The Texas Supreme Court issued six opinions from May 8-14. As of May 14, the court issued 57 opinions — nine fewer than this point a year ago. Three of six opinions are below:
- In re Kappmeyer (Opinion), where the court “conditionally granted relief in this mandamus proceeding arising out of a dispute between Property Owners and a Homeowners Association (HOA) regarding enforcement of amended restrictive covenants, holding that the trial court abused its discretion in compelling joinder of the other owners.”
- PNC Mortgage v. Howard (Opinion), where the court “affirmed the conclusion of the court of appeals on remand that PNC Mortgage’s foreclosure claim was time-barred, holding that there was no error.”
- Lennar Homes of Tex. Land & Construction, Ltd. v. Whiteley (Opinion), where the court “reversed in part the opinion of the court of appeals in this interlocutory appeal concerning whether a subsequent purchaser (Purchaser) of a home is required to arbitrate her claims against the builder (Builder) for alleged construction defects, holding that the trial court erred in granting Purchaser’s motion to vacate and denying Builder’s motion to confirm.”
From May 8-14, state supreme courts issued 110 opinions nationally. The North Dakota Supreme Court issued the most with 12. State supreme courts in 20 states issued the fewest with zero. Courts where judges are elected have issued 68 opinions, while courts whose members are appointed have issued 42.
The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals and the Texas Supreme Court are the state’s courts of last resort. The former is the state’s court of last resort for criminal matters, while the latter is the state’s court of last resort for civil matters; both have nine judgeships. Sharon Keller and Nathan Hecht are the current chiefs of the criminal and supreme courts, respectively. Combined, the courts issued 413 opinions in 2022 and 536 in 2021. Nationally, state supreme courts issued 7,423 opinions in 2022 and 8,320 in 2021. The courts have issued 2,474 opinions in 2023. Courts where judges are elected have issued 1,390 opinions, while courts whose members are appointed have issued 1,084. Texas is a Republican trifecta, meaning Republicans control the governorship and both chambers of the state legislature.
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