Court Opinion

ID: 4134428
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2017-02-18 01:50:09.89612+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T14:08:34.962960
License: Public Domain

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    Mr. Willie 8. DuBose
    County Attorney
    Midland County Courthouse
    Midland, Texas 19701
                            Opinion No. M- 239
                            Re: Whether a Justice of the Peace,
                                 in an administrative hearing pur-
                                 suant to Article 668i'b,Section 22,
                                 V.C.S. of Texas, may proceed to
                                 hear the merits and enter a valid
                                 finding or order in the absence of
                                 the licensee's personal appearance
                                 or signed post office receipt show-
                                 ing delivery of the notice.of hear-
                                 ing upon him, and related question.
    Dear Mr. DuBose:
         In your Opinion Request to this office you pose the
    folkwing two questions:                              ,.,

           (1) May a Justice of the Peace, in an Administrative
               Hearing brought under Art. 668733,~Section 22,
               Vernon's Civil Statutes, proceed to hear the
               merits and make any valid findings or orders
               when the licensee does not appear at the hear-
               ing and there is no signed Post Office receipt
               showing delivery of the Notice of Hearing, even
               though such notice is shown to have been sent
               by certified mail to the address shown on his
               license?
           (2) Would a susoension which resulted from such a
               hearing, i158 Tex. 154,
309 S.W.2d 812 (1958),
     In other situations where no criminal prosecution arises
under the statute and the same or similar situation, the result
reached here would not necessarily apply.
                        SUMMARY
        A Justice of the Peace in an administrative
     hearing brought under Article 6687b, Section 22,
     Vernon's Civil Statutes, may not proceed to hear
     the merits and make any valid findings or orders
     when the licensee does not appear at the hearing
     and where service is attempted by certified mail
     and there is no signed Post Office receipt show-
     ing delivery of the notice of hearing.
        A suspension resulting from a hearing where
     the licensee was given no notice of the hearing
     would not be given any validity by the licensee
     subsequently receiving actual or constructive
     notice of the suspension.

                                  eneral of Texas

Prepared by Dunklin Sullivan
Assistant Attorney General
APPROVED:
OPINION COMMITTEE
iiawthornePhillips, Chairman
Kerns Taylor, Co-Chairman
Jo Betsy Lewallen
Ralph Rash
Malcolm Quick
Fisher Tyler
A.J. CARUBBI, JR.
Executive Assistant