The Omicron variant of Covid-19 continues to upend in-person civil jury trials across state courts in Texas.
In Dallas County, in-person civil jury trials were planned to resume Friday after being paused earlier this month, but Maricela Moore, the local administrative judge, made the decision Thursday to postpone jury trials tentatively to Feb. 10 after meeting with other civil judges, she told The Texas Lawbook on Friday. She said the judges will reevaluate in February. Because Dallas County has moved to a new system, Judge Moore said the civil courts have continued summoning jurors but are able to send jurors up-to-date information via text or email about whether to show up for their service.
“We all share the frustrations within the legal community regarding the unpredictability … we’re certainly all eager to be back to normal and resuming 100% of jury trials, but at the end of the day we have to make the right decision,” Judge Moore said of the extended postponement. “We have to [respect] the health and safety of those who come to the courthouse.”
In San Antonio, in-person civil jury trials have been postponed until March 1, according to a Jan. 20 order issued by Rosie Alvarado, the local administrative judge for Bexar County.
March 1 is also Travis County’s target restart date for in-person jury trials if Omicron “cases continue to trend down,” local administrative judge Amy Clark Meacham said. Travis County implemented a pilot program last July for in-person jury trials, but the judges suspended the program in December. However, the county has conducted at least 20 virtual jury trials since the pandemic began.
“While we are anxious to resume and expand the pilot program for in-person jury trials, we will continue to prioritize public health and do what we can to protect the safety of our staff as well as the safety of all lawyers and litigants and jurors and stakeholders,” Judge Meacham said in an email. “We will follow the science and continue to rely on the advice and expertise of our extraordinary public officials.”
As of Jan. 10, all seven counties that make up the Houston area’s Eleventh Administrative Judicial Region of Texas except Galveston County were conducting in-person jury trials, Susan Brown, the Eleventh Region’s presiding judge, told The Lawbook at the time. The Lawbook has reached out to inquire whether that is still the case.
Nothing has changed for the Texas Supreme Court and Houston’s First and Fourteenth appellate courts. Chief Justice Nathan Hecht told The Lawbook Friday that in-person oral arguments are still happening at SCOTX but remain closed to the public. In-person oral arguments in Houston’s First and Fourteenth courts are still happening, but capacity remains limited and the arguments are broadcast live on Youtube so a larger audience can watch from afar, Christopher A. Pine, the clerk for both Houston appellate courts, confirmed on Friday.
The Lawbook previously reported that Dallas’ Fifth Court of Appeals has been conducting oral arguments via Zoom since 2020, and has reached out to the Fifth Court’s clerk to ensure that’s still the case.