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Senate Bill 1458 |
Senate Author: Zaffirini |
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Effective: Vetoed |
House Sponsor: Neave |
Senate Bill 1458 amends the Code of Criminal Procedure, Family Code, and Government Code to require the Office of Court Administration of the Texas Judicial System (OCA) to develop and make available on the OCA website standardized forms and other materials necessary to apply for, issue, deny, revise, rescind, serve, and enforce the following orders:
· a protective order or temporary ex parte order for family violence or for victims of sexual assault or abuse, stalking, or trafficking; or
· a magistrate's order for emergency protection.
The bill requires use of the forms by courts and magistrates issuing such orders and by individuals applying for protective orders.
Governor's Reason for Veto: "Senate Bill 1458's goal of having model forms for protective orders, orders for emergency protection, and temporary ex parte orders is a sound one, but this is already allowed. The Office of Court Administration can, and is encouraged to, create model forms to help achieve the commendable goals behind Senate Bill 1458. But the bill would go further and impose categorical mandates that courts use standardized forms, without addressing what happens if a court deviates from the prescribed form and without allowing flexibility for unique cases. I vetoed similar legislation last session because, without appropriate safeguards, mandating the use of standardized forms in criminal cases sets a trap for courts whose orders may be challenged as void for deviating from the form and creates loopholes for opportunistic litigants to pursue needless challenges. I appreciate the good intentions of the bill author and sponsor in aiming to protect the victims of horrible crimes like family violence and sexual assault, but the mandatory use of standardized forms can inadvertently cause more problems that may detract from the effort to help victims."