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The Local Rules of Procedure and Rules of Decorum for the Justice of the Peace Courts of Collin County (eff. Aug. 11, 2023, under Gov't Code §27.061): the courts' jurisdiction ($20,000 civil, evictions/reentry, license-revocation and other administrative hearings, fine-only Class C criminal, animal cruelty, peace bonds, emergency mental-health commitments), inclement-weather closure, civil mediation-referral with a 10-day objection window (no ADR-caused eviction delay), continuances (7 days for jury trials), the criminal venue/first-appearance/setting/plea regime with the 21-day pretrial-motion deadline and standard-fine lists, and the rules of decorum.
Texas > Collin County > all four Justice of the Peace Courts (Precincts 1–4; Hon. Paul Raleeh, Ellen Kinnebrew, Mike Missildine, Vincent Venegoni — per the OCA roster) — the uniform local rules of the justice courts
SCOPE AND JURISDICTION (Ch. 1): promulgated under Gov't Code §27.061 for "a uniform system for the fair, impartial, and prompt disposition" of matters in the Justice Courts; they neither enlarge nor diminish the courts' jurisdiction. The Justice Courts hear (a) civil cases with $20,000 or less in controversy; (b) eviction cases, residential and commercial, including writs of reentry; (c) administrative hearings on driver's-license and concealed-handgun-permit revocations; (d) fine-only criminal offenses, traffic and Class C; (e) animal cruelty and neglect; (f) peace bond applications; and (g) emergency mental-health commitment applications. Court closes for inclement weather; recording of proceedings is governed by Ch. 1.11. CIVIL CASES (Ch. 2): cases are brought to trial or disposition "as promptly as practicable," each court setting its own hearings. MEDIATION — the courts encourage peaceful resolution; each court determines which cases to refer and to which service; "Any party receiving notice of a referral to mediation has 10 days from date of notice to file a motion objecting," excused on a reasonable-basis finding; "The courts will not order mediation or any dispute resolution in an eviction case if it will delay trial." Preferential settings are discretionary; "Any motion to continue a jury trial must be filed at least 7 days prior to the trial setting"; citation-service authorization follows TRCP 501.2. A DWOP regime (Ch. 2.10) and attorney-withdrawal rules (Ch. 2.11) apply. CRIMINAL CASES (Ch. 3): cases are filed "in the precinct where the offense is alleged to have occurred," except school-attendance cases (any precinct), and multi-precinct offenses in any precinct where any portion occurred; a school-attendance case may be transferred to the 417th District Court when the defendant has pending juvenile cases there. Defendants appear per their citation; "A telephone call does not constitute an appearance." Clerks give only the enumerated settings (announcement/pre-trial, pretrial motions, trial before the court, jury trial); "Pretrial motions must be filed with the Court 21 days prior to any pretrial hearing," and the court forwards them to the district attorney; a jury waiver at docket call requires a signed written waiver. Guilty/no-contest pleas may be entered at any time, with each court maintaining a list of "standard" fines; appointed counsel follows Ch. 3.5. DECORUM (Ch. 4): the rules of decorum govern order, opening procedure, recesses, and general courtroom conduct.
Reviewer note: Operative provisions composed verbatim from the registered document (text layer, 11 pp, four chapters); own-site copy under the justices-of-the-peace tree; custody sha256 in the registry ledger (doc 1547).
Establishes a Traffic Violations Bureau within the Clerk of the County Court under Fla. R. Traf. Ct. 6.100(a) (Burnstein, C.J., Nov. 1, 1988).
Approves the National Highway Safety Council Defensive Driving course as a school to which traffic courts may require attendance (Fla. R. Traf. Ct. 6.110(a)).
Designates the D.W.I. Counterattack School (Broward County Commission on Alcoholism) as an approved school for court-ordered attendance (Fla. R. Traf. Ct. 6.110(a)).