OFFICE OF THE ATTOiNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

AUSTIN 

ioaorable Joe Fultz 

county nttorncy 

Qrimes Couuty 

fsdcraon, Tc%ss 

ion for our oonsldorth of tlmk to publish 

on-resident pomom 

e bought to be pardeFthe provisions of 

on’8 AnnotatedCIvil 

t&ions and notioea lamed out of tho 

County Court ln probate matters bhall be returnable ~to the Court from vhioh iaaued on the first 

Monday after the aervioe ls.perSeotedr All auoh 

notloes and oitattons novzequlred to be posted 

shall be poated at the Court House door ior not- 

‘,;~~~an ten (10 

h 

dayg before the return d8Y 

All sue notlooa and oitations noU requwed io, be publlshe$ shall beg~blSsbe+~ on08 

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Efonorable Joe Pultc,. Page 

z 

and said publication 

2 

shall be not less then 

the return dsg thereor. 

+atlons now required 

to be sorvea 

;~~oen (10 f 

orsonally shall be served at 

days before the roturn day 

. The time of return of tho not100 

for oltctlon shall bo S lxod bq the Clerk in 

Accordance with the provlslons of this Act. 

“sot.?* 2. All laws requlrlng aervloo of 

oitatlons, notices, orders; or other proceedings in probate matters for a period of time 

- and in a manner different from thst herein 

provided, and in confliot with this.Aot, ati 

hereby expressly repealed insofar as thoy 

oonfllot with this Atit, it being the purpose 

of this Abt to require only ton (10) days 

service, exclusive of the’ day of servoice, 

whether such service 18 personal, by postlng or by publication. b’hy Probate Statute 

nov In force and not hereby repealed by other 

provlslons of this Act, using the expresslon 

‘at the next term of Court, * or ‘next regular _- 

term, 0 or ‘during term time, @ or other similar 

expwseiom shall be SO oonstrued 88 to oonform to .&is Aot, and hre hereby amended and ,. 

.modifled as to aooompllsh, the purpose8 set. out 

In this Act.” 

.._, 

The above quoted Art. XlOa, as enaoted in 1929 

a& amended ln.1931, expressly repeals all 14~8 requlrlng 

e)rvloe of oitatlons, ~aotloes,, orders, or other prooeod%ngs 

%n probate matters for a period of tlme and in a sUnor . 

different from that therein provided. 

Art. 3600, Ch. 24 Title 54, V.A.G.8. (Acts 1876, 

p. ‘1203 O.L.,, ,vol. 8, p. 9561, reads ais Sollousr 

. 

“such cltatlon shall be personiilly served 

by lotivlng a oopy thereof ulth each person Fesrd¶.ng ln the State entitled to a share of the 

eatate, who 18.knoun~’ and, lf thers be any who 

are not known, or who are not resldent8 OS thi8 

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Ronorable Joe Fultz, Page 3 

State, such oltation shall be publlahed for at 

le85t four euooeaaivo wooks in some ncvspaper 

printed ln the county, If them be one, if not, 

then in like manner in one of tho nearest ncwapapora published in the State. A copy of euch 

publication, and the afftdavlt of the publisher 

or printer attached thereto, shall acconpany tho 

report of the offlcor serving such clt.atlonra 

Tho Austin Court of Civil Appeals in Railroad Coamioaion of Texas v. Texas and new Orleens R. Co., 42 S.W. 

(26) 1031, held as follow: 

“The lntention”oS the Legislature met be 

gathered from the language of the statute construed as a whole, giving tho words used their 

cormon and ordlxuwlly acaepted meanlngg and, if 

the words employed are free from amblgulty and 

doubt, and express plainly, clearly, and distinctly the intent, according to the natural 

import of the. language used, then no occasion 

arises to look elsewhere. Stats v, Dolesdenler, 

7 Tox. 106~ Rosenberg v. Shaper, 51 Tex. 140~ 

Rcnrl~k v, Hanrlok, 54 Tex. 110~ Boon ‘I. Ghamberlain, 82 Tex. 482, 18 S.W. 656~ hrray T. State, 

21 TOX. AP$; 631, 2 S.W. 757, 57 ASL* Rep. 623~ 

Texas (E P. Ry. Co. V. Railroad Cmlaslon OS. 

Texas, 105 Tex. 386; 150 S.U. 878; article 10, 

R,S. 1925.*. 

& Harold8 v. The State, 16 Tex. App. 157, the Court 

OS Appeals held as Sollow~l 

“when iho nev statute lx& Itself aomprehends 

the vhdle subject and meate8 a nev, entim and 

independent system respeotiag the subject mntter, 

It 1s universally held to repeal and. supemede 

all previous systems and laws Wis~CtiW the Same 

subject mtter. (Stlrman V. The State, 21 TeXaB 

7341 Etter V. l4lB8ourl Paoiflo Ralluay Comwu, 

Texas Lav Rovlev, ~01. 2, IVO. 23,) * 

To like effect, aeel Robertson V, state, 159 S.W. 

713 J First lI~~10na1 Dank v* Lee county cotton 011 Co., 250 
. 

Honorable Joe Fulti, Page 4 

S.W. 313, afflrmod (Corn. App.) 274 S.W. 127~ State v, 

Lntornatlonol 6c ff9 H. R. Co., 57 Tex. 534, 

Art. 3600, V.A.C.S., provlded tho length of time 

for the publication OS a citation In a probate rJatter; I.e., 

vhero on estate Is sought to be partitioned and dlstrlbutod 

under the provisions of Ch, 24, Title 54, V.A.C.S. Art. 33lOa, 

V.A.C.S., is the latest expression of the Lcglslature vlth 

rofercnce to the longth of time for publication of citations 

In probate matters; its language Is clear and unanbiauousj 

it creates a nev, entire, and independent ayetem respecting 

the subjeot matter) end It repeals all laws ln conflict 

thorewlth. Consequently, Art. 3310a, V.A.C.S., controls. 

Therefore, It Is our oplnlon that citations by publication to non-resident persons who are Interested In an 

ostate sought to be partitioned and distributed under the 

provisions of Ch. 24, Title 54, V.A.C.S., should be published 

once and said publication should be not less tkin ton (10) 

days before the return day thereof. 

Yours very truly