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A Simple Prescription For Texas's Ailing Court System: Stronger Stare Decisis., Andrew T. Solomon
A Simple Prescription For Texas's Ailing Court System: Stronger Stare Decisis., Andrew T. Solomon
St. Mary's Law Journal
Several Texas Supreme Court Justices have recently criticized Texas’s appellate justice system for its failure to provide consistency and the unfairness it produces, namely how litigants are treated differently despite the identical factual circumstances. Despite the warnings of various Texas Justices, neither the Texas Supreme Court nor the Texas Legislature have done much to rectify the lack of uniform justice received by Texas litigants. Most of the proposals to reform the Texas appellate justice systems’ unfairness have focused exclusively on structural changes. While structural changes could help reduce inconsistent “justice”, these reforms fail to address the main substantive problem—Texas’s weak …
Demystifying The Extraordinary Writ: Substantive And Procedural Requirements For The Issuance Of Mandamus., Charles W. Rocky Rhodes
Demystifying The Extraordinary Writ: Substantive And Procedural Requirements For The Issuance Of Mandamus., Charles W. Rocky Rhodes
St. Mary's Law Journal
In Walker v. Packer, the Texas Supreme Court attempted to harmonize Texas jurisprudence regarding the standards for issuing a writ of mandamus. The Walker court initially reiterated the maxim that mandamus will issue “only to correct a clear abuse of discretion or the violation of a duty imposed by law when there is no other adequate remedy by law.” The Court defined “clear abuse of discretion” as “a decision so arbitrary and unreasonable as to amount to a clear and prejudicial error of law.” The Court subsequently reaffirmed the “fundamental tenant” of mandamus practice stating the extraordinary writ is not …