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Judge Bonnie J. Robison's standing administrative order SO-2016-00001 under Government Code § 37.01: two probate ad litem lists and two guardianship ad litem lists (List I for attorneys with ten or more years of probate and guardianship experience approved for difficult, complex and contested cases; List II for other qualified attorneys), posted quarterly on the courthouse bulletin boards and the court's website; an attorney seeking placement e-mails the Probate Court Attorney Administrator a request letter, a current State Bar Attorney Ad Litem Certificate (§ 1054.201 four-hour training), a resume and the court's application and profile form, then interviews with the judge; qualification requires working knowledge of probate and guardianship law, the Rules of Evidence and the court's standing orders (List I: demonstrated ability with complex cases and dependent, temporary and guardianship administrations); guardianship-list attorneys also observe three guardianship prove-ups, complete five court visits and register with the County Court Administrator; the court may appoint out of order or off-list for specialized skill, prior involvement, geography or the parties' agreement; the attorney must keep the certificate current and decline appointments when it lapses — expiration removes the attorney from the list, restoration requires a current certificate, five additional court visits and placement at the bottom of the list.
Texas > Denton County > Probate Courts Nos. 1 and 2 (posted under both courts' Standing Orders) — attorneys seeking or holding placement on the probate and guardianship ad litem appointment lists.
"1. There will be two Probate Attorney/Guardian Ad Litem Lists as follows: Ad Litem List I: Attorneys with 10 or more years Probate and Guardianship Experience who have requested to be appointed on difficult, complex and contested Probate cases; are qualified to serve and have been approved by the Denton County Probate Court; and Ad Litem List II: Attorneys who have requested to be appointed and are qualified to serve. 2. There will be two Guardianship Attorney/Guardian Ad Litem Lists as follows: [the same two tiers]. 3. On or about January 1st, April 1st, July 1st, and October 1st of each year, the Court will post a copy of the current … Ad Litem Lists on the Probate Court bulletin board and on the public viewing bulletin board … The Ad Litem Lists will also be posted on the Denton County Probate Court's website. … 4. The Court finds that for an attorney to be considered for placement on an Ad Litem List, the attorney must send the following documentation to the Probate Court Attorney Administrator … via e-mail …: a. a letter to the Court requesting placement on either the Probate Attorney/Guardian Ad Litem List or the Guardianship Attorney/Guardian Ad Litem Lists or both lists; b. a current State Bar of Texas Certified Attorney Ad Litem Certificate obtained by completion of the Texas Estates Code §1054.201 mandated four hours of guardianship training; c. a resume or curriculum vitae; and d. a completed Denton County Probate Court Ad Litem Application and Attorney Profile Form. After the above documentation has been sent to the Court, the Probate Court Administrator will contact the Applicant to schedule an interview with [the Judge]. 5. In order for an attorney to be found by the Court to be qualified to serve as an Ad Litem on any Ad Litem List, the attorney must demonstrate a working knowledge of Texas Probate and Guardianship Law, the Texas Rules of Evidence, and the standing orders of the Denton County Probate Court. In addition, in order for an attorney to be found by the Court to be qualified to serve as an Ad Litem on the Probate List I or Guardianship List I, the attorney must have demonstrated an ability to handle difficult and complex Probate and Guardianship cases. Furthermore, … the attorney must have significant experience with dependent administrations, including temporary estate administrations and guardianship administrations. 6. If the Court finds an attorney is qualified to serve on the Guardianship Attorney/Guardian Ad Litem List, the attorney must complete the following additional steps: a. Observe a minimum of three (3) guardianship prove up hearings to be coordinated with the Court Investigator …; b. complete five (5) Court Visits, to be coordinated with the Court Guardianship Administrative Assistant …; and c. contact County Court Administrator … to have the attorney's bar number and contact information entered into the County database (Odyssey). 7. After making a discretionary decision based on the requirements of each case, the Court will decide which Ad Litem List will be used to make the appointment. The Court is statutorily authorized to appoint an attorney out of order or to appoint an attorney who otherwise meets statutory or other legal requirements to serve as an attorney or guardian ad litem in a case, but who is not currently on an Ad Litem List if the attorney: a. possesses relevant specialized education, training, certification, skill, language proficiency, or knowledge of the subject matter of the case; b. has relevant prior involvement with the parties or case; c. is in a relevant geographic location; and/or d. is chosen by agreement of all of the parties. 8. It is the attorney's responsibility to provide the Court an updated Attorney Ad Litem certificate. When the attorney's Ad Litem certificate expires, it is the attorney's duty to notify the Court that his/her Ad Litem certificate has expired and not to accept any appointments until he/she has obtained a current Ad Litem certificate and met all of the Court's requirements to be placed on the Ad Litem List. If the Attorney Ad Litem certificate for an attorney on the Guardianship Attorney/Guardian Ad Litem List expires, the Court imposes the following: a. The Ad Litem will immediately be removed from the Guardianship Attorney/Guardian Ad Litem List and will no longer be eligible for assignments as of the date of the expiration of certification on file with the Court. b. For restoration to the List, the Ad Litem must file a current Attorney Ad Litem certificate with the Court. c. If the Court finds the attorney is qualified to serve on the Guardianship Ad Litem List, the attorney must complete five (5) additional Court Visits before receiving any new court assignments. d. After restoration, the Ad Litem will be placed at the bottom of the Guardianship Attorney/Guardian Ad Litem List. … IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that the above policies and procedures shall be carried out and implemented by the Denton County Probate Court and the attorneys serving on the Ad Litem Lists according to the law. SIGNED on February 24, 2016."
"1. There will be two Probate Attorney/Guardian Ad Litem Lists as follows: Ad Litem List I: Attorneys with 10 or more years Probate and Guardianship Experience who have requested to be appointed on difficult, complex and contested Probate cases; are qualified to serve and have been approved by the Denton County Probate Court; and Ad Litem List II: Attorneys who have requested to be appointed and a
Reviewer note: Own-site document (image-only, 3 pp) read through the pypdfium2 vision lane 2026-09-06 and transcribed verbatim (named staff and telephone numbers elided); signed by former Judge Bonnie J. Robison (historical authorship; the interview is now with the sitting judges); still posted under the current courts' standing orders → county-level probate rule (court-less). Composed benchpath-ajr8-denton (own-site lane).
2 verbatim requirements from 4th Circuit Administrative Order 1986-33A.
1 verbatim requirement from 4th Circuit Administrative Order 1987-09.