General Provisions

1.1 Applicability of These Rules. These rules govern proceedings for obtaining a court order authorizing a minor to consent to an abortion without notice to, or the consent of, a parent, managing conservator, or guardian under Chapter 33, Family Code. All references in these rules to “minor” refer to the minor applicant. Other Texas court rules—including the Rules of Civil Procedure, Rules of Evidence, Rules of Appellate Procedure, Rules of Judicial Administration, and local rules approved by the Supreme Court—also apply, but when the application of another rule would be inconsistent with the general framework or policy of Chapter 33, Family Code, or these rules, these rules control.

Proceedings under these rules are not intended to create—and an order issued under these rules should not be construed as—a judicial determination that the minor has a life-threatening physical condition aggravated by, caused by, or arising from a pregnancy that places the minor at risk of death or poses a serious risk of substantial impairment of a major bodily function unless the abortion is performed or induced. See TEX. HEALTH & SAFETY CODE § 170A.002.

1.2 Expedition Required.

(a) Proceedings. A court must give proceedings under these rules precedence over all other pending matters to the extent necessary to ensure that applications and appeals are adjudicated as soon as possible and within the time required by Chapter 33, Family Code, and these rules.

(b) Prompt actual notice required. Without compromising the confidentiality required by statute and these rules, courts and clerks must serve orders, decisions, findings, and notices required under these rules in a manner designed to give prompt actual notice in order that the deadlines imposed by Chapter 33, Family Code, can be met.

1.3 Identity of Minor Protected.

(a) Generally. Proceedings under these rules must be conducted in a way that protects the confidentiality of the identity of the minor.

(b) No reference to minor’s identity in proceeding. With the exception of the verification page required under Rule 2.1(c)(2) and the communications required under Rule 2.2(e), no reference may be made in any order, decision, finding, or notice, or on the record, to the name of the minor, her address, or other information by which she might be identified by persons not participating in the proceedings. Instead, the minor must be referred to as “Jane Doe” in a numbered cause.

(c) Notice. With the exception of orders and rulings released under Rule 1.4(b), all notices and communications from the court to the minor must be directed to the minor’s attorney with a copy to the guardian ad litem. The minor’s attorney must immediately serve on the guardian ad litem a copy of any document filed with the court. These requirements take effect when an attorney appears for the minor or when the clerk has notified the minor of the appointment of an attorney or a guardian ad litem.

1.4 Confidentiality of Proceedings Required; Exceptions.

(a) Generally. All officials and court personnel involved in the proceedings must ensure that the minor’s contact with the clerk and the court is confidential and expeditious. Except as permitted by law, officials and court personnel must never disclose to anyone outside the proceeding—including the minor’s parent, managing conservator, or legal guardian—that the minor is or has ever been pregnant, or that she wants or has ever wanted an abortion.

(b) Documents and information pertaining to the proceeding.

(1) General rule; disclosure prohibited. As required by Chapter 33, Family Code, the application and all other court documents and information pertaining to the proceedings are confidential and privileged and are not subject to disclosure under Chapter 552, Government Code, or to discovery, subpoena, or other legal process.

(2) Exception; disclosure to minor permitted. The application and any other document in the court file may be disclosed to the minor.

(3) Exception; disclosure of order to certain persons. An order, ruling, opinion, or clerk’s certificate may be released to:

• the minor;

• the minor’s guardian ad litem;

• the minor’s attorney;

• the physician who is to perform the abortion;

• a person designated in writing by the minor to receive the order, ruling, opinion, or certificate;

• a governmental agency or governmental attorney, in connection with a criminal or administrative action seeking to assert or protect the minor’s interests; or

• another court, judge, or clerk in the same or related proceedings.

(c) Filing of court reporter’s notes required. To ensure confidentiality, the court reporter’s notes, in whatever form, must be filed with other court documents in the proceeding.

(d) Duty to report possible abuse.

(1) Duty of the court. A judge or justice who, as a result of a court proceeding governed by these rules, has reason to believe that a minor has been or may be physically or sexually abused must report the suspected abuse in accordance with Sections 33.0085 and 33.009, Family Code, and other law.

(2) Duty of an attorney or guardian ad litem. An attorney or a guardian ad litem who, as a result of a court proceeding governed by these rules, has reason to believe that a minor has been or may be physically or sexually abused must report the suspected abuse in accordance with Section 33.009, Family Code, and other law.

(e) Department of Family and Protective Services or local law enforcement agency to disclose certain information in proceeding. The Department of Family and Protective Services or a local law enforcement agency may disclose to the court, the minor’s attorney, and the guardian ad litem any information obtained under Sections 33.008, 33.0085, and 33.009, Family Code, without being ordered to do so. The court may order the Department or a local law enforcement agency to disclose the information to the court, the minor’s attorney, and the guardian ad litem, and the Department or agency must comply.

1.5 Methods of Transmitting Documents; Hearings Conducted By Remote Electronic Means; Electronic Record Allowed When Necessary.

(a) Electronic filing through statewide portal prohibited. Documents must not be filed through the electronic filing manager established by the Office of Court Administration.

(b) Paper, fax, or email filing permitted. Documents may be filed in paper form, by fax, or by email. The clerk of a court must designate an email address or a fax number for the filing of documents in proceedings governed by these rules and must take all reasonable steps to maintain the confidentiality of the filings. An attorney must notify the clerk by telephone before filing a document by email or fax.

(c) Fax and email transmission by court and clerk. The court and clerk may transmit orders, rulings, notices, and other documents by fax or email. But before the transmission is initiated, the sender must take all reasonable steps to maintain the confidentiality of the transmission. The time and date of a transmission by the court is the time and date when it was initiated.

(d) Participation in hearings by electronic means. Consistent with the confidentiality requirements of these rules, with the court’s permission, a witness may participate in a hearing under these rules by video conferencing, telephone, or other remote electronic means. But the minor must appear before the court in person.

(e) Record of hearing made by electronic means if necessary. If the court determines that a court reporter is unavailable for a hearing, the court may have a record of the hearing made by audio recording or other electronic means. If a notice of appeal is filed, the court must have the recording transcribed if possible. The person transcribing the recording must certify to the accuracy of the transcription. The court must transmit both the recording and the transcription to the court of appeals.

1.6 Disqualification, Recusal, or Objection to a Judge.

(a) Time for filing and ruling. A motion to recuse or disqualify a trial judge or an objection to a trial judge under Section 74.053, Government Code, must be filed before 10 a.m. of the first business day after an application is filed or promptly after the assignment of a judge to hear the case is made known to the minor’s attorney, whichever is later. A motion to recuse or disqualify an appellate judge or an objection to an appellate judge under Section 75.551, Government Code, must be filed before 10 a.m. of the first business day after a notice of appeal is filed or promptly after the assignment of a judge is made known to the minor’s attorney, whichever is later. A judge who chooses to withdraw voluntarily must do so immediately. A motion to disqualify or recuse or an objection to an assigned judge does not extend the deadline for ruling on the minor’s application.

(b) Voluntary disqualification or recusal; objection. A judge who removes himself or herself voluntarily—whether in response to a motion or on the judge’s own initiative—or to whom objection is made under Sections 74.053 or 75.551, Government Code, must immediately notify the appropriate authority under rule or statute for assigning another judge. That authority must immediately assign a judge or justice to the proceeding.

(c) Involuntary disqualification or recusal. A judge who refuses to remove himself or herself voluntarily from a proceeding in response to a motion must immediately refer the motion to the appropriate judge under rule or statute for determination. The judge to whom the motion is referred must rule on it as soon as possible and may do so with or without a hearing. If the motion is granted, the judge to whom the motion was referred must immediately assign another judge to the proceeding.

(d) Restrictions on the number of motions and objections. A minor who objects under Section 74.053 or Section 75.551, Government Code, to a judge assigned to the proceeding may not thereafter file a motion to recuse the judge assigned to replace the judge to whom the objection was made. A minor who files a motion to recuse or disqualify a judge may not thereafter object under Section 74.053 or Section 75.551, Government Code, to another judge assigned to the proceeding.

(e) Issues on appeal. Any error in the denial of a motion to recuse or disqualify, any error in the disallowance of an objection, or any challenge to a judge that a minor is precluded from making by subsections (a) or (d), may be raised only on appeal from the court’s denial of the application.

1.7 Rules and Forms to be Made Available.

(a) Online. A complete set of these rules and forms must be posted on the Texas Judiciary website at www.txcourts.gov. Forms 1A, 2A, and 2B must be translated into Spanish.

(b) In clerks’ offices. The clerk of a court in which an application or appeal may be filed must make the rules and forms—including the Spanish version of Form 1A, 2A, and 2B—and any applicable local rules available to a minor without charge.

1.8 Duties of Attorneys Ad Litem. An attorney ad litem must represent the minor in the trial court in the proceeding in which the attorney is assigned and in any appeal under these rules to the court of appeals or the Supreme Court. But an attorney ad litem is not required to represent the minor in any other court or any other proceeding.

1.9 Fees and Costs.

(a) No fees or costs charged to minor. No filing fee or court cost may be assessed against a minor for any proceeding in a trial or appellate court.

(b) State ordered to pay fees and costs.

(1) Fees and costs that may be paid. The State may be ordered to pay the reasonable and necessary fees and expenses of the attorney ad litem, the reasonable and necessary fees and expenses of the guardian ad litem, the court reporter’s fee as certified by the court reporter, and trial court filing fees and costs as certified by the clerk. Court costs include the expenses of an interpreter (Form 2H) and an evaluation by a licensed mental health counselor but do not include the fees or expenses of a witness. Court costs do not include fees that must be remitted to the state treasury.

(2) To whom order directed and sent. The order must be directed to the Comptroller of Public Accounts and sent to the Director, Fiscal Division, of the Texas Department of Health.

(3) Form and contents of the order. The order must state the amounts to be awarded the attorney ad litem and the guardian ad litem. The order must be separate from any other order in the proceeding and must not address any subject other than the assessment of fees, expenses, and costs. A trial court may use Forms 2F and 2G, but it is not required to do so.

(4) Time for signing and sending order. The order must be signed by the judge and sent by the clerk to the Department of Health not later than the ninetieth day after the date of the final ruling in a proceeding.

(c) Motion to reconsider; time for filing. Within thirty days of actual receipt of the order, the Comptroller or any other person adversely affected by the order may file a motion in the trial court to reconsider the assessment of fees, expenses, or costs. The trial court retains jurisdiction of the case to hear and determine any timely filed motion to reconsider.

(d) Appeal. The Comptroller or any other person adversely affected by the order may appeal from the trial court’s ruling on the motion to reconsider as from any other final judgment of the court.

(e) Report to the Office of Court Administration. The Department of Health must transmit to the Office of Court Administration a copy of every order assessing fees, expenses, or costs in a proceeding under Chapter 33, Family Code. Orders assessing fees, expenses, or costs are not subject to any order of the Supreme Court of Texas requiring mandatory reports of judicial appointments and fees or to the reporting requirements of Chapter 36, Government Code.

(f) Confidentiality. When transmitting an order awarding costs to the Department of Health, the clerk must take reasonable steps to preserve its confidentiality. The confidentiality of an order awarding costs—as prescribed by Chapter 33, Family Code—is not affected by its transmission to the Comptroller, Texas Department of Health, or the Office of Court Administration, nor is the order subject to public disclosure in response to a request under any statute, rule, or other law. But these rules do not preclude the Comptroller, the Texas Department of Health, or the Office of Court Administration from disclosing summary information from orders assessing costs for statistical or other such purposes.

1.10 Amicus Briefs. Amicus briefs may be submitted and received by a court—but not filed—under either of the following procedures.

(a) Confidential, case-specific briefs. A non-party who is authorized to attend or participate in a particular proceeding under Chapter 33, Family Code, may submit an amicus brief addressing matters, including confidential matters, specific to the proceeding. The brief and the manner in which it is submitted must comply with Rules 1.3 and 1.4 and be directed to the court in which the proceeding is pending. If the brief is filed in paper form, the person must submit the original brief and the same number of copies required for other paper submissions to the court. The person must serve a copy of the brief on the minor’s attorney and guardian ad litem. The court to which the brief is submitted must maintain the brief as part of the confidential case file in accordance with Rule 1.4.

(b) Public or general briefs. Any person may submit a brief addressing any matter relating to proceedings under Chapter 33, Family Code. The brief must not contain any information in violation of Rules 1.3 and 1.4. If the brief is filed in paper form, the person must submit the original brief and the same number of copies required for other paper submissions to the court. If the brief is submitted to a court of appeals, one copy of the brief must also be submitted to the Supreme Court of Texas. Upon receipt of an amicus brief submitted under this subsection, the Clerk of the Supreme Court must, as soon as practicable, have the brief posted on the Texas Judiciary website.