By: Zaffirini  S.B. No. 41
         (In the Senate - Filed November 12, 2018; February 1, 2019,
  read first time and referred to Committee on State Affairs;
  March 13, 2019, reported adversely, with favorable Committee
  Substitute by the following vote:  Yeas 9, Nays 0; March 13, 2019,
  sent to printer.)
Click here to see the committee vote
 
  COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 41 By:  Zaffirini
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
 
  relating to exemptions to reporting and list requirements for
  certain attorneys ad litem, guardians ad litem, amicus attorneys,
  mediators, and guardians.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Section 36.003, Government Code, is amended to
  read as follows:
         Sec. 36.003.  EXEMPTION. The reporting requirements of
  Section 36.004 do not apply to:
               (1)  a mediation conducted by an alternative dispute
  resolution system established under Chapter 152, Civil Practice and
  Remedies Code;
               (2)  information made confidential under state or
  federal law, including applicable rules;
               (3)  a guardian ad litem or other person appointed
  under a program authorized by Section 107.031, Family Code; [or]
               (4)  an attorney ad litem, guardian ad litem, amicus
  attorney, or mediator appointed under a domestic relations office
  established under Chapter 203, Family Code;
               (5)  an attorney ad litem, guardian ad litem, amicus
  attorney, or mediator providing services without expectation or
  receipt of compensation; or
               (6)  an attorney ad litem, guardian ad litem, amicus
  attorney, or mediator providing services as a volunteer of a
  nonprofit organization that provides pro bono legal services to the
  indigent.
         SECTION 2.  Section 37.002, Government Code, is amended to
  read as follows:
         Sec. 37.002.  EXEMPTION. The appointment requirements of
  Section 37.004 do not apply to:
               (1)  a mediation conducted by an alternative dispute
  resolution system established under Chapter 152, Civil Practice and
  Remedies Code;
               (2)  a guardian ad litem or other person appointed
  under a program authorized by Section 107.031, Family Code;
               (3)  an attorney ad litem, guardian ad litem, amicus
  attorney, or mediator appointed under a domestic relations office
  established under Chapter 203, Family Code; [or]
               (4)  a person other than an attorney or a private
  professional guardian appointed to serve as a guardian as defined
  by Section 1002.012, Estates Code;
               (5)  an attorney ad litem, guardian ad litem, amicus
  attorney, or mediator providing services without expectation or
  receipt of compensation; or
               (6)  an attorney ad litem, guardian ad litem, amicus
  attorney, or mediator providing services as a volunteer of a
  nonprofit organization that provides pro bono legal services to the
  indigent.
         SECTION 3.  Section 37.004, Government Code, is amended by
  amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsections (d-1) and (g) to
  read as follows:
         (a)  Except as provided by Subsections (c), [and] (d), and
  (d-1), in each case in which the appointment of an attorney ad
  litem, guardian ad litem, or guardian is necessary, a court using a
  rotation system shall appoint the person whose name appears first
  on the applicable list maintained by the court as required by
  Section 37.003.
         (d-1)  The court may appoint a person included on the
  applicable list whose name does not appear first on the list or a
  person who meets statutory or other requirements to serve and who is
  not included on the list if, within 30 days preceding the date of
  appointment, an initial declaration of a state of disaster is made
  for the area served by the court.
         (g)  In this section, "declaration of a state of disaster"
  means a declaration made by:
               (1)  the president of the United States under the
  Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42
  U.S.C. Section 5121 et seq.);
               (2)  the governor under Section 418.014; or
               (3)  the presiding officer of the governing body of a
  political subdivision under Section 418.108.
         SECTION 4.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2019.
 
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