You cannot go to jail for failure to pay a court judgment. Under Texas law, a debtor has certain protections. If you own or are buying your home, if cannot be taken away to pay a judgment, unless the judgment is for taxes, the mortgage on the home, or for a home-improvement loan on the home. This is the homestead law. 

Our West Dallas, TX lawyers offer legal council across DFW on criminal, divorce and personal injury legal cases.

From a west Dallas attorney: A judge sets the amount of the bond; therefore, the amounts may cary from judge to judge in the West Dallas, TX area. The seriousness of the crime is one factor in setting the amount of the bond. Common misdemeanor offenses, such as DWI and public intoxication, have present bonds. That means the judge has already set the amount of bond for all DWI's or public intoxication charges for you and your lawyers. Therefore, you and your attorney don't have to appear before a judge to find out the amount of the bond.

On more unusual crimes (not just in West Dallas; this applies across Texas) and especially felonies, the judge must be consulted. Usually this is done by having your attorney take you before a judge to enter a plea. This is your arraignment  If you want to bond out, you must plead not guilty. The judge will then set the amount of your bond. When you make bond (again, your lawyer can assist), you get out of jail. Side-note: in a speeding ticket case, you are able to represent yourself.

Considerable power is given the Supreme Court to equalize the dockets of the lower courts. The Court can order cases transferred from one court of appeals to another, and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court can require a district court judge to move temporarily into another administrative judicial district for this purpose. The attorneys in North Dallas spotlighted above are centrally located and can assist with further clarification. 

Effective September 1, 1995, the Supreme Court shall recommend to the legislature convening three years after the federal census help every 10 years any needed changes in the number or allocation of appellate courts.

The Supreme Court also plays an important role in the training and licensing of lawyers and attorneys and in the disciplining of lawyers and judges. Although it generally defers in law school accreditation matters to the American Bar Association, the Supreme Court has the authority to approve Texas law schools.

Finally, the Supreme Court exercises a great deal of control over the judges. Upon the recommendation of the Judicial Qualification Commission, the Court can censure, retire, or remove judges of lower courts, including judges of the Court of Criminal Appeals. 

The Supreme Court may also hold any judge, lawyer, attorney, or other party properly before the Court in contempt for disobeying its lawful orders. Any person (in the case of a real estate dispute in east Dallas, a Lakewood homeowner, for example) found guilty of contempt of the Court may be punished by a fine not to exceed $500 or by confinement in the Dallas county jail for not more than six months. Finally, the Court may mandamus a public official in connection with improper proceedings involving elections or political party conventions. 

The Supreme Court is responsible for writing the rules that govern civil procedure in all courts of the state. Unless specifically rejected by the state legislature, these Rules of Civil Procedure, when adopted by the Court, become law. Considerable power is given to the Supreme Court to equalize the dockets of the lower courts. The Court can order cases transferred from one court of appeals to another, and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court can require a district court judge to move temporarily into another administrative judicial district for this purpose.

Today we spotlight a local Richardson, TX law firm featuring the best attorneys in the Richardson area. Lawyer contact info and testimonials from Richardson residents coming soon. Included is info on civil jurisdiction of county courts in Texas and how they affect you.

We present this reference to Richardson, TX citizens in need of quality local lawyers to help with all manner of legal council. County courts have concurrent civil jurisdiction with the justice of the peace courts where the amount in controversy exceeds $200 but does not exceed $5,000, exclusive of interest. Constitutional county courts have concurrent civil jurisdiction with the district courts where the amount in controversy exceed $500 but not $5,000, exclusive of interest. Neither type of county court has jurisdiction over suits involving slander or defamation of character, the recovery of land in Richardson, TX, the enforcement of liens upon real property, escheats, divorce, the forteiture of the character of a corporation, or suits involving execution, sequestration, or attachment on personal property valued at more than $500.

Although the Texas Constitution does not grant the county court jurisdiction over condemnation proceedings, this jurisdiction has been granted by statute. Condemnation, which is sometimes called the power of eminent domain, is the right of a government body or a public utility to take privately owned real estate for public use by paying a reasonable compensation for the condemned property. A Richardson real estate lawyer can assist in such matters. The county judge appoints three disinterested landowners, usually experts familiar with property laws in the area of Richardson where the property is located as condemnation commissions. These commissioners sit to hear evidence from attorneys concerning the fair value of the property. After hearing all of the attorney's evidence, the commissioners make a monetary award that they believe represents the fair value of the property. If a party's lawyers object to the commissioners' award, the question of fair value is tried before a county judge, lawyers, and a jury.

Most municipal judges must be lawyers with two to five years experience in the practice of law or in the judiciary. Only a handful of municipal judges are elected. The vast majority are appointed by the governing body of the city (such as Southlake) that they serve. The mayor of a general law city in Texas serves as municipal judge unless the city council provides for the election or appointment of another person.

Municipal judges preside over the presentation and trial of minor criminal cases. If there is no jury, the judge must first determine the facets and then apply the law to the facts to determine whether the defendant is guilty. If the jury is impanelled, the judge, as previously stated, often instructs the jury as to the law. 

Because of the tremendous volume of cases a Southlake municipal judge hears, he or she is an important representative of the Texas judicial system. Far more people come into contact with the municipal court than with any other Texas court. 

In addition to the usual function of presiding over legal cases, municipal judges have other responsibilities as magistrates. All Texas judges are magistrates, but the bulk of the magistrate's functions fall upon justices of the peace, magistrates appointed by district courts, and the municipal court judges that Southlake lawyers see often. Magistrates conduct arraignments, set bail, and issue search and arrest warrants, including those too serious to be tried by lawyers and attorneys in municipal court. The judge also has the power to issue writs, subpoenas and other orders to require that require necessary legal evidence to be produced.

For League City families - In all cases with children, there will be an order to the employer of the person paying child support to withhold income. This is the Order to Withhold Earnings. The Request to Issue Withholding order is a simple request that the clerk serve the Withholding order on a named employee. Since you almost always get what you expect in uncontested legal cases in the League City, TX area, it is customary to prepare the decree before the hearing and take it with you so it can be signed by the judge at that time.  Again, our attorneys in League City can assist with this process.

Since you almost always get what you expect in uncontested cases, it is customary to prepare the Decree before the hearing and take it with you so it can be signed by the judge at that time. In the odd case where a League City judge decides differently from your lawyer's decree, you may have to prepare a different legal Decree that accurately reflects the judge's order and send it in at a later time for signing. This is why you should make extra copies of the blank Decree before filing it out, you might need another blank later.

How to fill it out: Have your lawyer make extra copies of the blank Decree, then will out the forms as your attorney suggests. If you have children, fill out the Order to Withhold Earnings and also the Request to Issue Withholding Order. No matter what your legal needs are, our law firm assists all of League City and the Houston area.

Spotlighting a law firm located centrally in University Park, TX in the Dallas metro area - Find attorneys

Mergers and acquisitions, securities offerings, SEC reporting and compliance, corporate governance and general corporate matters. As the top lawyers in the Park Cities area of Dallas Fort Worth, we can help with all legal needs in University Park. Gamble and Jones Lawyers is centrally located near Preston Road. Below is a reference to Texas district and country court cases that may be of use:

The failure of the officer serving a citation to endorse the date of delivery upon the copy of the citation delivered to the defendant does not affect the jurisdiction of the trial court to render a default judgment, but if the defendant seasonably moves to set aside the default judgment and shows that he was in fact injured or misled by the officer's failure to endorse the date of service upon the copy the trial court should set aside the and give the defendant an opportunity to appear and have a trial on the merits. In view of the fact that Rule 107 requires the return to show the manner of service the return should show that the date of delivery was endorsed on the copy of the citation or notice in accordance with Rule 106. 

Waiver of citation: Waiver of citation under Rule 119 contemplates that no citation in a University Park legal case is issued and consequently that the sheriff makes no return. It involves the signing of a paper under oath and the filing of the paper in the cause. Consequently Rule 107 pertaining to the time for which a University Park's officer's return shall lie on file before default judgment does not apply in many lawyers eyes.