| 1 | 1 | | 85R7243 CAE-F |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Bailes H.B. No. 2184 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 6 | 6 | | AN ACT |
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| 7 | 7 | | relating to the operation and administration of the Walker County |
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| 8 | 8 | | Court at Law. |
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| 9 | 9 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 10 | 10 | | SECTION 1. Section 25.2382, Government Code, is amended by |
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| 11 | 11 | | amending Subsections (a), (g), (h), (i), and (k) and adding |
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| 12 | 12 | | Subsection (m) to read as follows: |
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| 13 | 13 | | (a) In addition to the jurisdiction provided by Section |
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| 14 | 14 | | 25.0003 and other law, a county court at law in Walker County has |
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| 15 | 15 | | concurrent jurisdiction with the district court in[: |
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| 16 | 16 | | [(1)] family law cases and proceedings[; and |
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| 17 | 17 | | [(2) cases and proceedings involving justiciable |
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| 18 | 18 | | controversies and differences between spouses, between parents, or |
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| 19 | 19 | | between parent and child, or between any of these and third |
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| 20 | 20 | | persons]. |
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| 21 | 21 | | (g) The district clerk serves as clerk of a county court at |
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| 22 | 22 | | law in family law cases and proceedings [the cases enumerated in |
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| 23 | 23 | | Subsections (a)(2)(B) and (C)], and the county clerk serves as |
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| 24 | 24 | | clerk of the court in all other matters. The commissioners court |
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| 25 | 25 | | may employ as many deputy sheriffs and bailiffs as are necessary to |
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| 26 | 26 | | serve a county court at law. |
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| 27 | 27 | | (h) The judge of a county court at law shall set the [may, |
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| 28 | 28 | | instead of appointing an] official court reporter's salary at an |
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| 29 | 29 | | amount that does not exceed the salary of an official court reporter |
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| 30 | 30 | | for a district court [reporter, contract for the services of a court |
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| 31 | 31 | | reporter under guidelines established by the commissioners court]. |
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| 32 | 32 | | (i) Except as otherwise required by law, a jury in a county |
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| 33 | 33 | | court at law shall be composed of six members [If a family law case |
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| 34 | 34 | | is tried before a jury, the jury shall be composed of 12 members]. |
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| 35 | 35 | | (k) All cases appealed from the justice courts and other |
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| 36 | 36 | | courts of inferior jurisdiction in the county shall be made |
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| 37 | 37 | | directly [direct] to a county court at law, unless otherwise |
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| 38 | 38 | | provided by law. |
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| 39 | 39 | | (m) The judge of a county court at law and a judge of a |
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| 40 | 40 | | district court may exchange benches and transfer cases with the |
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| 41 | 41 | | approval of the judges and in the same manner that judges of |
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| 42 | 42 | | district courts exchange benches and transfer cases under Section |
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| 43 | 43 | | 24.003. |
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| 44 | 44 | | SECTION 2. Section 25.2382(e), Government Code, is |
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| 45 | 45 | | repealed. |
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| 46 | 46 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017. |
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