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3 Document(s) [ Subject: Court%20Administration%2C%20Texas%20Office%20of ]

Committee:	House Criminal Jurisprudence
Title:	Interim Report
Subjects:	Bail | Capital punishment | Capital punishment of mentally ill inmates | Capital punishment of mentally disabled inmates | Court Administration, Texas Office of | Court costs and fees | Courts | Criminal justice | Emergency management | Fines | Gun control | Guns | Hurricane Harvey | Jury instructions | Legal malpractice | Marijuana | Mentally ill persons | Penalties and sentences (Criminal justice) | Prosecutorial misconduct | Risk-based decision-making | School safety | School violence | Sex crimes | Shootings | State jail system |
Library Call Number:	L1836.85 C868h
Session:	85th R.S. (2017)
Online version:	View report [103 pages]
Charges:	This report should address the charges below.
1.	Evaluate the impact of Hurricane Harvey on the Texas criminal justice system, including its effect on the speed of criminal trials and litigation, criminal courts, district attorneys' ability to prosecute, and attorneys' ability to provide proper defense. Recommend any changes that could improve operational stability of state criminal justice institutions following a natural disaster and changes that would allow for a more effective response.
2.	Assess developments in medical science and legal standards related to the imposition of the death penalty on defendants with serious mental illness or intellectual and developmental disabilities. Review statutorily prescribed jury instructions used during capital sentencing.
3.	Study current practices for the enforcement of criminal laws against low-level possession of marijuana. Examine the use of alternative punishments and improvements to criminal enforcement mechanisms and community supervision.
4.	Examine instances of prosecutorial misconduct and ineffective assistance of defense counsel. Review systemic and structural issues affecting the resolution of criminal cases.
5.	Examine the legal framework surrounding sexual assault prosecutions, including statutory definitions, certain age-based offenses, and ongoing developments in evidence collection and processing.
6.	Review the Texas state jail system, including its original intent, sentencing guidelines, effectiveness, and recidivism rates. Make recommendations for changes in the state jail system that will improve outcomes. (Joint charge with the House Committee on Corrections)
7.	Monitor the work of the Office of Court Administration on pre-trial risk assessment tools for the Texas Judiciary, and study the use of risk assessment tools at various stages in the criminal justice process. Monitor litigation on Harris County pretrial bond practices. Monitor the implementation of the legislation passed by the 85th Legislature regarding the imposition of fines, fees, and court costs in criminal courts.
8.	Monitor the agencies and programs under the Committee’s jurisdiction and oversee the implementation of relevant legislation passed by the 85th Legislature.
9.	Review the applicable portions of the state's penal laws and make legislative recommendations regarding whether existing protective order laws are sufficient or could be amended to include 'red flag' or mental health protective orders or whether 'red flag' or mental health protective orders should be independently created to allow law enforcement, a family member, a school employee, or a district attorney to file a petition seeking removal of firearms from a potentially dangerous person and providing for mental health treatment for the potentially dangerous person, while preserving the fundamental rights of the Second Amendment and ensuring due process.
10.	Examine current statutes designed to protect minors from accessing firearms without proper supervision and make recommendations to ensure responsible and safe firearm storage, including enhancing the penalty to a felony when unauthorized access results in death or bodily injury.
Committee:	House Judiciary and Civil Jurisprudence
Title:	Interim Report
Subjects:	Asbestos lawsuits | Bankruptcy | Child custody | Court Administration, Texas Office of | Court costs and fees | Court records | Family violence | Guardianship | Lawsuit lending | Legislative intent | Ombudsmen | Protective orders | Rules and regulations | Statutory revision | Wills and estates |
Library Call Number:	L1836.82 J898
Session:	82nd R.S. (2011)
Online version:	View report [34 pages]
Charges:	This report should address the charges below.
1.	Study the potential effects on victims of family and domestic violence in the judicial process if courts are allowed to issue agreed protective orders without a finding of violence.
2.	Study and make recommendations regarding the discrepancies in guardianship and child custody statutes. Review potential solutions to the problems surrounding "arbitrary and capricious" findings by trial court judges.
3.	Study the rules of statutory construction and establish a method of determining legislative intent.
4.	Study the degree of transparency in asbestos bankruptcy trusts and how it affects litigation of asbestos exposure claims in Texas courts.
5.	Study the public policy implications of lawsuit lending and its effects on the civil justice system.
6.	Study whether the asbestos and silica multidistrict litigation courts should be allowed to dismiss, without prejudice, claims on the courts' inactive dockets for want of prosecution under certain circumstances.
7.	Study best practices regarding corporate governance. Make recommendations on the confidentiality of communications to ombudsmen in order to provide more protections to complaining parties.
8.	Monitor the agencies and programs under the committee's jurisdiction and the implementation of relevant legislation passed by the 82nd Legislature.
Committee:	House Judicial Affairs
Title:	Interim Report
Library Catalog Title:	House Committee on Judicial Affairs, Texas House of Representatives interim report, 2002 : a report to the House of Representatives, 78th Texas Legislature.
Subjects:	Campaign finance reform | Conflicts of interest | Contraceptives | County clerks | Court Administration, Texas Office of | Court costs and fees | Court reform | Crime prevention | District court clerks | Drug courts | Drug enforcement | Elder abuse | Electronic business filings | Ethics | Facsimiles | Guardianship | Judicial Council, Texas | Judicial districts | Judicial elections | Judicial selection | Law clerks | Redistricting | Searches and seizures | Senior citizens | Sex crimes | Tulia, Texas | Voter education | Wrongful convictions |
Library Call Number:	L1836.77 j899
Session:	77th R.S. (2001)
Online version:	View report [31 pages  File size: 242 kb]
Charges:	This report should address the charges below.
1.	Review the Uniform Durable Power of Attorney Act, including witnessing, notarization, and notification; possible abuse of elders; refusal of financial institutions to accept Texas' law; and accounting and liability issues concerning attorneys-in-fact.
2.	Develop a plan for judicial redistricting as required by the Texas Constitution, Article V, Section 7a.
3.	Evaluate the rules of ethical conduct, conflict and disclosure for briefing clerks of the appellate courts.
4.	Study the feasibility of creating a statewide sexual assault prevention program.
5.	Make an assessment of all issues related to the current organization of the Texas Judicial Council and the Office of Court Administration. Consider the efficiency, responsiveness and accountability of the current organization, and make any appropriate recommendations for change.
6.	Monitor the progress of efforts to enable the filing of court documents of all kinds by facsimile or other electronic means, including the use of electronic signatures, actual or electronic notarization, and the need for verification.
7.	Assess the current state of judicial campaigns in regard to financing, accountability, immunity and candidate qualification. Make any appropriate reform recommendations.
8.	Study the fees assessed by district and county clerks for filing and processing civil cases and consider the establishment of a uniform schedule of fees.
9.	Actively monitor agencies and programs under the committee's oversight jurisdiction, including the new Court Interpreter's Board.

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