By: Zaffirini S.B. No. 1369
(In the Senate - Filed March 12, 2015; March 18, 2015, read
first time and referred to Committee on State Affairs;
April 15, 2015, reported adversely, with favorable Committee
Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 9, Nays 0; April 15, 2015,
sent to printer.)
Click here to see the committee vote
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 1369 By: Zaffirini
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to reports on attorney ad litem, guardian ad litem,
guardian, mediator, and competency evaluator appointments made by
courts in this state and an interim study on a billing system for
attorneys ad litem.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subtitle B, Title 2, Government Code, is amended
by adding Chapter 36 to read as follows:
CHAPTER 36. JUDICIAL REPORTS
Sec. 36.001. DEFINITIONS. In this section:
(1) "Competency evaluator" means a physician or
psychologist who is licensed or certified in this state and who
performs examinations to determine whether an individual is
incapacitated or has an intellectual disability for purposes of
appointing a guardian for the individual. The term includes
physicians and psychologists conducting examinations under
Sections 1101.103 and 1101.104, Estates Code.
(2) "Guardian" has the meaning assigned by Section
1002.012, Estates Code.
Sec. 36.002. APPLICABILITY; CONFLICT OF LAW. (a) This
chapter applies to a court in this state created by the Texas
Constitution, by statute, or as authorized by statute.
(b) To the extent of a conflict between this chapter and a
specific provision relating to a court, this chapter controls.
Sec. 36.003. EXEMPTION. The reporting requirements of
Section 36.004 do not apply to:
(1) a mediator appointed under Chapter 152, Civil
Practice and Remedies Code;
(2) an appointment made under Chapter 33, Family Code;
(3) a guardian ad litem or other person appointed
under Section 107.031, Family Code; or
(4) an attorney ad litem, guardian ad litem, or
mediator appointed to represent a child as authorized under Chapter
203, Family Code.
Sec. 36.004. REPORT ON APPOINTMENTS. (a) In addition to a
report required by other state law or rule, each court in this state
shall prepare a report on court appointments for each state fiscal
year. A court that does not make an appointment in the preceding
state fiscal year must file a report indicating that no appointment
was made in that year. A court that appoints an attorney ad litem,
guardian ad litem, guardian, mediator, or competency evaluator for
a case before the court in the preceding state fiscal year shall
include in the report:
(1) the name of each person appointed by the court as
an attorney ad litem, guardian ad litem, guardian, mediator, or
competency evaluator for a case in that year;
(2) the name of the judge and the date of the order
approving compensation to be paid to a person appointed as an
attorney ad litem, guardian ad litem, guardian, mediator, or
competency evaluator for a case in that year;
(3) the number and style of each case in which a person
was appointed as an attorney ad litem, guardian ad litem, guardian,
mediator, or competency evaluator for that year;
(4) the number of cases each person was appointed by
the court to serve as an attorney ad litem, guardian ad litem,
guardian, mediator, or competency evaluator in that year;
(5) if available, the number of hours and the hourly
rate, flat fee, or pro bono hours of credit for each person who
served as an attorney ad litem, guardian ad litem, guardian,
mediator, or competency evaluator for an appointed case in that
year; and
(6) the total amount of compensation paid to each
attorney ad litem, guardian ad litem, guardian, mediator, or
competency evaluator appointed by the court in that year and the
source of the compensation.
(b) A court shall, not later than November 1 of each year,
prepare the report required under Subsection (a), submit a copy of
the report to the Office of Court Administration of the Texas
Judicial System, and post the report at the courthouse of the county
in which the court is located and on any Internet website of the
court.
(c) The Office of Court Administration of the Texas Judicial
System shall prescribe the format that courts must use to report the
information required by this section and shall post the information
collected under Subsection (b) on the office's Internet website.
Sec. 36.005. FAILURE TO REPORT. If a court in this state
fails to submit a report required by Section 36.004, the court is
ineligible for any grant money awarded by this state or a state
agency for the next state fiscal biennium.
Sec. 36.006. TEXAS JUDICIAL COUNCIL RULES. The Texas
Judicial Council shall, as the council considers appropriate, adopt
rules to implement this chapter.
SECTION 2. (a) The Office of Court Administration of the
Texas Judicial System shall conduct a study on the feasibility of
establishing a statewide uniform attorney ad litem billing system
that would allow attorneys appointed by courts in this state to
serve as attorneys ad litem in cases before the courts to enter on a
standardized form information regarding the appointment type and
duration, case information and activities, numbers of hours served
under the appointment, and hourly rate or flat fee paid for the
appointment.
(b) The study conducted under this section shall examine:
(1) the possible benefits to this state and to
counties in this state of establishing a statewide uniform attorney
ad litem billing system;
(2) the number of attorneys in this state providing
legal representation in court-appointed matters;
(3) the number of hours spent in client representation
activities by attorneys serving as attorneys ad litem;
(4) the qualifications of attorneys serving as
attorneys ad litem, including training and specialization;
(5) whether using a standardized billing voucher would
provide uniformity in the types of vouchers attorneys are currently
required to submit to courts for payment; and
(6) the amount of money spent on court-appointed legal
representation by year, court, county, and person served, such as
parent, child, or other.
(c) Not later than December 31, 2016, the Office of Court
Administration of the Texas Judicial System shall submit an
electronic copy of the study conducted under this section to the
governor, lieutenant governor, and speaker of the house of
representatives.
(d) This section expires September 1, 2017.
SECTION 3. Chapter 36, Government Code, as added by this
Act, applies beginning with the state fiscal year that begins
September 1, 2016.
SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.
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