Notice of Appearance

• Electronic Filing (E-File) is not available. Attorneys who wish to appear as attorney of record for a defendant must file a letter of representation or notice of appearance with the Court by mail, email, or in-person.
• Notices of appearance and all subsequent correspondence must contain the following:

1. Defendant’s name; and
2. Each case or citation number(s) and offense(s) charged for which the attorney is appearing; and
3. An initial plea as to each offense.

• Attorney representation will not be presumed where reference is made as to “all pending cases/charges”. Court staff is not responsible for discovering and/or disclosing all outstanding charges for which an attorney may or may not have been hired by a defendant.
• A plea of not guilty will be presumed in the absence of a plea, and a trial by jury will be scheduled unless a waiver has been filed with the Court.

Pre-trial Hearings

• A pre-trial hearings are scheduled two months before trial. Additional settings may be requested. Once scheduled, all pre-trial matters, including the filing of motions shall be governed by Art. 28.01 of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure. Once a pre-trial hearing has been scheduled, parties and counsel must personally appear unless the matter has been resolved or the hearing has been cancelled by the Court. Remote and/or telephonic hearings are available by request.

Plea Negotiations

• Attorney Plea Dockets are not regularly scheduled and conducted by the Court. Plea negotiations, including requests for a deferred disposition, are between defense counsel and the prosecuting attorney.

Motions for Continuance

• Motions for continuance shall be governed by Chapter 29 of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure. All motions shall be in writing and filed immediately upon discovering the necessity for a continuance or reset. If the basis for a continuance relates to the availability of a witness, the motion shall also include future dates during which the witness(es) will be available for trial so the case(s) may be rescheduled accordingly.

Motions to Withdraw

• An attorney who makes an appearance on behalf of a defendant or represents to the Court that they are the attorney of record shall remain the attorney of record until the case(s) reach final disposition or until a motion to withdraw has been filed and granted. The motion will be granted without a hearing if:

1. The moving attorney certifies to the last known mailing address of the defendant and said motion is filed with the consent of the defendant as evidenced by their signature; or
2. The moving attorney provides the circumstances under which the defendant’s written consent cannot be obtained, together with a confirmation that the defendant is aware of the attorney’s intent to withdraw, and that a copy of the motion which includes notice of current settings, if any, has been sent to the def