Abstract

In October 2021, the Texas Office of Court Administration (OCA) and the National Center for State Courts (NCSC) returned to the question of whether the Expedited Action Rules (EARs) adopted in 2012 in Texas were continuing to have a positive impact on civil case processing. With new funding from the State Justice Institute (SJI), the NCSC, OCA, and the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System at the University of Denver, set out to replicate a 2016 study. Using the same research methods, the project team gathered data from the district and county courts in Dallas, Fort Bend, Harris, Lubbock and Travis Counties and surveyed and interviewed judges and trial attorneys about their experience with the EARs. The primary objective was, again, to determine whether the EARs were being implemented and followed, and whether they have a positive impact on case outcomes. The working hypotheses are that cases subject to the EARs will resolve more quickly compared to cases that are exempt from the rules, that discovery conflicts will be fewer in EARS cases with less time spent on discovery, and that more cases will resolve by settlement. In short, the EARs and strong case flow management principles provide key tools for judges to prioritize and manage the efficient and fair administration of their civil dockets. This report describes the data and methods, findings, and conclusions from the new study, including recommendations to support the Texas Judiciary in returning to best practices and moving the courts forward across the state.

This abstract has been taken from the authors' introduction.

Document Type

Report

Publication Date

3-2023

Publication Information

National Center for State Courts (March 2023)

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