The Attorney General of Texas 

January 29, 1981 

MARK WHITE 

Attorney General 

Honorable Lynn Nabers, Chairman Opinion No. &W-293 

Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence 

House of Representatives Re: May legislature create panels 

P. 0. Box 2910 within the 14 courts of appeak 

Austin, Texas 78769 which would be charged solely with 

criminal jurisdiction 

Dear Representative Nabers: 

You have requested our opinion regarding legislative implementation 

of the recent amendment to article V, section 6 of the Texas Constitution, 

adopted by the voters on November 4, 1980. That provision now states, in 

pertinent part: 

The Legislature shall divide the State into such 

Supreme judicial districts as the population and 

business may require, and shall establish a Court of 

Appeals in each of said districts, which shall consist 

of a Chief Justice and at least two Associate 

Justices, who shall have the qualifications as herein 

prescribed for Justices of the Supreme Court. The 

Court of Appeak may sit in sections as authorized by 

law. The concurrence of a majority of the judges 

sitting in a section is necessary to decide a case. 

Said Court of Appeals shall have appellate jurisdiction co-extensive with the limits of their 

respective districts, which shall extend to all cases of 

which the District Courts or County Courts have 

original or appellate jurisdiction, under such restrictions and regulations as may be prescribed by law. 

You ask whether the legislature may create, within the courts of appeals, 

panels which are charged solely with criminal jurisdiction. 

The various courts of appeals, formerly the courts of civil appeals, 

have been constitutionally authorized to “sit in sections” or panels since the 

1978 amendment to article V, section 6. Article 1812, V.T.C.S., made 

provision for courts of the first, second, fifth and fourteenth judicial 

districts to sit in panels of not lass than three justices. The 1980 amendment 

does not affect this authority to sit in sections, but it adds criminal cases 

p. 935 
Honorable Lynn Nabers - Page Two (M+293) 

appealed from the county and district courts to the jurisdiction of each court of 

appeals. Since the amendment grants to the courts of appeals “appellate jurisdiction 

co-extensive with the limits of their respective districts, which shall extend to 811 

cases of which the District Courts or County Courts have original or appellate 

jurisdiction,” it might be argued that each section must be accorded all the jurisdiction 

embodied in the court of appeals of which it is a part. (Emphasis added). The 

amendment, however, grants such jurisdiction “under such restrictions and regulations 

as may be prescribed by law. ” Furthermore, the amendment permits a court of appeals 

to sit in sections only “as authorized by law.” 

In Harbison v. McMurry, 158 S.W. 2d 284, 287 (Tex. 19421, the supreme court 

declared: 

. . . the appellate jurisdiction of the (clourts of [cl ivil 

[al ppaak in ‘civil cases’ is not unlimited or absolute, but is 

subject to control by the Legislature. This must be so because 

it is provided that such jurisdiction is ‘under such restrictions 

and regulations as may be prescribed by law.’ 

In our opinion, the legislature is authorized to impose restrictions upon the broad 

grant of jurisdiction to the court of appeals, and to any of the sections created by 

statute in accordance with the amendment. We conclude, therefore, that the 

legislature may create, within the various courts of appeals, panels which are charged 

solely with criminal jurisdiction. 

SUMMARY 

Under the recent amendment to article V, section 6 of the 

Texas Constitution, the legislature is empowered to create, 

within the various courts of appeals, panels which arc? charged 

solely with criminal jurisdiction. 

MARK WHITE 

Attorney General of Texas 

JOHN W. FAINTER, JR. 

First Assistant Attorney General 

RICHARD E. GRAY III 

Executive Assistant Attorney General 

Prepared by Rick Gilpin 

Assistant Attorney General 

p. 936 
L . 

Honorable Lynn Nabers - Page Three (m-293) 

APPROVED: 

OPINION COMMITTEE 

Susan L. Garrison, Chairman 

Jon Bible 

Gerald C. Carruth 

Rick Gilpln 

Bruce Youngblood 

p. 937