Texas 2013 - 83rd Regular

Texas House Bill HB3669 Compare Versions

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1	1	By: Naishtat (Senate Sponsor - West) H.B. No. 3669
2	2	(In the Senate - Received from the House May 10, 2013;
3	3	May 10, 2013, read first time and referred to Committee on
4	4	Jurisprudence; May 16, 2013, reported adversely, with favorable
5	5	Committee Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 7, Nays 0;
6	6	May 16, 2013, sent to printer.)
7	7	COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR H.B. No. 3669 By: Paxton
8	8
9	9
10	10	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
11	11	AN ACT
12	12	relating to the recusal or disqualification of a statutory probate
13	13	judge or other judge authorized to hear probate, guardianship, or
14	14	mental health matters, and the subsequent assignment of another
15	15	judge.
16	16	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
17	17	SECTION 1. Sections 25.0022(d) and (h), Government Code,
18	18	are amended to read as follows:
19	19	(d) The presiding judge shall:
20	20	(1) ensure the promulgation of local rules of
21	21	administration in accordance with policies and guidelines set by
22	22	the supreme court;
23	23	(2) advise local statutory probate court judges on
24	24	case flow management practices and auxiliary court services;
25	25	(3) perform a duty of a local administrative statutory
26	26	probate court judge if the local administrative judge does not
27	27	perform that duty;
28	28	(4) appoint an assistant presiding judge of the
29	29	statutory probate courts;
30	30	(5) call and preside over annual meetings of the
31	31	judges of the statutory probate courts at a time and place in the
32	32	state as designated by the presiding judge;
33	33	(6) call and convene other meetings of the judges of
34	34	the statutory probate courts as considered necessary by the
35	35	presiding judge to promote the orderly and efficient administration
36	36	of justice in the statutory probate courts;
37	37	(7) study available statistics reflecting the
38	38	condition of the dockets of the probate courts in the state to
39	39	determine the need for the assignment of judges under this section;
40	40	(8) compare local rules of court to achieve uniformity
41	41	of rules to the extent practical and consistent with local
42	42	conditions; and
43	43	(9) assign or order the clerk who serves the statutory
44	44	probate courts to randomly assign a judge or former or retired judge
45	45	of a statutory probate court to hear a case under Section
46	46	25.002201(a) or 25.00255, as applicable [the circumstances
47	47	described by Section 25.002201(b)].
48	48	(h) Subject to Section 25.002201, a judge or a former or
49	49	retired judge of a statutory probate court may be assigned by the
50	50	presiding judge of the statutory probate courts to hold court in a
51	51	statutory probate court, a county court, or any statutory court
52	52	exercising probate jurisdiction when:
53	53	(1) a statutory probate judge requests assignment of
54	54	another judge to the judge's court;
55	55	(2) a statutory probate judge is absent, disabled, or
56	56	disqualified for any reason;
57	57	(3) a statutory probate judge is present or is trying
58	58	cases as authorized by the constitution and laws of this state and
59	59	the condition of the court's docket makes it necessary to appoint an
60	60	additional judge;
61	61	(4) the office of a statutory probate judge is vacant;
62	62	(5) the presiding judge of an administrative judicial
63	63	district requests the assignment of a statutory probate judge to
64	64	hear a probate matter in a county court or statutory county court;
65	65	(6) the statutory probate [presiding] judge is [of the
66	66	administrative judicial district fails to timely assign a judge to
67	67	replace a] recused or disqualified [statutory probate court judge]
68	68	as described by Section 25.002201(a) [Section 25.002201(b)];
69	69	(7) a county court judge requests the assignment of a
70	70	statutory probate judge to hear a probate matter in the county
71	71	court; or
72	72	(8) a local administrative statutory probate court
73	73	judge requests the assignment of a statutory probate judge to hear a
74	74	matter in a statutory probate court.
75	75	SECTION 2. Sections 25.002201(a) and (b), Government Code,
76	76	are amended to read as follows:
77	77	(a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), not [Not] later
78	78	than the 15th day after the date an order of recusal or
79	79	disqualification of a statutory probate court judge is issued in a
80	80	case, the presiding judge [of the administrative judicial district]
81	81	shall assign a statutory probate court judge or a former or retired
82	82	judge of a statutory probate court to hear the case if:
83	83	(1) the judge of the statutory probate court recused
84	84	himself or herself under Section 25.00255(g)(1)(A);
85	85	(2) the judge of the statutory probate court
86	86	disqualified himself or herself under Section 25.00255(g-1);
87	87	(3) the order was issued under Section
88	88	25.00255(i-3)(1); or
89	89	(4) the presiding judge [of the administrative
90	90	judicial district] receives notice and a request for assignment
91	91	from the clerk of the statutory probate court under Section
92	92	25.00255(l).
93	93	(b) If the [presiding] judge who is the subject of an order
94	94	of recusal or disqualification is [of an administrative judicial
95	95	district does not assign a judge under Subsection (a) within the
96	96	time prescribed by that subsection,] the presiding judge of the
97	97	statutory probate courts, the chief justice of the supreme court
98	98	shall [may] assign a regional presiding judge, a statutory probate
99	99	judge, or a former or retired judge of a statutory probate court to
100	100	hear the case [instead of the presiding judge of the administrative
101	101	judicial district making the assignment under that subsection].
102	102	SECTION 3. Sections 25.00255(a), (g), (g-1), (i-2), (i-3),
103	103	(i-5), and (l), Government Code, are amended to read as follows:
104	104	(a) Notwithstanding any conflicting provision in the Texas
105	105	Rules of Civil Procedure, Rules 18a and 18b, Texas Rules of Civil
106	106	Procedure, apply to the recusal and disqualification of a statutory
107	107	probate court judge except as otherwise provided by this section or
108	108	another provision of this subchapter. The presiding judge:
109	109	(1) has the authority and shall perform the functions
110	110	and duties of the presiding judge of the administrative judicial
111	111	region under the rules, including the duty to hear or rule on a
112	112	referred motion of recusal or disqualification or, subject to
113	113	Subdivisions (2) and (3) and to Section 25.002201, assign a judge to
114	114	hear and rule on a referred motion of recusal or disqualification;
115	115	(2) may assign a presiding judge of the administrative
116	116	judicial region to hear and rule on a referred motion of recusal or
117	117	disqualification only with the consent of the presiding judge of
118	118	the administrative judicial region; and
119	119	(3) may not assign a judge of a statutory probate court
120	120	located in the same county as the statutory probate court served by
121	121	the judge who is the subject of the motion of recusal or
122	122	disqualification [A party in a hearing or trial in a statutory
123	123	probate court may file with the clerk of the court a motion stating
124	124	grounds for the recusal or disqualification of the judge. The
125	125	grounds may include any disability of the judge to preside over the
126	126	case].
127	127	(g) A judge who recuses himself or herself:
128	128	(1) shall enter an order of recusal and:
129	129	(A) if the judge serves a statutory probate court
130	130	located in a county with only one statutory probate court, request
131	131	that the presiding judge [of the administrative judicial district]
132	132	assign a judge under Section 25.002201 to hear the case; or
133	133	(B) subject to Subsection (l), if the judge
134	134	serves a statutory probate court located in a county with more than
135	135	one statutory probate court, request that the presiding judge order
136	136	[request that] the clerk who serves the statutory probate courts in
137	137	that county to randomly reassign the case to a judge of one of the
138	138	other statutory probate courts located in the county; and
139	139	(2) may not take other action in the case except for
140	140	good cause stated in the order in which the action is taken.
141	141	(g-1) A judge who disqualifies himself or herself:
142	142	(1) shall enter an order of disqualification and:
143	143	(A) if the judge serves a statutory probate court
144	144	located in a county with only one statutory probate court, request
145	145	that the presiding judge [of the administrative judicial district]
146	146	assign a judge under Section 25.002201 to hear the case; or
147	147	(B) subject to Subsection (l), if the judge
148	148	serves a statutory probate court located in a county with more than
149	149	one statutory probate court, request that the presiding judge order
150	150	the clerk who serves the statutory probate courts in that county to
151	151	randomly reassign the case to a judge of one of the other statutory
152	152	probate courts; and
153	153	(2) may not take other action in the case.
154	154	(i-2) A judge who hears a motion for recusal or
155	155	disqualification [under Subsection (i) or (i-1)] may also hear any
156	156	amended or supplemented motion for recusal or disqualification
157	157	filed in the case.
158	158	(i-3) If a motion for recusal or disqualification is granted
159	159	[after a hearing conducted as provided by Subsection (i) or (i-1)],
160	160	the presiding judge [who heard the motion] shall transfer the case
161	161	to another court or assign another judge to the case and:
162	162	(1) if the judge subject to recusal or
163	163	disqualification serves a statutory probate court located in a
164	164	county with only one statutory probate court, the presiding judge
165	165	or judge assigned to decide the motion shall enter an order of
166	166	recusal or disqualification, as appropriate, and request that the
167	167	presiding judge [of the administrative judicial district] assign a
168	168	judge under Section 25.002201 to hear the case; or
169	169	(2) subject to Subsection (l), if the judge subject to
170	170	recusal or disqualification serves a statutory probate court
171	171	located in a county with more than one statutory probate court, the
172	172	presiding judge or judge assigned to decide the motion shall enter
173	173	an order of recusal or disqualification, as appropriate, and
174	174	request that the clerk who serves the statutory probate courts in
175	175	that county randomly reassign the case to a judge of one of the
176	176	other statutory probate courts located in the county.
177	177	(i-5) A judge assigned to hear a motion for recusal or
178	178	disqualification [under Subsection (i)] is entitled to receive the
179	179	same salary, compensation, and expenses, and to be paid in the same
180	180	manner and from the same fund, as a judge otherwise assigned under
181	181	Section 25.0022[, except that a judge assigned under Subsection (i)
182	182	shall provide the information required by Section 25.0022(l) to the
183	183	presiding judge of the administrative judicial district, who shall
184	184	immediately forward the information to the presiding judge of the
185	185	statutory probate courts].
186	186	(l) If a clerk of a statutory probate court is unable to
187	187	reassign a case as requested under Subsection (g)(1)(B) or (i-3)(2)
188	188	because the other statutory probate court judges in the county have
189	189	been recused or disqualified or are otherwise unavailable to hear
190	190	the case, the clerk shall immediately notify the presiding judge
191	191	[of the administrative judicial district] and request that the
192	192	presiding judge [of the administrative judicial district] assign a
193	193	judge under Section 25.002201 to hear the case.
194	194	SECTION 4. Section 26.012, Government Code, is amended to
195	195	read as follows:
196	196	Sec. 26.012. ASSIGNMENT OF VISITING JUDGE FOR PROBATE,
197	197	GUARDIANSHIP, AND MENTAL HEALTH MATTERS. If the county judge is
198	198	absent, incapacitated, recused, or disqualified to act in a
199	199	probate, guardianship, or mental health matter, a visiting judge
200	200	shall be assigned in accordance with Section 25.0022(h).
201	201	SECTION 5. The following are repealed:
202	202	(1) Sections 25.00255(b), (c), (d), (e), (f), (h),
203	203	(i), (i-4), and (j), Government Code; and
204	204	(2) Section 25.002201(c), Government Code.
205	205	SECTION 6. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to
206	206	a motion for recusal or disqualification of a judge that is filed on
207	207	or after the effective date of this Act. A motion for recusal or
208	208	disqualification of a judge filed before the effective date of this
209	209	Act is governed by the law in effect on the date the motion was
210	210	filed, and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
211	211	SECTION 7. This Act takes effect September 1, 2013.
212	212	* * * * *