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The Rockwall County Justice of the Peace Courts' Rules of Judicial Administration (Gov't Code §27.061): the objective of fair, impartial, and prompt disposition, and the general administration of the four justice courts (precinct filing, docketing, and administration).
Texas > Rockwall County > the four Justice of the Peace Courts (Precincts 1–4) — the justice courts' rules of judicial administration; an own-site copy is posted on the county site
[Seal: The State of Texas, County of Rockwall] Justice of the Peace Courts Rockwall County, Texas RULES OF JUDICIAL ADMINISTRATION 1.0 GENERAL INFORMATION 1.1 These rules are promulgated pursuant to Section 27.061 of the Texas Government Code. 1.2 The objective of these rules is to provide for the fair, impartial and prompt disposition of matters before the justice courts of Rockwall County, Texas. 1.3 Each court may adopt such other rules not in conflict with these rules of administration, Rockwall County policy, state laws, or federal laws, as may be deemed necessary by the judge of that court for the efficient administration of justice. 1.4 These rules do not supersede statutory requirements, and all justices of the peace shall follow statutory laws as well as the Code of Judicial Conduct. 2.0 ORGANIZATION 2.1 There are four justice of the peace courts in Rockwall County. Each court has a specific geographical area of jurisdiction. 2.2 Each court has its own court clerks responsible for setting cases on the individual docket of each court. 3.0 HOURS AND PLACES FOR HOLDING COURT 3.1 Court shall be held at such times as may be determined expedient by the justice of the peace of each court. 3.2 Court shall be held at a courtroom in Rockwall County, Texas in each justice of the peace designated court or in a location deemed necessary by the justice of the peace to carry out the responsibilities of the court. 3.3 A justice court may allow or require all persons to participate in proceedings remotely, as authorized by statute, rule, or order of the Texas Supreme Court. 4.0 DISPOSITION OF CIVIL CASES 4.1 Each justice of the peace should set the docket to ensure civil jury cases are concluded within eighteen (18) months from answer date, and civil non-jury cases are concluded within twelve (12) months from answer date, subject to a continuance or pass. 5.0 DISMISSAL OF CIVIL CASES 5.1 At least once a year, each Court should set appropriate cases on a dismissal docket that have not had any action in the previous 365 days. 6.0 TRANSFER OF CASES AMONG COURTS 6.1 Transfer of Civil Cases 6.1.1 In accordance with Section 15.0821 of the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code, Administrative Rules for Transfer, the justices of the peace of Rockwall County, by majority vote, adopt these rules herein for transfer of a pending civil case from one precinct to another precinct. 6.1.2 Any justice of the peace court judge in Rockwall County, Texas, may act as the judge of any other justice of the peace court in Rockwall County, Texas. 6.1.3 The transfer of cases between the justice of the peace courts of Rockwall County, Texas may be done by written order upon consent of the judges of those courts participating in the transfer and will transfer electronically by the software systems used by Rockwall County, Texas. 6.1.4 Standard procedures for transferring civil cases will be maintained and updated by a justice of the peace designated by majority vote of the justice court judges. 6.2 Transfer of Criminal Cases 6.2.1 Pursuant to Article 4.12(3) of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, the justices of the peace of Rockwall County, Texas, by majority vote, adopt these rules herein for transfer of a pending criminal case from one precinct to another precinct. 6.2.2 Any justice of the peace court judge in Rockwall County, Texas, may act as the judge of any other justice of the peace court in Rockwall County, Texas. 6.2.3 The transfer of cases between the justice of the peace courts of Rockwall County, Texas may be done by written order upon consent of the judges of those courts participating in the transfer and will transfer electronically by the software systems used by Rockwall County, Texas. 6.2.4 Standard procedures for transferring criminal cases will be maintained and updated by a justice of the peace designated by majority vote of the justice of the peace court judges. 7.0 EXCHANGE OF BENCHES 7.1 Pursuant to Texas Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 502.4(f), upon agreement, a justice of the peace may exchange benches to hold court and administer justice. 7.2 The docket of each case heard by the visiting judge will reflect the visiting judge’s name. 7.3 The judge requesting the exchange shall initiate the transfer order and ensure it is signed by both judges prior to the adjudication of any cases. 8.0 FAIR VENUE EXCHANGE 8.1 Pursuant to Texas Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 502.4(e), if a party believes it cannot get a fair trial and provides the required documentation to seek a fair venue change, the judge receiving the order will follow the requirements in this rule to secure the appropriate remedy. 8.2 The Fair Venue Change order and assignment shall be annotated in the docket. 9.0 EFFECTIVE DATE 9.1 These rules of administration are adopted by a majority vote of the Rockwall County justices of the peace and become effective beginning December 30, 2022. These rules may be changed by majority vote at any appropriately called meeting.
Reviewer note: Operative provisions composed from the registered document (3 pp, text layer); the own-site copy (rockwallcountytexas.com DocumentCenter/View/3226) is the same instrument; custody sha256 in the registry ledger (doc 497). [RECOMPOSED 2026-09-21 (corpus-0920 P7, digital-layer lane): the full text of the registered file (sha256 60544133738a..., 3 pages) replaces the earlier 444-character abstract. Method: pypdfium2 text layer reflowed page-aware, cross-checked word-by-word against PyMuPDF (3 substantive difference(s), 0 page-furniture), owner-corpus candidate sentences 100% (6/6) matched, 0 running header/footer line(s) removed, no U+FFFD/U+FFFE/form-feed debris. NOT yet checked page by page against the render, so confidence is medium with an open re-verification task; flip to high when a reviewer has read every page against the PDF. benchpath-tx-corpus0920-p7-2026-09-21] [BY-EYE CHECK 2026-09-21 (corpus-0920 P11): every page of the registered file (sha256 60544133738a..., 3 page(s)) read against the rendered PDF; file-stamp, caption and signature-block defects of the text layer corrected from the render; confidence lifted to high. benchpath-tx-corpus0920-p11-2026-09-21]
Division XI: information forms for data processing (Rule 11.2); required action - action taken on all calendared cases and a future date always set (Rule 11.19); and pro tem judges - an attorney named as a plaintiff in a civil or small claims case may not sit as a judge pro-tem during the case or within six months following its resolution, nor one named as a defendant in two or more such cases (Rule 11.22). Rules 11.1, 11.3 to 11.5, 11.7 to 11.18, 11.20 and 11.21 are repealed, and Rule 11.6 (voluntary arbitration; see Local Rule 10.2) was repealed and renumbered.
Duval County's indigent-defense and magistration rules under the Texas Fair Defense Act (S.B. 7): who may be booked into the county jail and on what paper; arrest-case numbering; presentment to a magistrate within 48 hours (art. 15.16); the magistrate's warnings, counsel inquiry, interpreter duty, indigence determination and appointment of counsel within 24 hours of a request; the alternative appointment plan under art. 26.04(g)-(h) with annual applications, seven attorney categories (capital, first and second degree, third degree/state jail/misdemeanor, competency, appeals, post-conviction, extradition), CLE and experience standards, random rotation within each category, written acceptance within 48 hours, first contact by the end of the next working day, replacement and suspension of counsel, fee applications within five days of completing services and the compensation attachment ($500 pleas; $175/$150 hourly; $1,400 per jury-trial day; appellate caps); bail schedules by offense class with a personal bond office (fee $20 or 3%), pre-trial supervision and revocation hearings within two working days; arraignment settings and notice; repeal of conflicting rules.
The 23 local rules of the Starr County district courts: definitions and the election of the Local Administrative District Judge (last Friday in January of odd years; two-year term from February 1); random, equal assignment of district cases and the County Court at Law's share (family cases, civil cases pleading $100,000 or less, misdemeanors); the case-numbering format effective January 1, 2019 (year, CV/CR/CRS/FM/TAX, five digits; CRS for the 229th, CR for the 381st); notice of visiting-judge assignments; electronically transmitted pleadings (cover sheet, seven-day fee window, returns of service and bonds on paper, one-hour clerk handling of child-protection filings); transfer of related civil cases to the earlier court and SAPCR transfer to the divorce court; pre-trial settings through the Court Coordinator; District Clerk duties and I-Docket access; severance; temporary, emergency and ex parte orders; uncontested matters first; assignment of related prosecutions and superseding-indictment numbering (S1, S2); the protocol for trial priority (jury over non-jury, criminal over civil, jailed defendants first, oldest case first, special settings by written reasons, duties of counsel with conflicting settings); court staff; jury impaneling; the ad litem/guardian ad litem/amicus appointment rotation, duties, vouchers within thirty days and objections within thirty days; and courtroom decorum and attire.
The Jim Wells County Court at Law's rules: ad litem, guardian ad litem and amicus appointment lists, qualifications, duties, flat-fee ($275) and hourly ($75–$125) compensation, voucher deadlines and fee objections; rules of administration with the 79th District Court (family-code cases and civil cases between $500 and $250,000 assigned to the County Court at Law); remote non-jury proceedings by Zoom with e-mailed setting requests, Dropbox exhibits and YouTube broadcast; settings, proposed orders, exhibits and courtroom decorum.