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House Bill 2384 Makes Clear: Good Judges Matter

By June 12, 2023No Comments

Texans Against Lawsuit Abuse Thank Governor Abbott for Signing HB 2384

AUSTIN, TEXAS—The following statement regarding the signing of House Bill 2384 by Governor Greg Abbott should be attributed to Robert Wood, spokesperson for Texans Against Lawsuit Abuse. The legislation will increase judicial training and transparency. The statement is as follows:

“Texans Against Lawsuit Abuse know that good judges matter and that a fair civil justice system should require judges to meet the highest standards of excellence. We applaud Governor Abbott for signing House Bill 2384 into law. This bill addresses the essential aspects of knowledge, efficiency, training, and transparency within the judiciary, ensuring a fair and effective judicial system for all Texans.

“We should all want our judges to demonstrate the highest level of skill and competence, and this legislation will help bring uniformity, transparency, and accountability to our courts and to the voters that elect our judges.”

House Bill 2384 will:

  • Increase judicial training and transparency by requiring a judicial candidate’s ballot application to include the candidate’s bar number and disclosure of any public sanction, censure or disciplinary sanctions in Texas or another state.
  • Ensure a judicial candidate clearly states, for a previous five-year period, the nature of the candidate’s practice, any legal specialization, the candidate’s professional courtroom experience, and any final conviction for a Class A or Class B misdemeanor in the past 10 years. Candidates for appellate court seats would go a step further, describing appellate court briefs and oral arguments for the past five years.
  • Direct the Texas Supreme Court to adopt rules on judicial training required of judges and set a one-year timeframe for completion. New judges would be required to complete a minimum of 30 hours of instruction on the administrative duties of the office and substantive, procedural, and evidentiary law, with an additional 16 hours of continuing education annually.
  • Establish a process and action to hold these candidates and judges accountable should they fail to complete the required disclosures and trainings.