Denton County
Eighth Administrative Judicial Region (Region 8) · official region site ✓ · County seat: Denton
Rules that apply here (county → region → statewide)
Preview of 25 instruments. All 93 county-scoped rules → search all three layers.
Denton County Court at Law No. 2 — Standing Order Regarding Motions for Summary Judgment (2026): no continuances of summary-judgment settings; submission converts to oral hearing the same day on request; proposed orders five days before the hearing and within five days of the ruling
County Court at Law No. 2's standing order on summary-judgment motions (signed 2026; file-marked with the County Clerk Sept. 4, 2026), responding to the amended statutory and rule deadlines for hearing and ruling on summary judgments that cannot be modified by agreement or court order: motions for continuance of a summary-judgment setting are not granted and the only way off the docket is a motion and order withdrawing the motion; a request to convert a submission setting to an oral hearing is granted, with the hearing held the same day the motion was set for submission at a time the court designates; the parties provide proposed orders five days before the hearing, and the prevailing party provides any modified order within five days of the ruling.
Justice Court, Precinct 4 (Denton County) — Public notice: effective Sept. 1, 2026 attorneys, apartments and property management companies must file all pleadings through E-File Texas (no mail, courier, e-mail, in-person or Guide-and-File filings); self-represented individuals exempt; civil filings 30 minutes before closing
Justice Court Precinct 4's page notice (Judge Harris Hughey): effective Sept. 1, 2026 attorneys, apartments and property management companies are required to use E-File Texas for all pleadings — filings by mail, courier, UPS, FedEx, e-mail or in person are not accepted, and pleadings filed through E-File Self-Help (Guide and File) are not accepted; the requirement does not apply to self-represented individuals; civil filings must be filed 30 minutes before closing (hours Monday–Thursday 8–12 and 12:30–4, Friday 10–12 and 12:30–4).
Denton County Probate Courts — Standing Administrative Order Regarding Annual Reports of Guardians of the Person (signed May 28, 2026; filed June 3, 2026): the County Clerk collects at least $14 when the annual report is filed ($10 report, $2 order signature, $2 letters), $6 more for a certified copy, and issues new letters of guardianship immediately on the signed approval order; the courts' report form includes a Request for New Letters
The Denton County Probate Courts' standing administrative order on annual reports of guardians of the person (signed May 28, 2026; file-marked with the County Clerk June 3, 2026; effective immediately until countermanded or superseded by statute), applying to every guardianship in which a guardian of the person files an annual report: the County Clerk collects at least $14 in fees when the report is filed — $10 for the annual report of the guardian of the person (Local Gov't Code § 118.052(2)(a)(vi)), $2 signature fee for the order approving the report (§ 118.101(11)) and $2 for issuance of one letter of guardianship (§ 118.101(2)) — plus $6 for a requested certified copy of the approval order (§ 118.052(3)(B)); the courts' annual report forms include a separate Request for New Letters (Exhibit A, attached); on receipt of a signed order approving the annual report the clerk immediately issues letters of guardianship to the guardian of the person; the clerk posts the order among the probate courts' administrative orders and at the courthouse. The attached form sheet notes that letters of guardianship expire a year and four months from the anniversary date and must be updated annually, and that payment is by cash, credit card, money order or cashier's check (no personal checks).
Denton County District Courts — Standing Order Regarding Use of Artificial Intelligence (signed May 8, 2026, filed May 11, 2026; supersedes the Oct. 20, 2025 order): every attorney and self-represented litigant who files or appears must sign and submit the certification, with a one-time Uniform Attorney Certification covering all pending and future cases
The Denton County District Courts' re-issued standing order on generative artificial intelligence (signed May 8, 2026 by the presiding judge and all twelve district judges — Shipman, Burgess, Shanklin, McFarling, Hill, Alexander, Johnson, Haertling, Breading, Jones, Dickens, Levonius — and filed with the District Clerk May 11, 2026; it replaces the October 2025 edition, which required a certification only from those who used AI): every attorney and self-represented litigant who files pleadings or documents or otherwise appears in a district court case shall sign and submit the appropriate attached certification, attesting that all AI-created or AI-contributed language, quotations, sources, citations, arguments and legal analysis were verified by a human through traditional (non-AI) legal sources before submission, and acknowledging responsibility and potential sanctions for their own, their staff's or co-counsel's non-compliance; the per-case Certification Regarding Use of Artificial Intelligence is attached, and a Uniform Attorney Certification lets an attorney certify once for all pending and future cases in any Denton district court and undertake to comply with future versions without further notice (deliverable to the District Clerk by e-mail, fax, mail or hand delivery); the order is effective immediately for all pending and later-filed cases, remains until rescinded or replaced, and the District Clerk files it with the Office of Court Administration and posts it at the courthouse and on the district courts' website.
Denton County Court at Law No. 1 (sitting as Juvenile Court) — Current Standing Orders JV-SO-2022-1 through 2022-12, 2025-1 and 2026-1 (Judge Kimberly McCary)
Judge Kimberly McCary's compiled standing orders for County Court at Law No. 1 sitting as the juvenile court (registered Feb. 18, 2026): all prior standing orders from 2011–March 2022 rescinded (JV-SO-2022-1); attorneys may not give respondents or their parents copies of social histories, psychiatric or psychological reports, behavioral or drug evaluations, Chapter 55 reports or diagnostic studies without prior court permission (2022-2); Probation provides records-sealing information (2022-3); occupational driver's license petitions arising from this court's adjudications are filed and heard here under a new cause number (2022-4); the docket-management order — one appearance, one announcement, one adjudication/disposition setting, a jury-trial announcement at which agreed adjudications close, and Supreme Court juvenile time standards (2022-5); pretrial matters not filed seven calendar days before the hearing are waived except venue or good cause, each motion with a proposed order (2022-6); dress code and decorum with no cameras or recording devices and phones off (2022-7); clerks may release listed documents to respondents with proper identification (2022-8); the Charlie J. Cole Building security screening policy (2022-9); Probation may provide the respondent's juvenile-justice summary, and to the military with written permission (2022-10); detention custody transports (2022-12); a discovery protective order under CCP arts. 39.152 and 39.153 barring copying or dissemination of invasive-visual-recording and forensic-exam material produced under art. 39.14, returned or destroyed at disposition (2025-1); and the Motions for Deferred procedure — evidence to the court and opposing counsel one week ahead, no live testimony, representations of counsel in a set order (2026-1, rescinding 2022-11).
Justice Court, Precinct 1 (Denton County) — Scheduling Order for debt claim and small claim cases (2026; hearing the last Thursday of the following month; 30-day case reviews; trial within 60 days of an answer; continuances filed at least 7 days out)
Judge Alan Wheeler's scheduling order for Justice Court Precinct 1's debt claim and small claim cases (posted as the 2026 order): every new case is set for hearing on the last Thursday of the following month; served citations with no answer or default judgment on file are set for a case review 30 days from service; first continuances or retains reset to a 30-day case review; once an answer is filed the case is set for trial within 60 days and prior non-motion hearings are cancelled; unserved cases get a 30-day case review and citation must be requested within that time to stay on the docket; after an answer, trial is 30 days out, a granted discovery motion moves trial 45 days out, and a first granted continuance resets trial 30 days out; continuances filed less than 7 days before a hearing or trial are not reviewed unless the motion states an emergency; the court applies different timetables as a case dictates and continues to hear lawful motions.
Denton County Probate Courts — Standing Order Regarding Use of Artificial Intelligence (SO-2025-00002; file-marked Dec. 12, 2025)
The Probate Courts of Denton County's standing order SO-2025-00002 (signed late 2025, file-marked with the County Clerk Dec. 12, 2025; registered twice, Dec. 15 and Dec. 16, 2025, as identical prints): every self-represented litigant and attorney in every pending or later-filed probate case — whether or not they say they use any form of artificial intelligence — must sign and submit the attached Certification Regarding Use of Artificial Intelligence, attesting that all AI-created or AI-contributed language, quotations, sources, citations, arguments and legal analysis were verified by a human through traditional (non-AI) legal sources before submission, and acknowledging responsibility and potential sanctions for their own, their staff's or co-counsel's non-compliance. Effective immediately; the County Clerk files it with OCA and posts it at the courthouse and on the probate courts' website.
Justice Court, Precinct 1 (Denton County) — Public notice: effective Dec. 1, 2025 no paper filings accepted for civil and criminal cases (e-file through eFileTexas); not-guilty pleas set a pre-trial hearing with the prosecutor
Justice Court Precinct 1's page notice (Judge Alan Wheeler): effective Dec. 1, 2025 the court no longer accepts paper filings for civil and criminal cases — filers register and e-file through eFileTexas (guided instructions posted for new civil filings and filings into a case); a plea of not guilty on a traffic citation results in a pre-trial hearing being scheduled to speak with the prosecutor.
Justice Court, Precinct 2 (Denton County) — Public notice: criminal e-filing mandatory Sept. 1, 2025; civil filings not accepted after 4:00 p.m. (e-file available 24 hours); docket searchable by judicial officer
Justice Court Precinct 2's page notice (Judge James R. DePiazza): criminal e-filing is mandatory as of Sept. 1, 2025 through eFileTexas; the court does not accept civil filings after 4:00 p.m. daily, e-filing being available around the clock; the court's docket is viewed on the JP & County Court Calendar by selecting the judicial officer; deferred disposition, driving safety course and statutory dismissal requests may be made online.
Denton County District Courts — Unified Standing Order Implementing Senate Bill 9 (89th Leg.): Magistrate Court as the court before which unindicted felony cases are pending, exclusive bail-setting for subsequent felonies, next-business-day transfer of magistration documents, district-court review of bail on the State's request (filed Oct. 8, 2025; arrests on or after Sept. 1, 2025)
The Denton County district courts with felony jurisdiction' standing order implementing Senate Bill 9 (signed by Judges Steve Burgess, Brent Hill, Michael Dickens, Karen Alexander, Tiffany Haertling, Derbha Jones and Crystal Levonius; filed with the District Clerk Oct. 8, 2025): prior Chapter 54 part-time magistrate appointments are rescinded and attorney municipal judges of courts of record may serve as magistrates under CCP art. 2A.151(14); for a felony arrest without an indictment, the 'court before which a case is pending' is the Denton County Magistrate Court, which also has jurisdiction over a prior unindicted felony when a second felony arrest follows; under art. 17.027 the Magistrate Court is designated to set bail or conditions for a defendant arrested for a felony committed in Denton County while unindicted felonies are pending, and no other magistrate may set or modify that bail without written district-judge authorization or under approved emergency coverage, with the Magistrate Court reviewing the bond on the prior offense; a judge or magistrate without jurisdiction who sets bail at an art. 15.17 hearing must transmit the probable-cause affidavit, warrant or commitment, bail form, bond conditions, warnings and arrest report to the Magistrate Court by the close of the next business day, by e-filing with the District Clerk or secure e-mail to the designated prosecutor, the District Clerk and magistrate staff; on the District Attorney's request any Denton district judge may review and modify a bail decision made by a magistrate without jurisdiction, acting by the next business day under arts. 17.09 and 17.15, with a summons before any warrant if the defendant is not in custody; Section 3 applies to arrests on or after Sept. 1, 2025.
Denton County District Courts — Standing Order Regarding HIPAA, the Texas Medical Privacy Act, and Drug Testing Records (Feb. 27, 2025)
The district judges' standing order in every Family Code suit authorizing all litigation participants (parties, counsel and staff, testing facilities and laboratories, experts, evaluators, parenting facilitators and coordinators, mental-health professionals, witnesses, mediators, arbitrators and courts) to disclose, receive and use drug test records and the protected health information in them for the pending litigation without further HIPAA or Texas Medical Privacy Act authorization — and for no other purpose — with notice that such information is subject to electronic disclosure.
Denton County District Courts — Standing Order Regarding Children, Property and Conduct of the Parties (filed Feb. 27, 2025)
The district courts' standing order, adopted under Family Code §§ 6.501–6.503, 105.001 and 105.009, that applies in every divorce and every SAPCR (including modifications and enforcements) filed in Denton County and binds the parties, their agents and anyone with notice on pain of contempt: no removing children from Texas to change residence, withdrawing them from school, hiding them, changing their abode, disparaging the other party (including on social media) or discussing the litigation before them, and no overnight dating partners while in possession of a child in an original divorce; no harassing communications; in a dissolution, the full preservation-of-property regime (no transfers, new debt, withdrawals, beneficiary changes, account closures, utility shutoffs, intercepting mail or communications, excluding a spouse from the residence, altering electronic data or metadata, deleting social-network content, or using the other party's passwords) with authorizations for ordinary business, attorney's fees and living expenses; records and insurance preserved; the petitioner must attach the order to the petition or the clerk declines to issue citation; effective on filing as a 14-day TRO, then a temporary injunction until final order; protective orders prevail; parties to complete a listed parent-education and stabilization program within 60 days.
Denton County District Courts — Standing Order Regarding Cash Bonds in Disposed Civil Cases (Feb. 2025)
The district judges' standing order directing the District Clerk to release cash bond funds, less administrative fees, to the depositor when a civil or family case has been disposed as to all parties (transfer, nonsuit, dismissal, final judgment or appellate mandate) and the funds remain in the registry 105 days or more afterward.
Denton County Probate Courts — Standing Administrative Order SO-2025-00001: $600 Security-for-Costs Retainer for Attorney Ad Litem Fees in Heirship and Guardianship Applications (filed on or after Feb. 1, 2025)
The probate courts' standing order (signed Jan. 27, 2025; amending SO-2015-00007 and SO-2015-00008) requiring the Clerk to collect a $600 retainer deposit, administrative fee waived, in every application for determination of heirship (Estates Code § 53.052(a)) and every guardianship application (§ 1053.052(a), except applicants described in §§ 1053.052(c) and 1155.151(a-2)) filed on or after Feb. 1, 2025, held for the attorney ad litem's fees; the Clerk releases the approved fee to the ad litem and any balance to the applicant within 30 days of the fee order, and the applicant pays any excess within 30 days.
431st District Court (Denton County) — Trial Docket Guidelines: Announcement Procedures (Jan. 13, 2025; written Ready/Not Ready 5–15 days before trial or claims dismissed; pretrial matters and continuances by the Friday before; proposed charge, witness and exhibit lists by the Friday before; settlement orders within 30 days)
Judge Jim Johnson's memorandum to all parties with cases set on the 431st District Court jury docket (Jan. 13, 2025): each attorney and self-represented party submits a written announcement of Ready or Not Ready to the court administrator not less than five nor more than fifteen days before trial, and a party who does not announce at least five days out has its affirmative claims or defenses dismissed with prejudice, costs taxed at the court's discretion; no agreed passes or continuances except as the Denton County local rules permit, and a motion for continuance must be heard by the Friday before trial; short pretrial matters at 8:30 a.m. the morning of trial, lengthy ones by the Friday before; the proposed charge (Word format, in the exact form for the jury, following the TRCP and the Pattern Jury Charges) and the witness and exhibit lists are due to the administrator and court reporter respectively by the Friday before trial; on settlement the administrator is notified promptly and a final judgment, decree or nonsuit must be entered within 30 days of the trial date or the case is dismissed for want of prosecution; backup cases are not released until the administrator's notice on the Monday of trial.
Denton County — Uniform Rules of Court for the District and Statutory County Courts (Local Rules, eff. Jan. 1, 2025)
The county's master local rules for every district and statutory county court, adopted by the trial judges acting in concert (Gov't Code § 74.093) and effective Jan. 1, 2025, repealing all prior local rules. Title I (general): attorneys' duties, courtroom conduct (no electronic devices except participating counsel, no recording, no campaign materials), pro se parties held to the rules, conflicting settings with a priority ladder, vacation letters filed 45 days ahead, first continuance or pass granted before announcement day, continuance motions 10 days before trial, the certificate-of-conference requirement for every non-dispositive motion, briefs 3 working days before hearing, proposed orders tendered 2 working days before submission with 5 days to object, evidence in court-of-appeals-uploadable formats. Title II (civil): ex parte applications filed first and certified, affidavit default prove-ups for liquidated damages, bankruptcy notice in 3 days, deposition notices under 10 days presumed unreasonable with a conference recital, DWOP grounds after 60 days without a setting, trial settings no sooner than 75 days from request with 7-day objections, the Eighth Region rules followed, 'ready' announcements 5–15 days before trial, settlement judgments within 30 days, witness/exhibit lists and exhibits marked 7 days before trial, business-records and § 18.001 affidavits filed without attachments, video-deposition designations 30 days before trial. Title III (family): filing and transfer of ancillary actions, the attorney's certificate for ex parte relief, mandatory sworn inventories within 60 days of appearance and financial information 3 days before the first hearing, a certificate of conference before any hearing is set, two-business-day notice of final settings, pre-trial conference attendance. Title IV (criminal/juvenile): letters of representation within 3 business days, defendants present at every setting. Title V: e-filing rules for the County and District Clerks (separate lead documents, page numbering, one-inch margins, no PDF portfolios, proposed orders as subsequent filings, three business days to cure a returned filing, no audio/video via eFile).
Denton County Probate Courts — Local Rules (eff. Oct. 1, 2024)
The Local Rules of the Statutory Probate Courts of Denton County (version 10-01-24, effective Oct. 1, 2024, repealing all prior local rules; registered July 22, 2025): self-represented parties may not apply to serve as executor, administrator or guardian or represent third parties (the clerk accepts the filing but the court takes no action until an attorney appears), and may appear only as a sole muniment-of-title beneficiary, non-corporate creditor, ancillary-suit party or small-estate distributee; cause numbering with '01' ancillary suffixes; transfers need a motion, order and hearing; severed claims filed as new cases; vacation letters 45 days ahead; bankruptcy notice within five days; ad litem reports and $-for-costs security in heirship and guardianship cases; attorney-fee applications under the courts' fee standards; proposed orders agreed by all counsel or submitted 10 days after service with alternative forms and a further 10-day hold; amended pleadings no later than 7 days before trial; non-jury hearing requests state a time estimate; uncontested docket by calling the administrator; weekly mental-health docket; mandatory mediation of all final contested matters; trial settings no sooner than 45 days from request with 7-day objections; continuance motions 10 days before trial; pre-trial conference 10 days before trial with Monday trial starts; dilatory pleas 30 days before trial; one second setting; witness/exhibit lists and motions in limine at trial; evidence in court-of-appeals formats; certificate of conference on every non-dispositive motion; briefs 3 working days ahead; Zoom only for agreed uncontested matters (no telephonic hearings; no contested testimony by Zoom); deposition guidelines with 10-day notice presumption and 30-day video designations; ex parte relief with two hours' notice and the attorney's certificate; private process certificates; withdrawal/substitution without hearing only 45 days before a setting with client consent; DWOP after 60 days of inaction; decorum rules.
Denton County Probate Courts — Court Policy Concerning Required Retention of Attorney and Self-Represented Applicants (Rev. 10/2024): executors, administrators and guardians must act through counsel; self-represented applicants only for their own interests (sole-beneficiary muniments, non-corporate creditors, § 1163 annual reports); muniment prove-up steps and 24-hour document e-mail)
The joint policy of Probate Courts Nos. 1 and 2 (Rev. 10/2024; signed by Judge Christopher J. Everett and the Associate Judge): consistent with the unauthorized-practice statutes, the courts do not permit a self-represented litigant to represent estates or other persons — named or applying executors, administrators and applicants for guardianship must act through a licensed attorney, the courts take no action on filings without an attorney of record, and a representative who discharges counsel and falls out of compliance must re-employ counsel; a person may represent only his or her own interest (examples: a sole beneficiary in a muniment of title, a non-corporate creditor, a non-corporate party in an ancillary civil action, a guardian of the person filing the § 1163 annual report); self-represented litigants must follow Local Rule 1.3, the TRCP, the Rules of Evidence, the Estates Code and appellate rules on pain of fine or punishment; the FAQ explains the fiduciary rationale; for a self-represented muniment all beneficiaries must be applicants and testify, each must swear on personal knowledge that there are no debts other than real-estate liens (perjury warning), the court reviews prove-up documents before the hearing, additional documents are required for a copy of a will, a non-self-proved will or probate more than four years after death, the will and redacted death certificate are filed with the application with the TRCP 57 contact information, and within 24 hours of setting the hearing the proposed order and unsigned proof (and any additional proposed testimony) are e-mailed in Word to the court's coordinator with the hearing date and decedent's name in the subject, additional signed pleadings filed at least one week before the hearing.
Denton County Probate Courts — The Uncontested Docket: When a Client Dies Without a Will — Positions and Policies on Heirships and Administrations (Version 09.24; automatic attorney ad litem after deposit; 90-day compliance docket; combined applications; consents in waivers; chart of heirs' fractional interests; posted and published citation with publisher's affidavits e-filed before setting; minor-heir citation rules; § 202.057 certificate; written testimony signed before the judge; two disinterested witnesses; judgment chart)
The two probate courts' guide for intestate matters on the uncontested docket (Version 09.24; Presiding Judges David W. Jahn and Christopher J. Everett): complete the website prove-up checklist; Zoom hearings allowed if all counsel agree; in every heirship the court automatically appoints an attorney ad litem once the deposit is posted (contact the court if none within two weeks) and the ad litem must attend; a compliance docket is set 90 days after the appointment; heirship and administration are pleaded in one application (an independent administration cannot be heard before the heirship, a dependent administration opened first must have its heirship within 60 days, no independent administration where any heir is a minor, no administration more than four years after death except rarely), with every distributee's consent to independent administration and bond waiver, preferably folded into the waivers of citation; the application must contain every § 202.005 and § 301.052 element, verified under § 202.007, with the heirs' information preferably in a chart giving each heir's interest in separate personal, separate real and community property as finished fractions and, when administration is sought, children's birth dates marked as sensitive data; posted citation on all applications, citation by publication in a local paper and the OCA website with both publishers' affidavits e-filed before the hearing is set, service on or waiver by every non-applicant adult heir (no private process servers in Texas without a motion; certified-mail citation valid only with the addressee's signature), minor-heir rules by age and filing date, and a § 202.057 certificate or affidavit; all oral testimony is reduced to writing prepared in advance and signed before the judge — a proof of death and other facts (no citation recitals) and statements of two disinterested witnesses on the heirs; the judgment includes a chart of all heirs, relationships and interests.
442nd District Court (Denton County) — Practice Tips of Judge Tiffany Haertling (last updated January 2024)
Judge Tiffany Haertling's Practice Tips for the 442nd District Court (updated January 2024; the court states they control where they overlap the county's Uniform Rules): child interviews set only with a companion hearing and children never brought to court unless directed; the court administrator reachable by e-mail only, with all opposing counsel and self-represented litigants copied, and only after the file-marked motion is back from the clerk; conferring on dates with two business days for a response before a setting; continuances in cases over 18 months old or off a DWOP docket require a hearing, agreed ones in younger cases by separate proposed order; dismissal notices with steps and deadlines; the court's Entry Docket about twice monthly at 8:30 a.m. in person, one extension; notices of hearing and proposed orders e-filed as separate lead documents, full names (not initials) for parties and children; settings at 9:00 and 1:30 (9:30 Fridays), all in person absent leave and good cause; time-limit dockets; the court's Exhibit List and Witness List for every hearing with pre-marked exhibits on a USB drive for the reporter plus hard copies for the judge and witness stand; a Summary of Requested Relief; inventories exchanged before final hearing with a proposed property division in editable format; mandatory mediation at least 30 days before final trial with DCAP Exhibit As attached; summary-judgment motions filed and heard 30 days before final trial; agreed divorces proved up by affidavit, in-person prove-ups Tuesdays at 8:30; tax suits by submission or the monthly tax docket.
442nd District Court (Denton County) — Instructions for Self-Represented Litigants (last updated August 2024: agreed divorces by prove-up affidavit on or after the 61st day; in-person prove-ups Wednesdays 8:30 a.m.; final trials at least 75 days out after conferring; default prove-ups Wednesdays 8:30 a.m. or by setting; name changes)
The 442nd District Court's instructions for self-represented litigants (last updated August 2024): neither the administrator nor the judge can give legal advice; hiring counsel is strongly encouraged (Denton County Bar, North Texas Legal Aid, Friends of the Family, or a court-appointed attorney in CPS cases or jail-seeking enforcement actions); self-represented parties are held to an attorney's standard and research their own filings (texaslawhelp.org, the Law Library at 121 N. Woodrow Lane); agreed divorces are proved up by affidavit on or after the 61st day after filing by e-filing the respondent's waiver or answer, the prove-up affidavit and the completed agreed decree as separate lead documents (not before the 61st day — the court cannot hold orders), with in-person prove-ups on Wednesdays at 8:30 a.m. only for those unable to e-file or prepare the affidavit, proper courtroom attire required; an answer or waiver must be on file for the respondent if not served; contested divorces are set for final trial by e-mailing the administrator with both sides included, dates at least 75 days out under the county's local rules, two business days to confer; a final trial cannot be set until the respondent has been served or has answered; default prove-ups in person on Wednesdays at 8:30 a.m. or by scheduled setting, attorneys through the administrator; adult and child name changes filed as separate lead documents, with in-person appearance where criminal history is indicated or both parents do not agree.
462nd District Court (Denton County) — Criminal Docket Guidelines (updated July 23, 2024; letter of representation e-filed on retention; defendants present at all settings; arraignments Wednesdays 8:30 a.m.; three announcement settings 60 days apart then plea or trial; pleas Thursdays 1:30 p.m. and Fridays 9 a.m.; docket call Fridays 10 a.m. ten days before jury trial)
Judge Lee Ann Breading's criminal docket guidelines for the 462nd District Court (updated July 23, 2024): retained attorneys e-file a letter of representation with the District Clerk, and a motion to substitute counsel with the required signatures if the defendant is already represented; defendants must be present at all settings unless excused; arraignments and announcements on Wednesdays at 8:30 a.m., where the status of discovery and any plea offer is reported and bond conditions acknowledged, followed by three announcement settings 60 days apart, after which the case is set for disposition by plea or moves to the jury trial docket (extra settings by exception; cases may move to plea or trial earlier); pleas Thursdays at 1:30 p.m. and Fridays at 9 a.m. as scheduled with the court; docket calls Fridays at 10 a.m. ten days before jury trial; the 462nd Drug Treatment Court sits the first and third Thursdays 3–5 p.m.; all settings are scheduled by court administrator Stacy Fruth.
Denton County Probate Courts — Administrative and Standing Order Regarding Small Estate Affidavits (July 9, 2024): court form, posted general citation, redacted death certificate
The probate courts' order (signed July 9, 2024) that any small estate affidavit under Estates Code ch. 205 must substantially comply with the form posted on the Probate Court No. 1 website to be approved; every affidavit filed after July 9, 2024 requires a posted general citation (Estates Code §§ 51.001, 51.003, 51.053, 51.104) with no action until the first Monday after the citation is returned; and the applicant must file an original death certificate with the first six digits of the decedent's Social Security number redacted.
Denton County Justice Courts — Standing Order 2024-001JP: Certificate of Service on Motions for Default Judgment in Debt Claim Cases (May 10, 2024)
The justices of the peace's standing order (signed May 10, 2024, effective immediately) requiring every motion for default judgment in a TRCP 508 debt claim case filed in a Denton County justice court to carry a certificate of service complying with TRCP 501.4(d) before the court will process it; deficient motions draw a deficiency notice under each court's procedures.
Justice Court, Precinct 5 (Denton County) — Public notice: civil e-filing mandatory since Apr. 1, 2024; criminal e-filing mandatory July 2, 2026; all filings before 4 p.m.; business checks only, no personal checks, no cash or money-order payments after 4 p.m.; office opens 8:30 a.m.
Justice Court Precinct 5's page notices (Judge Mike Oglesby): since Apr. 1, 2024 all electronic filings, motions and requests in civil cases (evictions, small claims, debt claims) must be made through eFile; criminal e-filing becomes mandatory July 2, 2026; all filings must be filed before 4 p.m. (eFile available around the clock); business checks are accepted but personal checks are not, and no cash, money-order or cashier's-check payments are taken after 4 p.m.; the office opens at 8:30 a.m.; the docket is viewed on the JP & County Court Calendar by judicial officer.