Senator Joan Huffman
Rep. Jeff Leach
We recently reported on Senate passage of SB 293 by Sen. Huffman, which overhauls the Judicial Conduct Commission’s disciplinary process and, among other things, increases judicial compensation. This morning the House Judiciary & Civil Jurisprudence Committee heard the House companion, HB 1761 by Chairman Leach. The Chair laid out a committee substitute containing important additions to the Senate version, as follows:
- Amends § 22.302(a), Government Code, to require an appellate court hearing oral argument through teleconferencing to participate in the argument from a courtroom or other state-provided facility.
- Adds § 23.303, Government Code, to require the business court, a district court, or a statutory county court to hear oral argument or consider without oral argument a motion for summary judgment not later than 45 days after the date the response was filed and to file with the clerk a provide to the parties a written ruling on the motion not later than 90 days after the date of argument or consideration. Requires entry into the docket of the date the motion was considered without argument. Requires the clerk to report compliance to the OCA at least quarterly. Directs OCA to prepare an annual report of compliance, which shall be made available to the public and sent to the governor, lieutenant governor, and speaker.
- Amends § 33.001(b), Government Code, to further expand the definition of “wilful or persistent conduct that is clearly inconsistent with the proper performance of a judge’s duties” to include a failure to meet peerformance standards and clearance rate requirements, as well as failure to meet the deadlines for ruling on summary judgments.
- Amends § 33.0212, Government Code, to permit the commission to order a 90-day extension if a complaint alleges multiple instances of misconduct by the judge or multiple complaints have been filed against the judge.
- Amends § 33.0212(b), Government Code, to require the commission to take action on a complaint not later than 120 days (current law is 90 days) following the date of the first commission meeting at which the complaint is included in the staff report (effective January 1, 2026).
- Amends § 33.022(c), Government Code, to require the commission to notify a judge of commencement of a full investigation of misconduct or disability not more than 7 business days after commencement.
- Amends § 659.012, Government Code, to raise the base salary of a district judge from $140,000 to $182,000 (Senate version has $161,000).
In our view, these changes make the bill stronger, both in terms of providing a significant increase in compensation and establishing hard and fast deadlines for trial courts with respect to motions for summary judgment. The failure of some courts to dispose of motions for summary judgment in a timely fashion is one of the most frequent complaints of trial attorneys on both sides of the docket. TCJL strongly supports this legislation as a whole and commends Chairs Huffman and Leach for their commitment to strengthening performance standards for judges and providing more stringent enforcement mechanisms than currently exist.
