The Judicial Institution of Texas
The ratification of the Texas constitution of 1876 helped to transition and establish what was the republic of Texas into the state of Texas. This paper will focus on the judicial institution in the state of Texas. Specifically, the election of judges, the setup of the court system, the different types of courts, and how these three specifics about the judicial institution are democratic in nature.
The Texas constitution provided the people with equal rights under the Constitution of the United States, by doing so, this allowed for the people to have access to liberties they were not inclined to prior. The institution I chose to address in this paper is that of the judicial, because under the judicial article of the Texas constitution it gives great examples of being democratic in nature. The first specific about the judicial institution is that, unlike the federal government, the judicial article implements partisan election. In federal courts, judges are appointed, and the people do not get to vote. Whereas in Texas, it's the people's choice. Judges are than elected based on the popular vote. Judges in Texas are also given limitations to the time they are allowed to serve by having terms in place. For supreme and criminal appeal courts the term limit is six years, district courts are four years, and all other courts are two years.
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Federal judges usually do not have a limit upon how long one can serve, as long as they maintain good behavior. These democratic procedures applied by the Texas constitution are very beneficial because they ensure that judges remain accountable for their actions seeing as they directly cater to public opinion and are responsible to the people for their judgements. The judicial article of the Texas constitution also ensures that the court system is created from lower to higher courts.
Whereas under the federal court system, power is completely invested to the U.S. Supreme Court, and very few cases ever actually reach that point. The Texas court system allows for smaller cases to be heard including most criminal, probate, contract, tort, and family law cases. This democratic system demonstrated in the judicial institution under the Texas constitution is also very positive because it provides citizens of counties and municipalities with equal
representation. Under the Texas constitution, the judicial institution provided for different types of courts. A supreme court, a court of appeals, district courts, county courts, commissioners' courts, and justices of the peace. Each having separate levels of jurisdiction as mentioned previously but the way in which these courts are created is democratic. In my opinion, given that these specifics represent that the judicial institution is democratic in nature is a great thing. With equal representation and opportunity for every person to be heard, even if on a small scale, impacts our entire society. With all the tensions, contradictions, and moral/political dilemmas in the world today, by allowing every person to feel represented. One class discussion that I encountered was when we touched on a very recent case, about a small-town bakery that refused to bake a cake for a homosexual couple. This class discussion sparked a very heated argument amongst the entire lecture. Without a judicial institution that is democratic, such cases wouldn't be heard of, but because every person has rights under the Texas constitution and we cannot discriminate based on opinions and prejudice. Given the society we live in now, things are changing every day and these smaller cases have big impacts.
It is surprising to know that in the span of 49 years, Texas went through seven different constitutions reflecting the changes of time. Every experience Texas went through made the constitution more and more detailed and showed more distrust in the government. However, time has changed Texas from an agricultural world to a technological world and yet the Constitution of 1876 remains the law of the state. Although Texas endured the Civil War and the Reconstruction period after the Constitution of 1845 was ratified, the Constitution of 1876 was drafted from the Constitution of 1845.
Daniel Elazar created a classification scheme moralistic political culture of individuals, and traditionalistic to describe the political culture of the state. According to Elazar, Texas can be described as traditionalistic and individuals. Historically, the Texas political parties demonstrated a strong tradition, provincialism, and business dominance. The models, however, may weaken as the Republicans increase its power in the state and urbanization continues. Texas is the second largest state in the country and there are four different geographical regions: the Gulf coastal plain, the interior lowlands, Great Plains, and the basin and range province,
The principles, which define the work of juridical branch, are relevant nowadays, as they have proved their effectiveness and managed to gain confidence of population. Texas juridical branch is complex and confusing. According to the principles of the Texas Constitution, six types of courts are established, some of which have simultaneous or overlapping jurisdictions. In accordance with the Texas Constitution of 1876, two high courts were established. In addition, in the traditions of Jacksonian Democracy, all the judges in Texas courts should be ready to compete with electoral politics and take their positions according to the results of partisan elections. This democratic principle of fair elections and respect to the votes of citizens is still applied in the juridical branch of Texas
The American way of living and thinking in Texas have changed tremendously over the past century. Political ideals are one thing that changes with time, and have transformed with the changing times well. The Texas constitution of 1876 was a landmark for the state and has been part of the state’s history since then. The Texas constitution of 1876 is still in use today but with all its harsh restrictions it is considered one of the most confusing of all the state constitutions. The constitution became one of the most prominent changes to Texas education system and politics.
The U.S. Constitution and the Texas Constitution have similarities and differences. First, both constitutions consist of a Bill of Rights. This is a formal summary of the rights and liberties considered essential to a people or group of people. The individual rights provide a variety of restraints on political power to protect people against unwarranted intrusions and abuses. Also, in both constitutions it outlines and talks about the powers of government in each separate department. Both talk about suffrage, taxation and revenue, along with general provisions, and modes of amending the c...
The United States of America is one of the most powerful nation-states in the world today. The framers of the American Constitution spent a great deal of time and effort into making sure this power wasn’t too centralized in one aspect of the government. They created three branches of government to help maintain a checks and balance system. In this paper I will discuss these three branches, the legislative, the executive, and the judicial, for both the state and federal level.
In my analysis of the Texas Constitution I will assess the three branches of our State Government, the Legislative Branch, Executive Branch and finally the Judicial Branch. Our State Government resembles our National Government in various ways but also in very different ways which we will review in this essay. I will identify a handful of criticisms and problems associated with the provisions in each of these branches of our State Government and identify suggested reforms that many feel are needed.
To this day, Americans have many rights and privileges. Rights stated in the United States constitution may be simple and to the point, but the rights Americans have may cause debate to whether or not something that happens in society, is completely reasonable. The Texas v. Johnson case created much debate due to a burning of the American Flag. One may say the burning of the flag was tolerable because of the rights citizens of the United States have, another may say it was not acceptable due to what the American flag symbolizes for America. (Brennan and Stevens 1). Johnson was outside of his First Amendment rights, and the burning of the American flag was unjust due to what the flag means to America.
The Texas Constitution continues to be in a constant state of development as there have been 673 amendments proposed since 1876 and 491 of which have been adopted. This ability for both the Texas Constitution and the citizens themselves to adapt to change shows the strength of each. The Constitution is stronger as a result of the people and the people continue to be stronger as a result of the Constitution. With the authority that was delegated by the Texas Constitution to the Legislative, Executive, and Judicial departments the citizens of the State of Texas have been given a strong foundation upon which to build a tremendous
In William Hudson’s book, American Democracy in Peril, he writes about different “challenges” that play a vital role in shaping the future of the United States. One is the problem of the “imperial judiciary”. Hudson defines its as that the justice system in the United States has become so powerful that it is answering and deciding upon important policy questions, questions that probably should be answered by our democratic legislatures. Instead of having debates in which everyone’s voices are heard and are considered in final decision-making process, a democratic-like process; we have a single judge or a small group of judges making decisions that effect millions of citizens, an “undemocratic” process. Hudson personally believes the current state of judicialized politics is harming policy decisions in Americans. According to him, the judicial branch is the “least democratic branch”, and ...
The Texas Constitution’s division of power has proven to be very controversial, and sighting numerous debates and political discussions about it’s equal distribution of power and inefficiency. The executive branch obtains minor influence from the people, the legislative branch is concealed to the proficiency of dedication to its investment in the state, and with the sum up of the first two branches the judiciary branch has, before, taken self initiative to pass a law with little consent or response of the people and because of this the state should oblige to a higher degree of morality for a more stable constitution.
People who oppose the ratification of another constitution generally believe that the amendment process is a suitable way to allow changes to the document when needed, while also taking the power from the elected and giving it to the electorate. In other words, by adding amendments to the constitution, the constitution can still cover modern issues while limiting the finalizing power of the government, and instead, leaving this decisive power in the hands of the people. Additionally, the ratification of a new constitution could not only be a risky decision, but could potentially be a chance of failure for yet another Texas constitution. Although the current constitution is based on the infrastructure of a society that was established over a hundred years ago, the moralistic and individualistic views of conservative Texans are in compliance with the main ideas of this historic document. The present day constitution also makes it extremely difficult for any legislation to be passed or even considered, fulfilling many citizens’ wishes that the government not intervene in one’s personal life. The Texas constitution keeps the power in the electorate, always allowing for its citizens to a have a say in what should be added, while keeping as much government intrusion out as
A constitution is a fundamental law or the basic principles and laws of the nation. It is also a necessary tool to run a nation in a proper way. Both Texas constitution and US Constitution are the same kind of documents which contain Bill of rights which helps for the protection of civil liberties from the government infraction and provide s the separation of power between executive, legislative and judicial branches of the government and separate the power between lower and upper level of government. In US constitution, all the states are lower than the federal government whereas in Texas constitution countries are subordinate to all the state government. Texas constitution puts rights as first and is longer and more detail
The American Court System is an important part of American history and one of the many assets that makes America stand out from other countries. It thrives for justice through its structured and organized court systems. The structures and organizations are widely influenced by both the State and U.S Constitution. The courts have important characters that used their knowledge and roles to aim for equality and justice. These court systems have been influenced since the beginning of the United State of America. Today, these systems and law continue to change and adapt in order to keep and protect the peoples’ rights.
Robert N. Clinton, ‘Judges Must Make Law: A Realistic Appraisal of the Judicial Function in a Democratic Society’ [1981-1982] 67 Iowa L. Rev. 711 http://heinonline.org/HOL/Page?handle=hein.journals/ilr67&div=38&g_sent=1&collection=journals accessed 12 February 2012