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Reviewed 15 November 2009 See also Legal Research and Assistance, below.  E-mail: Administrator@LawSource.com

Texas Court Decisions

Supreme Court (Tex.) ————— 1st District Court of Appeals (Tex. Ct. App.—Houston) 2nd District Court of Appeals (Tex. Ct. App.—Fort Worth) 3rd District Court of Appeals (Tex. Ct. App.—Austin) 4th District Court of Appeals (Tex. Ct. App.—San Antonio) 5th District Court of Appeals (Tex. Ct. App.—Dallas) 6th District Court of Appeals (Tex. Ct. App.—Texarkana) 7th District Court of Appeals (Tex. Ct. App.—Amarillo) 8th District Court of Appeals (Tex. Ct. App.—El Paso) 9th District Court of Appeals (Tex. Ct. App.—Beaumont) 10th District Court of Appeals (Tex. Ct. App.—Waco) * 11th District Court of Appeals (Tex. Ct. App.—Eastland) 12th District Court of Appeals (Tex. Ct. App.—Tyler) 13th District Court of Appeals (Tex. Ct. App.—Corpus Christi) 14th District Court of Appeals (Tex. Ct. App.—Houston) ————— U.S. District Court—Eastern District (E.D. Tex.) * U.S. District Court—Northern District (N.D. Tex.) * U.S. District Court—Southern District (S.D. Tex.) * U.S. District Court—Western District (W.D. Tex.) * —————  * Not available — Browse for information.
Some opinions by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals can be found on the court's web site.

Appellate cases can be retrieved by citation (e.g., “913 S.W.2d 251”) from a LEXIS database (free searching goes back five years only). There is also a text-search function. (Registration is required but is free.)

Additional Resources
¶  Briefs in Texas Supreme Court Cases

Texas Constitution and Legislation

Constitution (Tex. Const.) 
Additional Resources
¶  Constitutional Amendments ... [Tex. Legislative Reference Library] — The Texas Constitution has been amended more than 450 times (through 2008). Here are links to those amendments, organized by legislative session and also by subject-matter.
1. Bills
   See also the Texas Legislature web site.
   Additional Resources
   ¶  Tables: Bill-to-Chapter / Chapter-to-Bill

2. General and Special Laws of the State of Texas (Tex. Gen. Laws)
   Chaptered bills (called “Acts”) are not available on-line. However, tables (and a form) are available to convert an enrolled bill's number to the chapter number (and vice versa) for legislative sessions back to 1941; and the text of the enrolled bill can be viewed. Top
   Texas Statutes  
   Additional Resources

   NOTE—The Texas Legislature convenes in odd-numbered years, and normally there should be no legislation in even-numbered years.

   ¶  Researching Legislative History and Intent ... [Tex. Legislative Reference Library] — Texas legislative intent is not readily available; it must be compiled case-by-case. The basic steps in researching legislative intent are presented here. See also a brochure, “Compiling Texas Legislative History” (a PDF file).
   ¶  Effects of Legislation ... For the effects of each session's legislation on codified laws and revised statutes (since 1995), see an index of sections affected.
   ¶  Texas Codes ... ASCII files containing one entire code each are available for downloading.

Texas Rules of Procedure and Practice

Texas Appellate Court Rules
Rules of Appellate Procedure (Tex. R. App. P.) Rules of Judicial Administration (Tex. R. Jud. Admin.) ————— 2nd District Court of Appeals Rules (2nd Tex. App. R.) 10th District Court of Appeals Rules (10th Tex. App. R.)
Texas Trial Court Rules
Rules of Civil Procedure (Tex. R. Civ. P.) Discovery Rules (Tex. Disc. R.) Rules of Evidence (Tex. R. Evid.) ————— Court Reporters Rules Parental Notification Rules
1. Texas Local Court Rules ... See also Additional Resources below.
   Note: An asterisk (*) in the first list below marks a county with combined rules for the district court(s) and county court(s) at law.

   District Courts	Bexar County Caldwell County Collin County Comal County Dallas County — Civil Rules    — Family Court Rules Denton County * El Paso County * Galveston County Gregg County Harris County     —Family Division Hays County Jefferson County Nueces County * Montgomery County Tarrant County * Tom Green County Travis County Webb County *
   County Courts at Law	Bexar County Jefferson County — Court No. 1     — Courts Nos. 2 and 3 Travis County
   U.S. District Courts	Eastern District (E.D. Tex. R.) Northern District (N.D. Tex. R.) Southern District (S.D. Tex. R.) Western District (W.D. Tex. R.)
   U.S. Bankruptcy Courts	Eastern District (E.D. Tex. Bankr. R.) Northern District (N.D. Tex. Bankr. R.) Southern District (S.D. Tex. Bankr. R.) Western District (W.D. Tex. Bankr. R.)

   Rules of Practice ♦ Judicial Rules ♦ Professional Ethics Decisions
   State Bar of Texas Rules Standards for Appellate Conduct Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct Rules of Disciplinary Procedure ————— Code of Judicial Conduct Procedural Rules for the Removal or Retirement of Judges ————— State Bar of Texas Ethics Opinions Judicial Ethics Opinions
   Additional Resources
   ¶  Texas Probate Court Rules ... These are local rules of statutory probate courts.

   Denton County

   Travis County
   ¶  Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct • Disciplinary Rules of Procedure [State Bar of Texas]
   ¶  Superseded Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct
   ¶  Code of Judicial Conduct

Texas Administrative Law Sources

1. Regulations
   Texas Administrative Code (Admin.)
   Texas Register (Tex. Reg.)

2. Opinions ♦ Decisions ♦ Orders ♦ Rulings
   Attorney General Opinions (Ops. Tex. Att'y Gen.)

Texas Local Law Sources

Charters
Austin  
Note that a charter could be included in a collection of ordinances (see below) instead of being separately accessible.
County Ordinances
Dallas County <1> <2>   
Click on the button keyed to the name of the county. NOTE: On some web sites, selecting the state is necessary for access to the ordinances link.
Municipal Ordinances
Abilene <5> Addison <5> Alamo Heights <5> Alice <5> Allen <5> Alvin <5> Amarillo <5> Anahuac <2> Angleton <5> Aransas Pass <5> Argyle<3> Arlington <2> Austin <1> <2> Azle<3> Balch Springs <5> Bartonville<3> Bastrop<3> Baytown <5> Beaumont<3> Beaumont <5> Bedford <5> Bee Cave<3> Bellaire <5> Bellville<3> Benbrook <4> Boerne <5> Borger<3> Bowie <5> Briarcliff<3> Bridge City <5> Bridgeport<3> Brownfield<3> Brownwood <5> Bryan <5> Bulverde<3> Bunker Hill Village <5> Burleson <5> Burnet <5> Canyon <2> Carrollton <5> Castroville <5> Cedar Hill <5> Cedar Park<3> Celina <2> Chico <2> Clear Lake Shores <5> Cleburne <2> Cleveland <5> Coleman<3> Colleyville <5> Columbus<3> Commerce <5> Conroe <5> Coppell <5> Copperas Cove <5> Corpus Christi <5> Corsicana <5> Cross Roads<3> Crowley <5> Cuero <2> Dallas <2> Dayton<3> Decatur <5> Deer Park <5> Del Rio <5> Denison <5> Denton <5> DeSoto<3> Dickinson <5> Double Oak<3> Duncanville <5> Eagle Pass <5> Early <5> Edinburg <2> El Paso <4> Ennis <5> Euless <5> Fair Oaks Ranch<3> Farmers Branch <5> Flatonia<3> Flower Mound <5> Forest Hill <5> Forney<3> Fort Stockton <5> Fort Worth <5> Fredericksburg <5> Freeport <2> Friendswood <5> Friona<3> Frisco <5> Gainesville <5> Galena Park<3> Galveston <5> Garland<3> Georgetown <5> Giddings<3> Glenn Heights<3> Gonzales<3> Granbury<3> Grand Prairie <5> Grapevine <5> Greenville<3> Groves <5> Haltom City <5> Harker Heights <2> Haslet<3> Hedwig Village <5> Helotes <5> Henderson<3> Henrietta <5> Hereford<3> Hewitt <5> Hickory Creek<3> Highland Park<3> Highland Village <5> Hill Country Village <5> Hillsboro<3> Hilshire Village <5> Hollywood Park <5> Hondo<3> Houston <5> Hudson Oaks<3> Humble <5> Hunters Creek Village <5> Huntsville <5> Hurst <5> Hutto<3> Ingleside <5> Irving <5> Jasper <5> Jersey Village <5> Junction<3> Katy<3> Kaufman <5> Keller <5> Kennedale <5> Kerrville <5> Kilgore <5> Kingsville <5> Kirby <2> Krugerville<3> Krum<3> La Feria<3> La Grange<3> La Marque <5> La Porte <5> Lacy-Lakeview <2> Lago Vista<3> Lake Dallas<3> Lake Jackson <5> Lake Worth<3> Lampasas <5> Lancaster<3> Laredo <5> League City <5> Leander<3> Lewisville <5> Little Elm <5> Lockhart <5> Longview <2> Lorena <5> Lubbock<3> Lucas<3> Lufkin <2> Mansfield <2> Manvel <5> Marble Falls <5> Marshall <5> McAllen <5> McKinney <5> McLendon-Chisholm <5> Melissa <5> Mesquite <5> Mexia<3> Midland <5> Midlothian<3> Mission <5> Missouri City <5> Montgomery <5> Mt. Pleasant <2> Muleshoe<3> Murphy <5> Nacogdoches <5> Nassau Bay <5> New Braunfels <5> North Richland Hills <5> Northlake<3> Oak Point <5> Oak Ridge North <5> Odessa <5> Orange <5> Palacios<3> Palestine <5> Palmhurst <5> Pampa<3> Pandhandle<3> Paris <5> Parker <2> Pasadena <5> Pearland <5> Pflugerville<3> Pharr <5> Piney Point Village <5> Pittsburg<3> Plano <5> Port Aransas <5> Port Arthur <5> Portland <5> Post<3> Pottsboro<3> Prairie View<3> Princeton <5> Prosper<3> Rancho Viejo <5> Red Oak <2> Richardson <5> Richland Hills <5> Richwood <5> River Oaks<3> Roanoke <5> Robinson <5> Rockport <5> Rockwall <5> Rosenberg <5> Rowlett <5> Saginaw <5> San Angelo<3> San Antonio <5> San Marcos <5> Sanger<3> Santa Fe <5> Schertz <5> Seabrook <5> Seagoville <5> Sealy <5> Seguin <5> Selma <5> Shallowater<3> Shenandoah <5> Shepherd <5> Sherman<3> Shiner<3> Shoreacres <5> Slaton<3> Sonora <5> South Houston <5> Spearman<3> Spring Valley Village <5> Springtown<3> Stafford <5> Stephenville <2> Sugar Land <5> Sunnyvale<3> Sweeny <2> Sweetwater <5> Taylor Lake Village <5> Terrell <5> Texarkana <5> Texas City <5> The Colony <5> Tomball <5> Troup<3> Tyler <2> Universal City <5> University Park<3> University Park—Zoning<3> Victoria <5> Vidor <5> Waco <5> Watauga<3> Waxahachie <5> Weatherford <5> Webster <5> Weimar<3> West Lake Hills <5> West University Place <5> Westlake <5> Westworth<3> Wharton <5> White Oak <5> White Settlement<3> Whitehouse <2> Whitney<3> Wichita Falls <5> Wimberley <2> Winnsboro<3> Wolfforth<3> Woodway <5> Wylie <5>      
Click on the button keyed to the name of the municipality. NOTE: On some web sites, selecting the state is necessary for access to the ordinances link.

Texas Law-Related Periodicals

1. Computer Law Review and Technology Journal (Computer L. Rev. & Tech. J.) ... [Southern Methodist Univ. Sch. of Law]
2. Houston Business and Tax Law Journal (Hous. Bus. & Tax. L.J.)
3. Houston Law Review (Hous. L. Rev.)
4. Journal of Texas Consumer Law (J. Tex. Consumer L.)
5. LBJ Journal of Public Affairs (LBJ J. Pub. Aff.) ... [Lyndon B. Johnson Sch. of Public Affairs / Univ. of Texas] — debate on timely topics of national importance, including legal and judicial issues, local and state government, nonprofit organizations and community development, minority and women's issues, public administration and financial management, U.S.-Mexico border issues, and more
6. South Texas Law Review (S. Tex. L. Rev.)
7. Texas International Law Journal (Tex. Int'l L.J.) ... [Univ. of Texas Sch. of Law]
8. Texas Journal of Oil, Gas, & Energy Law (Tex. J. Oil, Gas & Energy L.) ... [Univ. of Texas Sch. of Law]

Other Texas Commentary

1. Attorney General Publications ... Links to newsletters, handbooks, guides, brochures, and other publications. See also consumer-protection brochures, below.

2. Texas Tax Publications ... [Comptroller of Public Accounts] — Includes Tax Policy News, a monthly summary of Texas tax policy.

3. Collin County Juror's Handbook

4. A Guide to Doing Business in Texas. Baker Botts L.L.P. ... [Lex Mundi]

Texas Law-Related Topical Web Sites

Texas Court Information

Web Sites — Appellate Courts
Supreme Court Court of Criminal Appeals 1st District Court of Appeals (Houston) 2nd District Court of Appeals (Fort Worth) 3rd District Court of Appeals (Austin) 4th District Court of Appeals (San Antonio) 5th District Court of Appeals (Dallas) 6th District Court of Appeals (Texarkana) 7th District Court of Appeals (Amarillo) 8th District Court of Appeals (El Paso) 9th District Court of Appeals (Beaumont) 10th District Court of Appeals (Waco) 11th District Court of Appeals (Eastland) 12th District Court of Appeals (Tyler) 13th District Court of Appeals (Corpus Christi) 14th District Court of Appeals (Houston)
See also the web site for the Southwest Intertribal Court of Appeals (SWITCA), a voluntary court of appeals available to tribes in west Texas.
Web Sites — State Trial Courts • U.S. Courts
Texas District Courts Texas County Courts at Law Texas Constitutional County Courts Texas Statutory Probate Courts Texas Municipal Courts Texas Justice of the Peace Courts ————— Collin County Courts ————— U.S. District Court—Eastern District     —Northern District     —Southern District     —Western District ————— U.S. Bankruptcy Court—Eastern District     —Northern District     —Southern District     —Western District

Texas Forms

1. Court Forms
   1. Texas Courts
      Collin County Forms
   2. U.S. Courts
      Northern District Forms

2. State Agency Forms
   1. Comptroller of Public Accounts
      Texas Tax Forms
   2. Secretary of State
      Texas Business Organization Forms

3. Business Entity Forms ...[Paracorp, Inc. (Cal.)] — Convenient interface to view and print in-blank official state forms (in PDF files) for filing by business entities. A JavaScript-enabled browser is required.
   Texas Young Lawyers Association Forms
   Medical Power of Attorney Directive to Physicians and Family or Surrogates Consumer Complaint — Living Trusts

Other Texas Resources

Government-Related Web Sites
Legislature Judicial Branch ————— Attorney General ————— Comptroller of Public Accounts Secretary of State 
See also the Piper Resources list of sites.
Additional Resources
¶  Vital Records — Contact Information ... [Elizabeth Orsay (Ind.)]
¶  Workers' Compensation — Agency Contact and Staff Contact Information ... [Robert W. McDowell / North Carolina Industrial Commission]
State Bar of Texas
—Alternative Dispute Resolution Section —Appellate Section —Business Law Section —Computer Section —Construction Law Section —Environmental and Natural Resources Law Section —Family Law Section —Health Law Section —Juvenile Law Section —Labor and Employment Law Section —Litigation Section —Oil, Gas and Mineral Law Section Paralegal Division —Real Estate, Probate and Trust Law Section —Tax Section
These sections of the state bar have their own web sites, separate from the web site of the state bar. For additional section web sites, see a list of sections and divisions on the state bar web site.
Bar Associations ♦ Law-Related Organizations
Texas Academy of Family Law Specialists Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association Texas District and County Attorneys Association Texas Trial Lawyers Association Texas Women Lawyers Texas Young Lawyers Association ————— Bexar County Women's Bar Association Dallas Asian-American Bar Association Dallas Bar Association Dallas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association Dallas Women Lawyers Association Denton County Bar Association Eastern District of Texas Bankruptcy Bar Association Houston Bar Association Houston Northwest Bar Association Houston Trial Lawyers Association Houston Young Lawyers Association Montgomery County Bar Association San Antonio Trial Lawyers Association Travis County Bar Association
See the National Federation of Paralegal Associations for links to websites of member organizations.
Law Schools ♦ Admission to Practice ♦ Continuing Legal Education
Baylor Law School — Continuing Education South Texas College of Law — Continuing Education State Bar of Texas — Continuing Education Texas Independent Bar Association — Continuing Education University of Houston Law Center — Continuing Education University of Texas School of Law — Continuing Education ————— Board of Law Examiners Board of Legal Specialization ————— Baylor University School of Law Dedman School of Law (Southern Methodist University) St. Mary's University School of Law South Texas College of Law Texas Tech University School of Law Texas Wesleyan University School of Law Thurgood Marshall School of Law (Texas Southern University) University of Houston Law Center University of Texas School of Law
Consulates of Canada and Mexico • Consulats • Consulados
Consulate General of Canada in Dallas ————— Consulat Général du Canada à Dallas ————— Consulado General de México en Austin Consulado General de México en Brownsville Consulado General de México en Dallas Consulado General de México en El Paso Consulado General de México en Houston Consulado General de México en Laredo Consulado General de México en San Antonio

Legal Research and Assistance

Law Libraries
Texas State Law Library ————— Cameron County Collin County Dallas County Dallas County: Bar Association Library Denton County Ellis County El Paso County: Bar Association Library El Paso County: Robert J. Galvan Library Fort Bend County Grayson County Harris County Montgomery County Tarrant County: Dell Dehay Law Library Travis County Baylor University: Sheridan and John Eddie Williams Legal Research and Technology Center South Texas College of Law: Fred Parks Law Library Southern Methodist University: Underwood Law Library St. Mary's University: Sarita Kenedy East Law Library Texas Southern University (Thurgood Marshall Sch. of Law) Texas Tech University Texas Wesleyan University University of Houston: O'Quinn Law Library University of Texas at Austin: Tarlton Law Library
See also links to web sites of public law libraries and catalogs of academic law libraries, maintained by the library at Washburn University School of Law; and the LibrarySites.Info database of library web sites (“Libcat”).
1. Attorney General Consumer-Protection Information

2. State Bar of Texas
   Pamphlets
   Other Information
   Texas Young Lawyers Association Brochures Tenants' Rights Handbook Mold: An Overview of Remediation and Litigation Issues for Consumers Lead Poisoning and You ————— Pro Se Divorce Handbook Guide to Domestic Violence in the Workplace Legal Choices for Victims of Domestic Violence Child Abuse ————— Aging Issues Manual: A Reference Guide to Elder Law Issues in Texas FORM: Directive to Physicians and Family or Surrogates FORM: Medical Power Of Attorney Living Trust Scams FORM:Consumer Complaint Form (Living Trust Scams) Medicare, Medicaid, and SSI: A General Guide To Will or Not to Will ————— Legal Guide to the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices-Consumer Protection Act How to Sue in Small Claims Court ————— Manual para tramitar un divorcio Pro Se Opciones Legales para las Víctimas de Violencia en el Hogar Los Estafas del Fideicomoso
   Additional Resources
   ¶  Texas Young Lawyers Association — Curriculum Materials ... These are teacher guides for use in high-school courses, and they provide much good information in spite of their limited purpose. (They are in PDF files.) For example:

   Not in My Backyard ... concerning environmental issues

   Supreme Team ... concerning the U.S. Constitution through the eyes of the U.S. Supreme Court

   VoTexas ... concerning voting and the electoral process

   We the Jury

3. Bankruptcy Law and Procedures for Texas Residents ... [Calicchia & Kinast LLP (Ohio)] — This web site, presented by a Cleveland bankruptcy law firm, covers basic information about the bankruptcy process, describes debt consolidation and credit counseling as alternatives to bankruptcy, lists the property that an individual is allowed to keep (with citations to governing provisions of Texas law), and gives information about the bankruptcy courts and how to contact bankruptcy attorneys in Texas.

4. Low-Cost Legal Aid ... See also the web site for LawHelp.org and the web site for SelfHelpSupport.org.
   1. TexasLawHelp ... “TexasLawHelp is a one-stop website where low-income Texans can get information about their legal rights and find out about free legal assistance in their area.”
   2. Texas Legal Help for the Poor ... [Am. Bar Ass'n] — Contact information for statewide and local legal-aid programs, from the ABA's Directory of Pro Bono Programs. The ABA also provides a page of links to pro bono programs' web sites.
   3. WomensLaw.org — Sources of Legal Help ... [WomensLaw.org (N.Y.)] — Sources of legal help (not limited to legal help for women) include statewide domestic-violence resources, local domestic-violence resources listed by city or town, free or low-cost legal services, and lawyer referral services.