OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS AUSTIN

we.- --
Eonoratle A. J. Luckett couty Xttoroep corn1 cozntg

Your letter ot A gopaor this department 00

"1. In a orim an8 dooketed , ported fees as of during term re fees *earnlark oolleat

ssent District Clerk colleat all e tried or settled and final judgrine tern of present District Clerk? 3801 (Rev. Clv. Stat.) apply to fees 'amYnOd', 8s wall,~tis feee ~Uue~ and fees ~accruedf, amI tim'said fess psyable to i&&riot Clerk who has *earr,ed'3ame?n
yeas to district olerks for reoor&ing sherif'fts accounts shall be p&ld:at the end of the tam of court in v;;hich the service -as ren&raU; fess payable formking tzansc?ipts on change ofvenue and on appeal shall be paid 88 soon ~3 the service la perform&; and su4h feesmentioned,irO~OXibl.6 A. J. L,uCkett', -- zeg;o2

iac;l&iq the fess for entcrinz judrj*,ent in habeas corjxs cases are not con*iiti +*--ent upon shoq:;ing the case Is finally Bici~iOSZcl 0.f. Articles 10X, 570 nud 1034, Jernon's hnnotatnd Code of Criminal procedure; !.:cComlckv. Fhepynrd (OOr,. k;p.) 223s. ?!.(26).213. In the obove lnstacces, stickfees would 55 considered T&me&" v;henthe oervlces wer"spcrforsed.

Artlcle 1026, Vernoc’s Cods of Crinlnal Trocedure, T1.tI.e 13, authorizes the district clerk to receive eight or ten dollcrs according to the nwaber of precedlne presidential totes 2::

<,';‘ ln the county, whether three thousand or over or less than thzee thousand, ior each felony ease,murder sxcepted, flhslly disposed of without trial or dlsnlsssd, or triad by jury,whether the defendant be aoqultted or conviotad. Ylth reference to the above fee un@sr Article 10’6) ouga, this statute was oonstrued in an opinion renCereQ Jamzry 21, 1913, found inVoluice27, page 171, of apqoved opinions of this depart&x&, viilttsnby the late .ChlefJustice C.X. Cureton, who was then ylrst Office :,salstactto the Attorney General, ln.vhlch itwas held that such fee was ln the nature of a trial See and Is payable to the clerk in

### ortic? at the time the 0888 Is tried. ?hla construction of the statute hes been oonslsti3tly fol

### lc.?~d a;lasuch

### fee isnot consiUered nearnedn until the ease is finally disposed of,

such fees not considered earned until the case Is finally dlspoocd of, the district clerk lrioffice at the ti:~ethe case 1s disposed of n;akss the collection and reports sme in his fiscel report as earned fess rathsr thauhis predecessor.

Article 1027,Vernonfs AMOtatea Code of Crlmlnal iroce&ure, provides:

"In all caseswhore a dofendaat is indlcted for a felony but under the indictment he lcay bo couvicted of a'nlsderjeacoror a felony, and tho auziish~~r;snt

which xmy be assessed is a fine, jail‘sentenco or both such flno and icxprisonrsn.tin jeil,,t.heStRtG shall pay no feeS t0 an:- of:-itX%T,

except v&we tha defendant 1s indicted for tha offszno of norCer, uSi the oase has been fisnlly disposed of in the trial court. I)rovidedthe provisioas of thisArticle shall sot.ba construed as affecting in any sraythe provisions of krtlcle 1019, Code of Cri2inel ProCw?UT~,'Et.3

u~xd~ed by Chapter 205, C-cnaralLaws,Xx=.srableA. J. Luckett; Fage 5

nte3 Ee~u1e.vSession, Forty-seaon Legislature; providob this shall not apply to axoxining trial _et?sa to County Attorneys acd/or Crizi?al Xstrict 3ttorI;cyii." Iirticle3.992ofVernon*s knnotat.edCivil Statproviees: "Any oiticar t;entionedin this Chaj!tcrwho Goes sot collect the msizuz mount of his fees ror any fiscal year 

### anav:hora;orts delinquent fees for that year, shall bo entitled to retain, when collected, such part ol such Celinqcont 

### foes es is rjufriaient to coz9lete the maxiz~3 cor9ensstlon authorize& by Articles 3953, 3263-A, end 396tifor the year inwhich delinquent fees w&e charged, and also retain ths asAomt of excess feea authorized by law, and the reminder of the Celinquent fees for that fiscal year shall ha pai0 as herein provided for ahen collected; ~rovlCw!l,the provisions of this Article shall hot apply to any officer after one yeer from the Ectc he ceases to ho14 the office towhich acy Balinquent fee is due, and in the event the officer earning tho tees thst are delioqiienthas t collected the samewithin twelve Eonths after 2 ceases to hold ths oifice tha amount of fees collected shall bepaia into'tho county troasurg. ProviSed, honevez, that nothing i?lthis Act precludes tha .;aysient of ex-oPl"iciofee.3iu accor8- acce with Title El of the i?eviso13 Civil Statutes of Texas, 1925, as part of the nariaux compensation. Provic',ed, that any change z&e in this Article by this Act shall not apply to fees heretofore earsed.* Article B91, Verson~s Annotated Civil Statutes, in part, provic?es:

n. . .All fess 8ue and sot collected, as sbczn in the report required b.yArticle 3897, ch;all'0scollzoted by the officer towhose officn, %hof&s accrued an5 shall be &iaposoE ot ',. my ;o:idol"l"icer

in accor0ahce with the provi, s;cY&cJ of t?.isAct.
. . ." rc&ir::q 33:the plclinprovisions of Article 1027, supra, iaclu&s "the st,iteshall pay

### no fees.to shy officer", thia

t~he' district olerk. Cizilnr language is to be. -

Honorable A. J. Lock&t, Page 4

founi'inArticle 1019,Acts 1931; Forty-second Chal;ter~

5. Legiolsture,
Lmxxzrin,; your questions In ttieardor .~Tos~ted, it.is the opiuion of thia Qepartceni:

1:In crizinal cases, the fees of the district Clark are considers6 earned when the service for ~~hich sme are authorize8 to be charged, is parfozed. Tk? eight or ten c?ollarfee proscribed inArtiale 102C, Vernon's Cede of **Crimlna$** froceaurs, hoxever, **IE** not cc~;ic;s~~~azsed until the case is finally %ispossd of.

2. Ths provisions of Article 1027, Vernon's Annotated Code of CrirnihalProcedure, apply to the district cierk. 3. In civil cases filed Wring the terseof P past district clerk, it is possible for both the inaurzbentand the past distriot,olericto have *earned* fees taxed therein as costs. Uticle 3C91; Vernon's C'zvilStetutas, applies as to those fees earned and collected as tvellus to all ides due and unoollected. All fees chargec?in civil cases due and u?lcollectc~shall be collected by the incumbent of the offiqc x-ether than his predecessor with Article 3892, ver- &on's Civil Statutes, ap$icable to the delinquent fees of his pre&ecesror in'ofrice. Yonrs vary truly
ATTOREY GZiZZ.ALOF TEXAS