Texas 2025 - 89th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB1222 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	89R10985 BCH-F
2	2	By: Hughes S.B. No. 1222
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7	7	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	8	AN ACT
9	9	relating to the appointment of a former or retired justice of an
10	10	appellate court as a visiting judge of a statutory probate court.
11	11	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
12	12	SECTION 1. Sections 25.0022(d), (h), (k), (o), (t), (u),
13	13	and (w), Government Code, are amended to read as follows:
14	14	(d) The presiding judge shall:
15	15	(1) ensure the promulgation of local rules of
16	16	administration in accordance with policies and guidelines set by
17	17	the supreme court;
18	18	(2) advise local statutory probate court judges on
19	19	case flow management practices and auxiliary court services;
20	20	(3) perform a duty of a local administrative statutory
21	21	probate court judge if the local administrative judge does not
22	22	perform that duty;
23	23	(4) appoint an assistant presiding judge of the
24	24	statutory probate courts;
25	25	(5) call and preside over annual meetings of the
26	26	judges of the statutory probate courts at a time and place in the
27	27	state as designated by the presiding judge;
28	28	(6) call and convene other meetings of the judges of
29	29	the statutory probate courts as considered necessary by the
30	30	presiding judge to promote the orderly and efficient administration
31	31	of justice in the statutory probate courts;
32	32	(7) study available statistics reflecting the
33	33	condition of the dockets of the probate courts in the state to
34	34	determine the need for the assignment of judges under this section;
35	35	(8) compare local rules of court to achieve uniformity
36	36	of rules to the extent practical and consistent with local
37	37	conditions;
38	38	(9) assign or order the clerk who serves the statutory
39	39	probate courts to randomly assign a judge or former or retired judge
40	40	of a statutory probate court or a former or retired justice of an
41	41	appellate court to hear a case under Section 25.002201(a) or
42	42	25.00255, as applicable; and
43	43	(10) require the local administrative judge for
44	44	statutory probate courts in a county to ensure that all statutory
45	45	probate courts in the county comply with Chapter 37.
46	46	(h) Subject to Section 25.002201, a judge or a former or
47	47	retired judge of a statutory probate court or a former or retired
48	48	justice of an appellate court may be assigned by the presiding judge
49	49	of the statutory probate courts to hold court in a statutory probate
50	50	court, a county court, or any statutory court exercising probate
51	51	jurisdiction when:
52	52	(1) a statutory probate judge requests assignment of
53	53	another judge to the judge's court;
54	54	(2) a statutory probate judge is absent, disabled, or
55	55	disqualified for any reason;
56	56	(3) a statutory probate judge is present or is trying
57	57	cases as authorized by the constitution and laws of this state and
58	58	the condition of the court's docket makes it necessary to appoint an
59	59	additional judge;
60	60	(4) the office of a statutory probate judge is vacant;
61	61	(5) the presiding judge of an administrative judicial
62	62	district requests the assignment of a statutory probate judge to
63	63	hear a probate matter in a county court or statutory county court;
64	64	(6) the statutory probate judge is recused or
65	65	disqualified as described by Section 25.002201(a);
66	66	(7) a county court judge requests the assignment of a
67	67	statutory probate judge to hear a probate matter in the county
68	68	court; or
69	69	(8) a local administrative statutory probate court
70	70	judge requests the assignment of a statutory probate judge to hear a
71	71	matter in a statutory probate court.
72	72	(k) The daily compensation of a former or retired judge or
73	73	justice for purposes of this section is set at an amount equal to
74	74	the daily compensation of a judge of a statutory probate court in
75	75	the county in which the former or retired judge or justice is
76	76	assigned. A former or retired judge or justice assigned to a county
77	77	that does not have a statutory probate court shall be paid an amount
78	78	equal to the daily compensation of a judge of a statutory probate
79	79	court in the county where the assigned judge or justice was last
80	80	elected.
81	81	(o) The county in which the assigned judge served shall pay
82	82	out of the general fund of the county:
83	83	(1) expenses certified under Subsection (m) to the
84	84	assigned judge; and
85	85	(2) the salary certified under Subsection (m) to the
86	86	county in which the assigned judge serves, or, if the assigned judge
87	87	is a former or retired judge or justice, to the assigned judge.
88	88	(t) To be eligible for assignment under this section, a
89	89	former or retired judge of a statutory probate court or a former or
90	90	retired justice of an appellate court must:
91	91	(1) not have been removed from office;
92	92	(2) certify under oath to the presiding judge, on a
93	93	form prescribed by the state board of regional judges, that:
94	94	(A) the judge or justice has not been publicly
95	95	reprimanded or censured by the State Commission on Judicial
96	96	Conduct; and
97	97	(B) the judge or justice:
98	98	(i) did not resign or retire from office
99	99	after the State Commission on Judicial Conduct notified the judge
100	100	or justice of the commencement of a full investigation into an
101	101	allegation or appearance of misconduct or disability of the judge
102	102	or justice as provided in Section 33.022 and before the final
103	103	disposition of that investigation; or
104	104	(ii) if the judge or justice did resign from
105	105	office under circumstances described by Subparagraph (i), was not
106	106	publicly reprimanded or censured as a result of the investigation;
107	107	(3) annually demonstrate that the judge or justice has
108	108	completed in the past state fiscal year the educational
109	109	requirements for an active statutory probate court judge;
110	110	(4) have served as an active judge or justice for at
111	111	least 72 months in a district, statutory probate, statutory county,
112	112	or appellate court; and
113	113	(5) have developed substantial experience in the
114	114	judge's or justice's area of specialty.
115	115	(u) In addition to the eligibility requirements under
116	116	Subsection (t), to be eligible for assignment under this section in
117	117	the judge's or justice's county of residence, a former or retired
118	118	judge of a statutory probate court or a former or retired justice of
119	119	an appellate court must certify to the presiding judge a
120	120	willingness not to:
121	121	(1) appear and plead as an attorney in any court in the
122	122	judge's county of residence for a period of two years; and
123	123	(2) accept appointment as a guardian ad litem,
124	124	guardian of the estate of an incapacitated person, or guardian of
125	125	the person of an incapacitated person in any court in the judge's or
126	126	justice's county of residence for a period of two years.
127	127	(w) A former or retired judge or justice who is assigned
128	128	under this section is not an employee of the county in which the
129	129	assigned court is located.
130	130	SECTION 2. Section 25.002201, Government Code, is amended
131	131	to read as follows:
132	132	Sec. 25.002201. ASSIGNMENT OF JUDGE ON RECUSAL OR
133	133	DISQUALIFICATION. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), not
134	134	later than the 15th day after the date an order of recusal or
135	135	disqualification of a statutory probate court judge is issued in a
136	136	case, the presiding judge shall assign a statutory probate court
137	137	judge or a former or retired judge of a statutory probate court or a
138	138	former or retired justice of an appellate court to hear the case if:
139	139	(1) the judge of the statutory probate court recused
140	140	himself or herself under Section 25.00255(g)(1)(A);
141	141	(2) the judge of the statutory probate court
142	142	disqualified himself or herself under Section 25.00255(g-1);
143	143	(3) the order was issued under Section
144	144	25.00255(i-3)(1); or
145	145	(4) the presiding judge receives notice and a request
146	146	for assignment from the clerk of the statutory probate court under
147	147	Section 25.00255(l).
148	148	(b) If the judge who is the subject of an order of recusal or
149	149	disqualification is the presiding judge of the statutory probate
150	150	courts, the chief justice of the supreme court shall assign a
151	151	statutory probate judge, [or] a former or retired judge of a
152	152	statutory probate court, or a former or retired justice of an
153	153	appellate court to hear the case.
154	154	SECTION 3. Section 25.00255(a), Government Code, is amended
155	155	to read as follows:
156	156	(a) Notwithstanding any conflicting provision in the Texas
157	157	Rules of Civil Procedure, Rules 18a and 18b, Texas Rules of Civil
158	158	Procedure, apply to the recusal and disqualification of a statutory
159	159	probate court judge except as otherwise provided by this section or
160	160	another provision of this subchapter. The presiding judge:
161	161	(1) has the authority and shall perform the functions
162	162	and duties of the presiding judge of the administrative judicial
163	163	region under the rules, including the duty to hear or rule on a
164	164	referred motion of recusal or disqualification or, subject to
165	165	Subdivisions (2) and (3), assign a judge to hear and rule on a
166	166	referred motion of recusal or disqualification;
167	167	(2) may assign a presiding judge of the administrative
168	168	judicial region to hear and rule on a referred motion of recusal or
169	169	disqualification only with the consent of the presiding judge of
170	170	the administrative judicial region;
171	171	(3) may not assign a judge of a statutory probate court
172	172	located in the same county as the statutory probate court served by
173	173	the judge who is the subject of the motion of recusal or
174	174	disqualification; and
175	175	(4) if the presiding judge is the subject of the motion
176	176	of recusal or disqualification, shall sign and file with the clerk
177	177	an order referring the motion to the chief justice of the supreme
178	178	court for assignment of a presiding judge of an administrative
179	179	judicial region, a statutory probate court judge, [or] a former or
180	180	retired judge of a statutory probate court, or a former or retired
181	181	justice of an appellate court to hear and rule on the motion,
182	182	subject to Subdivisions (2) and (3).
183	183	SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.