The latest Texas Supreme Court news from The Texas Tribune.
The partisan differences about voting by mail in Texas — Democrats want to expand it, Republicans believe it's insecure — were in place long before COVID-19 came along. But the pandemic has escalated the debate. Full Story
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In a year when four justices face reelection, the all-Republican high court has made a slate of controversy-generating decisions, including lifting a moratorium on evictions and — for now — limiting voting by mail in this year’s elections. Full Story
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The high court did not weigh in on the arguments that Gov. Greg Abbott's order went beyond his executive powers in a disaster. Instead, it ruled that the Harris County judges were the wrong plaintiffs. Full Story
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Kim Boatswain's tax refund could have helped her get through the coronavirus slowdown. But debt collectors seized it. There are few options for Texans like Boatswain whose money was taken just before the state temporarily banned such garnishments. Full Story
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On Friday, a state district judge blocked enforcement of Abbott's order, which prohibits jail release for some inmates without paying bail during the coronavirus pandemic. She cited unconstitutional provisions and executive overreach as reasons for her order. Full Story
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Women got more votes than men in all of the roughly 30 gender-split primary contests for high court, court of appeals and district court. Rarely was it even close. Full Story
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A well-heeled loser of a lawsuit that went to the Texas Supreme Court did a detailed analysis and concluded that the big law firms that politically support the judges get the best results. Maybe money is the reason, maybe it's not. Full Story
After losing a case at the all-Republican Texas Supreme Court, millionaire Salem Abraham set out to mathematically test the idea that campaign contributions influence the elected justices. Now he wants to change the system. Full Story
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Fourteen Democrats are competing for seven seats on the Texas Supreme Court and Court of Criminal Appeals. How do you win when no one knows your name? Full Story
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Jerry Zimmerer, an appellate judge in Houston, said his campaign differs from Amy Clark Meachum's because “I actually want the best candidate to win.” Full Story
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After those two appointees left the commission, it handed down just a warning to the judge, Dianne Hensley. Full Story
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The depth of the bench for non-marquee statewide races, like the state’s two high courts and the Railroad Commission, is a measure of how high Democratic hopes have soared ahead of the 2020 election. Full Story
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Bland lost her Houston appeals court seat in the November 2018 election. Full Story
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Gov. Greg Abbott has his third opportunity to appoint a judge to the state's highest civil court. His first two picks were white men. Full Story
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The nod creates a vacancy on the state's highest civil court, giving Gov. Greg Abbott his third opportunity to make an appointment. Full Story
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After an election that swept scores of Republican judges out of office, Gov. Greg Abbott is eyeing judicial selection reform. Advocates hope that the perennial issue may finally draw some attention. Full Story
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Citing security concerns, the state has fought for years to keep the supplier's name secret. Full Story
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Judge William McLeod declared his run for the Texas Supreme Court. But as he later discovered, doing so invoked a provision in the state's constitution that may force him to leave his post. Full Story
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Busby, a Republican judge and former U.S. Supreme Court clerk, served on an appellate court in Houston until voters rejected him in November as part of a Democratic sweep. Full Story
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A newly elected Democratic judge issued the decision in the latest turn of a 2013 legal challenge to Houston's policy extending benefits to municipal employees' same-sex spouses. Full Story
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