This website will be unavailable from Friday, April 26, 2024 at 6:00 p.m. through Monday, April 29, 2024 at 7:00 a.m. due to data center maintenance.

                                                                                


By:  Duncan                                                       S.B. No. 1578
	(In the Senate - Filed March 11, 2005; March 22, 2005, read 
first time and referred to Committee on Jurisprudence; 
April 22, 2005, reported favorably by the following vote:  Yeas 5, 
Nays 1; April 22, 2005, sent to printer.)


A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT


relating to jurisdiction and venue in condemnation proceedings.             
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:                        
	SECTION 1.  Section 21.001, Property Code, is amended to 
read as follows:    
	Sec. 21.001.  CONCURRENT JURISDICTION.  District courts and 
county courts at law have concurrent jurisdiction in eminent domain 
cases in every county in the state, notwithstanding any other law.  
A county court has no jurisdiction in eminent domain cases.
	SECTION 2.  Section 21.013, Property Code, is amended to 
read as follows:    
	Sec. 21.013.  VENUE; FEES AND PROCESSING FOR ACTION [SUIT] 
FILED IN DISTRICT COURT.  (a)  The venue of a condemnation 
proceeding is the county in which the owner of the property being 
condemned resides if the owner resides in a county in which part of 
the property is located.  Otherwise, the venue of a condemnation 
proceeding is any county in which at least part of the property is 
located.
	(b)  Except where otherwise provided by law, a party 
initiating a condemnation proceeding [in a county in which there is 
one or more county courts at law with jurisdiction] shall file the 
petition with any clerk authorized to handle such filings for a
[that] court that has jurisdiction in eminent domain cases [or 
courts].
	(c)  [A party initiating a condemnation proceeding in a 
county in which there is not a county court at law must file the 
condemnation petition with the district clerk.]  The filing fee 
shall be due at the time of filing in accordance with Section 
51.317, Government Code.
	(d)  District and county clerks shall assign an equal number 
of eminent domain cases in rotation to each court with jurisdiction 
that the clerk serves.
	SECTION 3.  The change in law made by this Act applies only 
to a condemnation proceeding initiated on or after the effective 
date of this Act.  A condemnation proceeding initiated before the 
effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect 
immediately before that date, and that law is continued in effect 
for that purpose.
	SECTION 4.  This Act takes effect immediately if it receives 
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as 
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.  If this 
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this 
Act takes effect September 1, 2005.



* * * * *