OFFICE OF THE AlTORNEY GENERAL OF ‘TEXAS 

Honorable Waltw? Kurahtaon 

County httorney 

HaakeLl County 

Eaakell, Texas 

IMar Sir: 

loh minutes were 

4 by hia probepay uid ClorJc 

arniorr, aaifl ttorvpemfomr4 after 

tha County Gle& to make rush 

inff ex? 

thl6 4+pertment. 

The applfaable rtetutsr defining th$ dutlo6 of 

the County Clerk in relation to tbs Cam&asfonsre* Court 

are krtiolrs 1940, Z345 end 2349, Vernon*a Anmtated Clril 

Gtatutss, which (tre a6 Wllonar 
Honorable Falter ~~urchiaon, rege 8 

*Artlola lQ4G. Thor shell be er-officio 

clerks of the ocm&iselonere oclirt." 

"Artlole zs4b. The county 0101% shell be 

ex-officio Clark of the oOmmlaAIonera court; m& 

he shell attend upon eich term of acrid commla8iOnere OOUrtt preserve end keep all books, papers, 

records an6 erfecta belon&g thereto, issue ill 

notIae6, urlta end prooear neoeaum tar the prcpar axeoutlon of the powma end dutlea of the ecuamisalonera oourt and perform all auoh other &tier 

ea may be preacdbed by lew.* 

“AlWcle zi349. The oourt ahell require the 

county plbrk to keep AUitAbh book8 in whioh A!!mll 

be reoordrd the prooee4lnga of ecroh term Of the 

oouti; which reoord shell ba reeO and rIgned artor 

s~oh term by the county Ju&e, or the &oazbAr pmsldl6& and attemte$ by the clerk. The olork ahall 

also record all aWhorlA& proceedings of the 

court between t%naa; And auah reoord ahall be 

read And Bigue& On the iirAt'dAy Or the tam nati 

after such proceedlags oeaurr&a.* 

30 do not: ballwe these POVfBiOQA or the law or 

a ny o ther protialona th6f r a ha*@ 6 l cm able to find were 

Intended to require bb alerk, or to: perelf the ocamiaaloJiers* oourt to iequlre the eou&y atirk, as A pert of the 

lOgA datba Or hia OrriOSi t0 OUT8 tha dareotb OT make up 

r0r the derlclcnolrs br one who may have FZWOded him ln 

hi0 office. 

W6 bAa0 this oplnlon upon the &ooisIcn or the supreme Court of Texas. in Wiillla Y. Jouea, 11 Ter. 804. This 

ia A @ARC arhem%n the UiAtrht Clerlt Or &ni@ee GOUQtJ, 

TBxea, in 1854 wad hla~predeoesaor ia Office for work parromea by hlai In ~,#&lrrg UE to date reoords whlah such pmtmeseor had negU~+.ly r6ihd aad: amitted to enter, au4 

which the Dietriot Clerk bringi& the Auit had Yoluntarilt 

entered 

E 

roporly and b, u&t down to dote. The Supreme 

Court he & thet he ao ur a not reooter fcbr tha meeon @en 

by Judge Lipso-b as roiionsr 
Honorable Welter )fwohi6on. Fa&e 3 

filllthough his decieion WAN rendered e long ttie ego 

we hue found no oaoe And no act 0r the L~ioieture overruling 

it 

YO i ring 

And, Although the dOOiaIpn woe rendered In a cam inthe Dlatrlot Clerk we think that In the ebsenoc or AII 

opinion 0r the court or or A AtAtUtO to the oontrery the -0 

would be the aeae in cam of A Oounty Clerk. 

It Is Well AettJed law In the.Stqte of TexAa that 

the ooxrElseIoner%’ court Is A court or ltiited juriaaictfon 

and derives lta paore only by ezpresa prorielona 0r the ConOtitUtiOn en@ the atetUte8 or from neoeseary hpliOAtiOn found 

within the oon%tItutIonal end statutory provisI&e. Ihe Constitution drtlole 7, Section 1.8, $IreA the ommI%sIoner%’ 

court jur~adlotlon over all county bualnera., 4. 1243x-t 0r seib 

SeotIon 18, 0r Mtlcle V, Conetltution of Terse, is aet out 

ea r0ii0m: 

by this Colutltutlon end the ~AWA of the StAte, 

or a6 MY be hereAttOr preaoribed.* 

we hate many deolrrlonr 0r the aourts or Tnraa a+ 

ployiug the phrase *oouuty bualnebcw ea used In thla oonatltutlouel provlelon end there oplnlcna hors given many varlourr 

defluItloua or the tern as it related to the partloular emttera 

and raota then bsrorc them tar edjudloetlon. 

not yet hare, 

Bao+or, we do 

end perhapo ILOYW ehell h*Ye, any oouiplete or 

all-lnoluslve aerinition that 00ula be aaid to clearly Aet 

out the bounderiee or the area of aotlon or the oommlAaIonorA* 

oourt, end of whioh It 03 uld be .aeId regardfag any oonoofrAble 

uituatIo~&ft%w$ch such court might be cdlled upon to take 

AOtiO&I: , or, this IA not, *oounty bualnese’ .” 

Tt ray be Mtely aald, however, that the ooem.iAeloners * OOUe IS the gc+erXXi~ body Or the COUBtY With JUtiSdiction that touohee in ~omo reapeot almo%t every reawre or 

the county’fi buaIneAs, %e% Ehl.inger 0. Clark, 8 S. X. (Sd! 

6661 and the court has full and geneml ohvee of the bu%ine%A 

or the Cmty, Gusset v. ~ueoee County ESS 8. % 687. Aad 

the taw woounty bualncas c ahoula be &en A bzoad ad liberal 

oonatruotion A0 ae not to defrat the W.rpo%%a Of the law. 

clem y. all.as County Emis VAro IslAnd t%vOO sfet., 875 

F. 0:. 137-148. 
l3onorable %lter Eurehiaon, Page 4 

y:e have been unable to find any authority aptdrfaally aUthOritlIl$ the C&iiQ1S81Onam* Court to eaploy any 

person to index the rolnutee or the CaElal8aione~s~ GoUrt 

other than the County Clerk hlrreli. %e think It 18 clear, 

however, in view of the opinion of the Lupmme Court in 

sill18 ‘v. Jones, uupra, that it is not the duty or the 

present County Clerk to bring Ur to date the Indexso whlah 

his predeoeseor felled to mske. We take the view that ir 

it Is neoemsary ior the go06 of the ooudy, t,bt tJwm inQuo8 be brou+t up to date, and your latter lndioetes that 

it Is neoeaeery, the buslnes8 of arranging ror thair being 

brought up to date wwld be county businssr within the purview of the cOnstItutIona provlslon hemlnabove set out. 

You a r e l dvi8e6 that It Is the oplalon of thlr 

&eprrtment that the Ootamlssloner8~ Court could under the 

powam and jurialiatlon at oounty buslnesr conferred by the 

Constttut$on and the laws of thl8 State employ either the 

County Olerk, pr0v1QeU the work ir done by the County clerk 

at a t&e the regular dUtle8 0r hi8 0rri00 do not re ulre 

his attention; or by-.-a third patron employed by tha 8 O&&S- 

.sloners* Court for the r~soifio purpose or making those 

inbxe8 by and with the consent of’the County Clerk. It is 

our further opidon th8f, sinae a8 pointed out.ebOvo, the 

bringlag up to date of theas 1566x0s fs not a part of the 

duties l.qpseQ upon the Wuatp Clerk by law, swh o~mp6588- 

tion as ha laight be aid for this extra work pauld not bo 

ohargeable against h E 10 acoount as part 0r his fee8 0r 0rrs0e. 

It should ba kept In alnQ that If the Con&ssloners’ 

Court eegloys so0e t&&r4 pereon to prrfoXB thi8 work the 

per8on eo am loyed 8houl.d have tha approval of, and &he Cantisslonsmr e ourt in BO engaging hlrm, should have the eonsent of the County Clerk ror the maeon that the County Clerk 

is the guardian and outatoblan of the reoords or hi8 offloe 

and he is mepOn8ib&l ror the aam ana 8are-k6epiW or the 

sam ~irmspeotfve of who nay be using th* or WTfom~iWt 

mrk upon the& 

It should hem be pointe% out that thi8 OPbiOn 

1s pradioated upon the Jbot and the rindim3 that If is not 

the Quty or the Oountiy Clerk to brinS to date inQsxes 

to ma cotnei~fif~~~-~* Court@e l~inute8 w Yi lah his pmQeoos8or 

rnile& to ~iak0 WQ dmuld be distinguisb3 rrapr easas wherein ths cOtmy Clerk ia mquimd as part o? the dUth8 of 

his ofmae q& to raew and replaos old SnQ worn mtootds 
Honorable Walter 1^urahi8on, Fage 5 

and indexeti. The8@ last dutie8 6m pleoed upon the County 

Clerk by the atetutss and are part of the work ror which 

his rest3 or 0rri0a are paid. 

It 16 only beoause of our view under the faots 

presented by you, that the rork here to be done is not the 

duty or the County Clerk under the law that the feats hem 

OPD be airtinguiahee rr05 the Oa88S or TPrmnt County v. 

Ragem, 125 C. :3. 593 (Sup. Ct. 135 5. Vi. 1101, and Tarmnt 

County v. Butler, 80 S. ?t. 666, in both ot nhloh oaliea it 

wae held that the Coen?lnsfonem ’ Court had no Fewer to mploy the County Clerk ant! to pop him a sum of money over 

and above the mgular foes or ralary of hi8 ofilce for making 

new and improved inQexe8 dnoe under the iaots in those 

oase8 it wa8 the m@l8r logal duty oi the County Clerk to 

n&co the Indexes in que8tion. 

Your8 very truly 

Robert P. Cherry 

MSi8tUIt 

I;