| 1 | 1 | | 84R12942 JSC-F |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Thompson of Harris H.B. No. 3906 |
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| 3 | 3 | | Substitute the following for H.B. No. 3906: |
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| 4 | 4 | | By: Dutton C.S.H.B. No. 3906 |
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| 5 | 5 | | |
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| 6 | 6 | | |
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| 7 | 7 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 8 | 8 | | AN ACT |
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| 9 | 9 | | relating to the transfer of jurisdiction and the appointment of an |
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| 10 | 10 | | attorney ad litem or guardian ad litem in certain suits affecting |
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| 11 | 11 | | the parent-child relationship. |
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| 12 | 12 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 13 | 13 | | SECTION 1. Sections 155.207(a) and (c), Family Code, are |
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| 14 | 14 | | amended to read as follows: |
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| 15 | 15 | | (a) Not later than the 10th working day after [On] the date |
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| 16 | 16 | | [signing of] an order of transfer is signed, the clerk of the court |
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| 17 | 17 | | transferring a proceeding shall send to the proper court in the |
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| 18 | 18 | | county to which transfer is being made: |
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| 19 | 19 | | (1) the pleadings in the pending proceeding and any |
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| 20 | 20 | | other document specifically requested by a party; |
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| 21 | 21 | | (2) certified copies of all entries in the minutes; |
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| 22 | 22 | | [and] |
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| 23 | 23 | | (3) a certified copy of each final order; and |
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| 24 | 24 | | (4) a certified copy of the order of transfer signed by |
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| 25 | 25 | | the transferring court. |
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| 26 | 26 | | (c) On receipt of the pleadings, documents, and orders from |
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| 27 | 27 | | the transferring court, the clerk of the transferee court shall |
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| 28 | 28 | | docket the suit and shall notify the judge of the transferee court, |
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| 29 | 29 | | all parties, the clerk of the transferring court, and, if |
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| 30 | 30 | | appropriate, the transferring court's local registry that the suit |
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| 31 | 31 | | has been docketed. |
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| 32 | 32 | | SECTION 2. Section 262.203, Family Code, is amended by |
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| 33 | 33 | | adding Subsections (d) and (e) to read as follows: |
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| 34 | 34 | | (d) An order of transfer must include: |
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| 35 | 35 | | (1) the date of any future hearings in the case that |
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| 36 | 36 | | have been scheduled by the transferring court; |
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| 37 | 37 | | (2) any date scheduled by the transferring court for |
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| 38 | 38 | | the dismissal of the suit under Section 263.401; and |
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| 39 | 39 | | (3) the name and contact information of each attorney |
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| 40 | 40 | | ad litem or guardian ad litem appointed in the suit. |
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| 41 | 41 | | (e) The court to which a suit is transferred may retain an |
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| 42 | 42 | | attorney ad litem or guardian ad litem appointed by the |
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| 43 | 43 | | transferring court. If the court finds that the appointment of a |
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| 44 | 44 | | new attorney ad litem or guardian ad litem is appropriate, the court |
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| 45 | 45 | | shall appoint that attorney ad litem or guardian ad litem before the |
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| 46 | 46 | | earlier of: |
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| 47 | 47 | | (1) the 10th day after the date of receiving the order |
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| 48 | 48 | | of transfer; or |
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| 49 | 49 | | (2) the date of the first scheduled hearing after the |
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| 50 | 50 | | transfer. |
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| 51 | 51 | | SECTION 3. The change in law made by this Act applies only |
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| 52 | 52 | | to an order of transfer rendered in a suit affecting the |
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| 53 | 53 | | parent-child relationship on or after the effective date of this |
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| 54 | 54 | | Act. An order of transfer in a suit affecting the parent-child |
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| 55 | 55 | | relationship rendered before the effective date of this Act is |
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| 56 | 56 | | governed by the law in effect on the date the order was rendered, |
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| 57 | 57 | | and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. |
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| 58 | 58 | | SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015. |
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