Loading…
The Rules of Administration adopted by majority vote of the Criminal District Courts and the district courts giving preference to criminal cases under Gov't Code §74.093 (adopted Jan. 12, 2012, effective on approval): rotating-basis filing, judge-controlled docket calls, speedy-disposition duties with oldest-jail-case priority, the thirteen-rule transfer regime (probation court, earliest-filed case, companion cases, pending appeals, work release, pre-indictment assignments, magistration-date rules, alias probation, the Monday State-Jail-Felony transfer mechanics through the Court Manager, and sequential capital-murder distribution by the Local Administrative Judge that overrules all other transfer policies), residual presiding/LAJ transfers, Frank Crowley venue, the at-least-one-judge-available absence rule, monthly judicial meetings, presiding-judge election mechanics, and each court's authority to adopt consistent supplemental rules.
Texas > Dallas County > the Criminal District Courts and the district courts giving preference to criminal cases (all felony courts) — the §74.093 local rules of administration; the Local Administrative Judge and Presiding Criminal District Judge roles referenced are the felony bench's administrative offices
FILING AND DOCKETS (1.0): "Criminal cases invoking district court jurisdiction shall be filed on a rotating basis among the district courts"; docket calls, arraignments, and pretrial times are governed by the judge of the docketed court; each court strives for speedy disposition — every felony case is set for trial as soon as practical, "Preference shall be given to jail cases, with the oldest pending jail case being given priority whenever practical," and unreached cases may be carried day to day. TRANSFERS (2.0): between criminal district courts by written order on the participating judges' consent; assigned cases transfer by rule — (1) to the court holding the defendant's probation; (2) to the court with the defendant's earliest-filed pending case (same-date filings: lowest case number); (3) companion cases to the earliest-filed case's court; (4) to the court of a pending appeal; (5) to the court of the defendant's work release; (6) to the court of a disposed jail case not yet transferred to TDC; (7) to a court holding a pre-indictment assignment (filed or unfiled); (8) multiple unfiled cases go to the earliest magistration date — but a court receiving a new case keeps it when the unfiled case's magistration date is over 30 days old, unless the new offense arises from the same transaction as the unfiled case; (9) alias probation in multiple courts — to the first court that placed the defendant on probation; (10) co-defendants on probation — to the first co-defendant's probation court; (11) unfiled companion cases — earliest magistration date, else lowest case number; (12) "On the Monday of each jury week," ready State Jail Felony cases are called from each court's designated SJF docket — a judge unable to proceed notifies the Court Manager, who "shall then TRANSFER the State Jail Felony cases to an open court for trial to begin the next day" and orders the defendant onto that court's jail chain; (13) "All capital murder and murder cases shall be transferred by the Local Administrative Judge or his designee to the criminal district courts in a sequential order to ensure an equal distribution" — companion-case skew is equalized before further assignments, "This transfer policy shall overrule all other transfer policies," and related or probation cases pending elsewhere follow the capital case. All other transfers are made only by the Presiding Judge and/or the Local Administrative Judge for fair caseload division, and only within the receiving court's jurisdiction (2.3). HOURS AND PLACE (3.0): court held as each judge determines expedient, "at the Frank Crowley Courts Building in Dallas County, Texas and at such other places in Dallas County as ordered by the District Judges." ABSENCES (4.0): judicial vacations scheduled per each court's needs, with schedules coordinated "so that there will be at least one Criminal District Judge available at all times"; visiting-judge requests go to the Regional Presiding Judge. MEETINGS AND COMMITTEES (5.0): the criminal district judges meet "the first Thursday of every month at noon" or as the Presiding Criminal District Judge designates; committee assignments per the Criminal District Court Policies. PRESIDING JUDGE (6.0): elected in December of even-numbered years for a two-year term beginning January 1; no more than three consecutive terms; mid-term vacancies filled by prompt election; election by majority on nominated, paper ballots counted by the Chief Staff Attorney. OTHER RULES (7.0): "Each Court may adopt such other rules not in conflict with these rules as may be deemed necessary by the Judge of the Court for the efficient administration of justice." The rules are effective immediately on approval as required by law.
Reviewer note: Own-site instrument composed by vision (image-only scan rendered and read page-by-page 2026-08-28; custody sha in the crawl ledger); adopted Jan. 12, 2012 over the then-presiding judge's signature (name not legible in the signature; the office, not the officer, carries the rule); posted undated on the county's criminal-district tree as the operative administration rules.
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)).