * *