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Invoking 45 CFR 164.512(f)(1)(ii)(A) (HIPAA law-enforcement disclosures under a court order or a subpoena or summons issued by a judicial officer) and 5 U.S.C. § 552a(b)(7) and (11) (Privacy Act law-enforcement request and court-order exceptions), the criminal district judges authorize the grand jury foreperson and the State's attorney, without further order, to request all necessary information from covered entities and federal agencies; a copy of the order must be attached to every such subpoena, and the covered entity or agency must comply forthwith, remains subject to Chapter 24 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, and must supply a competent witness if necessary.
Applies to subpoenas issued at the request of the grand jury foreperson or the State's attorney in the 144th, 175th, 186th, 187th, 226th, 227th, 290th, 379th, 399th and 437th District Courts of Bexar County to HIPAA covered entities (protected health information) and to federal agencies (records of an individual). Ten judges signed; no judge join. This edition combines and supersedes the February 1, 2012 HIPAA trial-subpoena order (64807, in doc 698), the October 5, 2001 federal-agency grand-jury order (35751, in doc 698) and the May 17, 2022 federal-agency order (72748, doc 1808). Procedural information only; not legal advice.
SPECIAL ORDER NO. ____. STATE OF TEXAS, COUNTY OF BEXAR — IN THE DISTRICT COURTS GIVING PREFERENCE TO CRIMINAL MATTERS OF BEXAR COUNTY, TEXAS. STANDING ORDER REGARDING SUBPOENAS. Pursuant to 45 CFR 164.512(f)(1)(ii)(A) and 5 USC 552a(b)(7) & (11) and the authority arising under the laws of the State of Texas, the Criminal District Court Judges of Bexar County, do hereby issue this Standing Court Order, as follows: I. COVERED ENTITIES. The Health Information Portability and Accountability Act, 45 CFR 160 and 164 (HIPAA), provides that a covered entity may use or disclose protected health information to the extent that such use or disclosure is required by law and use or disclosure complies with and is limited to the relevant requirements of such law. Permitted disclosures include, but are not limited to, 45 CFR 164.512(f)(1)(ii)(A), which provides in pertinent part: (f) Standard: Disclosures for law enforcement purposes. A covered entity may disclose protected health information for a law enforcement purpose to a law enforcement official if the conditions in paragraphs (f)(1) through (f)(6) of this section are met, as applicable. (1) Permitted Disclosures: Pursuant to process and as otherwise required by law, A covered entity may disclose protected health information ... (ii) In compliance with and as limited by the relevant requirements of: (A) A court order or court-ordered warrant, or a subpoena or summons issued by a judicial officer, (B) A grand jury subpoena. II. FEDERAL AGENCIES. Pursuant to 5 USC 552a(b), agencies of the United States government (as defined in 5 USC 551(1) and 5 USC 552(f)(1)) may not disclose any record of an individual including, but not limited to, educational records, financial transactions, medical history and criminal or employment history if such information contains the individual's name, or the identifying number, symbol, or other identifying particular assigned to that individual without prior written consent, unless disclosure of the record would be: (7) to another agency or to an instrumentality of any governmental jurisdiction within or under the control of the United States for a civil or criminal law enforcement activity if the activity is authorized by law, and if the head of the agency or instrumentality has made a written request to the agency which maintains the record specifying the particular portion desired and the law enforcement activity for which the record is sought. (11) pursuant to the order of a court of competent jurisdiction. IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that the Foreperson of any Grand Jury empaneled by these Courts and the Attorney representing the State are hereby authorized, without further Order of these Courts, to request from a covered entity or federal agency all necessary information, in accordance with applicable provisions of law. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that a copy of this Order shall be attached to all subpoenas issued at the request of the Foreman of the Grand Jury or the Attorney representing the State to either a covered entity for protected health information or to a federal agency for records pertaining to an individual held by such agency. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the covered entity or federal agency identified in the subpoena attached hereto and incorporated herein by reference shall forthwith comply with the subpoena and remains subject to all enforcement provisions of the law and Chapter 24 of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, as may be applicable, and provide, if necessary, an employee who is competent to provide testimony before the grand jury or the trial court related to the requested information. SIGNED and ORDERED on July 18, 2023 [electronic signatures dated July 11–18, 2023]. Michael Mery, Judge, 144th Judicial District Court; Kristina Escalona, Judge, 186th Judicial District Court; Velia Meza, Judge, 226th Judicial District Court; Jennifer Pena, Judge, 290th Judicial District Court; Frank Castro, Judge, 399th Judicial District Court; Catherine Torres-Stahl, Judge, 175th Judicial District Court; Stephanie Boyd, Judge, 187th Judicial District Court; Christine Del Prado, Judge, 227th Judicial District Court; Ron Rangel, Judge, 379th Judicial District Court; Joel Perez, Judge, 437th Judicial District Court.
SPECIAL ORDER NO. ____. STATE OF TEXAS, COUNTY OF BEXAR — IN THE DISTRICT COURTS GIVING PREFERENCE TO CRIMINAL MATTERS OF BEXAR COUNTY, TEXAS. STANDING ORDER REGARDING SUBPOENAS. Pursuant to 45 CFR 164.512(f)(1)(ii)(A) and 5 USC 552a(b)(7) & (11) and the authority arising under the laws of the State of Texas, the Criminal District Court Judges of Bexar County, do hereby issue this Standing Court O
Reviewer note: Composed 2026-09-08 from the TOPICs custody file (three pages; heavily degraded OCR text layer read in full and reconciled against the clean earlier editions of the same provisions — the 2012 HIPAA order 64807 and the 2022 federal-agency order 72748, both read through the vision lane; OCR artifacts corrected, nothing reconstructed beyond those sources). Signature line "Jul 18, 2023".
A standing order of the 97th Judicial District Court sealing the files in cases in which Child Protective Services or the Department of Family and Protective Services appears as petitioner, in the counties comprising the 97th Judicial District.
Dallas County Standing Order Regarding Children, Pets, Property and Conduct of the Parties (Family District Courts General Orders, current edition F2026/05, revised Jan. 31, 2026 — a re-adoption of the same operative text by the current bench: Hon. Kim Brown (254th), Vonda Bailey (255th), Sandre Streete (256th), Ashley Wysocki (301st), Sandra Jackson (302nd), LaDeitra Adkins (303rd), and Andrea D. Plumlee (330th)), as registered in the statewide TOPICs local-rules registry (posted 01/11/2023). The order "applies in every divorce suit and every suit affecting the parent-child relationship filed in Dallas County" automatically, without request: child-disruption prohibitions, pet protection, party-conduct restraints, divorce-case property/records/insurance freezes with specific authorizations, mandatory petition attachment, and its TRO-to-temporary-injunction lifecycle.