Local Rules of Practice Before the Family Courts of Montgomery County and Local Rules for the Administration of Family Cases (adopted Nov. 16, 2022)

Summary

The Family Trial Judges' combined practice and administration rules for all family-law cases in the district courts and county courts at law (the 'Family Trial Courts' are those regularly receiving more than 10% of family filings under the current assignment orders): pre-trial motions in writing with a certificate of service, a CERTIFICATE OF CONFERENCE (signed, with the dates, times, and manner of each resolution attempt — not required for dispositive, summary-judgment, default, voluntary-dismissal/nonsuit, post-verdict, or citation-service motions), and a SEPARATE proposed order; movant schedules consideration and notices oral-vs-submission; submission-docket motions need a movant-obtained submission date at least 10 days from filing (leave excepted), responses in writing with their own separate proposed order at least 2 business days before submission — failure to respond may be treated as NO OPPOSITION; oral-argument requests in writing with reasons (discretionary, and not a response); scheduling/docket-control orders per court with the attorney's DUTY to check the record and obtain copies from the District Clerk; setting preference may favor parties who mediated; lateness protocol — notify the court and opponents with estimated arrival and reason (dual-setting details included), and a movant more than 30 minutes late may have the motion passed; CHILD PROTECTION — no child who is the subject of a suit comes to the courthouse for a hearing/trial without the Family Trial Judge's specific approval or administrator/coordinator instruction, the responsible attorney/party immediately notifies the court of the child's presence, and the child does not enter the courtroom without express judicial consent; FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE — at least 24 HOURS before any temporary-orders hearing involving child or spousal support, and at least 30 DAYS before final trial (unless ordered otherwise), the parties file and exchange Monthly Financial Information Statements (Texas Family Practice Manual form or court form), two years of federal returns, six most recent payroll stubs, three most recent bank statements for all controlled accounts if self-employed, and the Family Code §§ 154.181(b)/154.1815(c) information; at least 30 DAYS before final trial in divorce/annulment each party files a sworn Inventory and Appraisement (TFPM conformity: all property with character opinions, beneficial interests, debts, and itemized fair market values) — an untimely party is BOUND by the complying party's stipulated information and barred (absent good cause) from contesting it, and if both fail the court may DISMISS; ADR strongly encouraged with personal attendance at mediation; orders prepared by the prevailing/designated party by the entry date with form-approval attempts (motions to enter carry the proposed order separately); bench exchange preserved (a judge signing for another court leaves the case in the original court absent a transfer order); PRIOR FILINGS — a terminated Family Trial Court suit's successor involving the same parties or subject (divorce, support, conservatorship, and incident matters, by original proceeding, modification, clarification, or enforcement) must be filed in or transferred to the first-jurisdiction Family Trial Court, with immediate transfer requests when late-disclosed; and inter-court transfers on the written agreement of both Family Trial Judges. Adopted November 16, 2022 (Robin 410th, Gilbert 418th, Tucker CCL3), effective on OCA-website publication per TRCP 3a(c); amendable by more than one-half of the Family Trial Judges at a noticed meeting.