78R6463 QS-F


By:  Gallego                                                      H.B. No. 462



A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the collection of a fee from certain nonresident 
attorneys requesting permission to participate in proceedings in a 
Texas court.
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:                        
	SECTION 1.  Subchapter B, Chapter 82, Government Code, is 
amended by adding Section 82.0361 to read as follows:
	Sec. 82.0361.  NONRESIDENT ATTORNEY FEE.  (a)  In this 
section, "nonresident attorney" means a person who resides in and 
is licensed to practice law in another state but who is not a member 
of the State Bar of Texas.
	(b)  Except as provided by Subsection (e), a nonresident 
attorney requesting permission to participate in proceedings in a 
court in this state shall pay a fee of $250 for each case in which 
the attorney is requesting to participate.  The attorney shall pay 
the fee to the Board of Law Examiners before filing with the 
applicable court a motion requesting permission to participate in 
proceedings in that court as provided by rules adopted by the 
supreme court.
	(c)  Fees under this section shall be collected in the same 
manner as other fees collected by the Board of Law Examiners.  The 
board shall remit the fees collected under this section to the 
comptroller not later than the 10th day after the end of each 
calendar quarter.
	(d)  The comptroller shall deposit the fees received under 
this section to the credit of the basic civil legal services account 
of the judicial fund for use in programs approved by the supreme 
court that provide basic civil legal services to the indigent.
	(e)  The supreme court may adopt rules to waive or reduce the 
fee required by this section for a nonresident attorney who seeks to 
represent an indigent person in proceedings in a court in this 
state.
	(f)  A nonresident attorney who files a motion requesting 
permission to participate in proceedings in a court in this state 
shall provide to that court proof of payment of the fee required by 
this section.  The supreme court by rule shall prescribe the method 
of proof.
	SECTION 2.  The change in law made by this Act applies only 
to a nonresident attorney who files a motion to participate in a 
proceeding in a Texas court on or after the effective date of this 
Act.  A nonresident attorney who filed a motion to participate in a 
proceeding before the effective date of this Act is governed by the 
law in effect on the date the motion was filed, and the former law is 
continued in effect for that purpose.
	SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2003.