GOVERNMENT CODE

TITLE 2. JUDICIAL BRANCH

SUBTITLE A. COURTS

CHAPTER 22. APPELLATE COURTS

SUBCHAPTER A. SUPREME COURT

Sec. 22.001.  JURISDICTION.  (a)  The supreme court has appellate jurisdiction, except in
criminal law matters, coextensive with the limits of the state and extending to all questions of
law arising in the following cases when they have been brought to the courts of appeals from
appealable judgment of the trial courts:
(1)  a case in which the justices of a court of appeals disagree on a question of law material to
the decision;
(2)  a case in which one of the courts of appeals holds differently from a prior decision of
another court of appeals or of the supreme court on a question of law material to a decision of
the case;
(3)  a case involving the construction or validity of a statute necessary to a determination of
the case;
(4)  a case involving state revenue;
(5)  a case in which the railroad commission is a party; and
(6)  any other case in which it appears that an error of law has been committed by the court of
appeals, and that error is of such importance to the jurisprudence of the state that, in the
opinion of the supreme court, it requires correction, but excluding those cases in which the
jurisdiction of the court of appeals is made final by statute.
(b)  A case over which the court has jurisdiction under Subsection (a) may be carried to the
supreme court either by writ of error or by certificate from the court of appeals, but the court of
appeals may certify a question of law arising in any of those cases at any time it chooses,
either before or after the decision of the case in that court.
(c)  An appeal may be taken directly to the supreme court from an order of a trial court
granting or denying an interlocutory or permanent injunction on the ground of the
constitutionality of a statute of this state. It is the duty of the supreme court to prescribe the
necessary rules of procedure to be followed in perfecting the appeal.
(d)  The supreme court has the power, on affidavit or otherwise, as the court may determine, to
ascertain the matters of fact that are necessary to the proper exercise of its jurisdiction.
(e)  For purposes of Subsection (a)(2), one court holds differently from another when there is
inconsistency in their respective decisions that should be clarified to remove unnecessary
uncertainty in the law and unfairness to litigants.

Acts 1985, 69th Leg., ch. 480, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1985. Amended by Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch.
1106, Sec. 1, eff. June 20, 1987; Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 204, Sec. 1.04, eff. Sept. 1, 2003.


Sec. 22.002.  WRIT POWER.  (a)  The supreme court or a justice of the supreme court may issue
writs of procedendo and certiorari and all writs of quo warranto and mandamus agreeable to
the principles of law regulating those writs, against a statutory county court judge, a
statutory probate court judge, a district judge, a court of appeals or a justice of a court of
appeals, or any officer of state government except the governor, the court of criminal appeals,
or a judge of the court of criminal appeals.
(b)  The supreme court or, in vacation, a justice of the supreme court may issue a writ of
mandamus to compel a statutory county court judge, a statutory probate court judge, or a
district judge to proceed to trial and judgment in a case agreeable to the principles and usages
of law, returnable to the supreme court on or before the first day of the term, or during the
session of the term, or before any justice of the supreme court as the nature of the case requires.
(c)  Only the supreme court has the authority to issue a writ of mandamus or injunction, or
any other mandatory or compulsory writ or process, against any of the officers of the executive
departments of the government of this state to order or compel the performance of a judicial,
ministerial, or discretionary act or duty that, by state law, the officer or officers are
authorized to perform.
(d)  Repealed by Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 148, Sec. 2.03, eff. Sept. 1, 1987.
(e)  The supreme court or a justice of the supreme court, either in termtime or vacation, may
issue a writ of habeas corpus when a person is restrained in his liberty by virtue of an order,
process, or commitment issued by a court or judge on account of the violation of an order,
judgment, or decree previously made, rendered, or entered by the court or judge in a civil case.
Pending the hearing of an application for a writ of habeas corpus, the supreme court or a
justice of the supreme court may admit to bail a person to whom the writ of habeas corpus may
be so granted.

Acts 1985, 69th Leg., ch. 480, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1985. Amended by Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 148,
Sec. 2.03, eff. Sept. 1, 1987; Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 355, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1995.


Sec. 22.003.  PROCEDURE OF THE COURT.  (a)  The supreme court from time to time shall
promulgate suitable rules, forms, and regulations for carrying into effect the provisions of
this chapter relating to the jurisdiction and practice of the supreme court.
(b)  The supreme court may make and enforce all necessary rules of practice and procedure,
not inconsistent with the law, for the government of the supreme court and all other courts of
the state to expedite the dispatch of business in those courts.

Acts 1985, 69th Leg., ch. 480, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1985.


Sec. 22.004.  RULES OF CIVIL PROCEDURE.  (a)  The supreme court has the full rulemaking
power in the practice and procedure in civil actions, except that its rules may not abridge,
enlarge, or modify the substantive rights of a litigant.
(b)  The supreme court from time to time may promulgate a specific rule or rules of civil
procedure, or an amendment or amendments to a specific rule or rules, to be effective at the
time the supreme court deems expedient in the interest of a proper administration of justice.
The rules and amendments to rules remain in effect unless and until disapproved by the
legislature. The clerk of the supreme court shall file with the secretary of state the rules or
amendments to rules promulgated by the supreme court under this subsection and shall mail
a copy of those rules or amendments to rules to each registered member of the State Bar of
Texas not later than the 60th day before the date on which they become effective. The secretary
of state shall report the rules or amendments to rules to the next regular session of the
legislature by mailing a copy of the rules or amendments to rules to each elected member of
the legislature on or before December 1 immediately preceding the session.
(c)  So that the supreme court has full rulemaking power in civil actions, a rule adopted by the
supreme court repeals all conflicting laws and parts of laws governing practice and procedure
in civil actions, but substantive law is not repealed. At the time the supreme court files a rule,
the court shall file with the secretary of state a list of each article or section of general law or
each part of an article or section of general law that is repealed or modified in any way. The
list has the same weight and effect as a decision of the court.
(d)  The rules of practice and procedure in civil actions shall be published in the official
reports of the supreme court. The supreme court may adopt the method it deems expedient for
the printing and distribution of the rules.
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