New Texas Rule of Judicial Administration Rule 7.1 requires all courts to adopt a policy governing court confidentiality no later than May 1, 2024. The Supreme Court order, including the text of the rule, as well as the Supreme Court’s Confidentiality Policy and agreement is provided below. The Basic Requirements The policy must: (1) defineContinue reading “Time is Running Out! Confidentiality Policy Required by May 1, 2024”
Author Archives: Mark Goodner
Fifth Circuit Denies Texas’ Motion — S.B. 4 Not in Effect Until Court Decides Legality
Last night, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals denied Texas’ motion to stay pending appeal. This means that S.B. 4 is not in effect as we wait for the court to determine the legality of the new immigration law. See the full decision below. Updated Federal Court Activity Timeline
S.B. 4 Back on Ice After Briefly Taking Effect, Oral Arguments Scheduled Today
Late last night, a panel concluded that the administrative stay entered allowing S.B. 4 to take effect should be lifted. The stay was dissolved. This means that the preliminary injunction from the federal district court is barring S.B. 4 until the court considers Texas’ motion to stay the injunction pending appeal. This has been quiteContinue reading “S.B. 4 Back on Ice After Briefly Taking Effect, Oral Arguments Scheduled Today”
Texas Illegal Immigration Law Takes Effect Today, For Now
Relying on procedure rather than substance, the U.S. Supreme Court vacated its stay from yesterday, allowing Texas to enforce its new immigration law, SB 4. Essentially, the SCOTUS said it’s not in their purview to consider the merits of the 5th Circuit’s stay because the 5th Circuit used an administrative stay rather than a stayContinue reading “Texas Illegal Immigration Law Takes Effect Today, For Now”
S.B. 4 Not in Effect – Justice Alito Extends Stay Indefinitely
Supreme Court Justice Alito once again extended the stay barring Texas’ new immigration law S.B. 4 from taking effect today. Last week’s stay expired at 4:00 p.m. (CDT) today. Today’s order extends the stay without a specific end date. See the order below: Stay Tuned (and Save the Date) TMCEC will continue to monitor thisContinue reading “S.B. 4 Not in Effect – Justice Alito Extends Stay Indefinitely”
SCOTUS Extends Stay on New Texas Immigration Law
Yesterday, we told you about the latest on S.B. 4. Today, the U.S. Supreme Court has extended the stay until March 18, 2024. This pushes the earliest effective date of the new illegal immigration law to next Monday. Updated Federal Court Activity Timeline Stay Tuned (and Save the Date) TMCEC will continue to monitor thisContinue reading “SCOTUS Extends Stay on New Texas Immigration Law”
Will Texas Illegal Immigration Law Take Effect this Week?
S.B. 4 Implementation Temporarily Paused Pending U.S. Supreme Court Review For months, TMCEC has been monitoring S.B. 4, the “Texas Illegal Immigration Law.” The bill, scheduled to go into effect on March 5th, is embroiled in federal litigation. While a federal trial court issued a 114-page decision stopping the bill from taking effect, two daysContinue reading “Will Texas Illegal Immigration Law Take Effect this Week?”
Action Required! Municipal Courts Must Adopt Confidentiality Policy by May 1, 2024
On February 20, 2024, the Texas Supreme Court issued Final Approval of Amendments to Texas Rule of Judicial Administration Rule 7. Newly created Rule 7.1 (“Court Confidentiality Policy Required”) applies to municipal courts. In fact, it applies to all courts in Texas. Under Rule 7.1, every court must, no later than May 1, 2024, adoptContinue reading “Action Required! Municipal Courts Must Adopt Confidentiality Policy by May 1, 2024”
Announcing the TMCEC Prosecutor Professionalism Program
Just as municipal courts occupy a unique niche in the Texas judicial system, so do municipal prosecutors. From the smallest town to the largest city, prosecutors in municipal courts play a vital role in the administration of justice. It is estimated that more than 700 attorneys licensed in Texas prosecute in municipal courts. Compared toContinue reading “Announcing the TMCEC Prosecutor Professionalism Program”
Texas Constitution and Statutes Web Page Undergoing Maintenance, but New Code Book Available!
The state maintains a wonderful website where every Texas statute is available at the click of a button. Users should be aware that the website will go down for maintenance at 6:00 pm Friday, February 16, 2024 and will be down all weekend until 8:00 am on Tuesday, February 20, 2024. What will you doContinue reading “Texas Constitution and Statutes Web Page Undergoing Maintenance, but New Code Book Available!”
Full Court Press 