Bill Text: TX HB685 | 2019-2020 | 86th Legislature | Enrolled
Bill Title: Relating to immunity from liability of a court clerk and county for the disclosure or release of certain court documents and information contained in the court documents.
Sponsorship: Strong Partisan Bill (Republican 18-1)
Status: (Passed) 2019-06-14 - Effective immediately [HB685 Detail]
Download: Texas-2019-HB685-Enrolled.html
| H.B. No. 685 | ||
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| relating to immunity from liability of a court clerk and county for | ||
| the disclosure or release of certain court documents and | ||
| information contained in the court documents. | ||
| BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
| SECTION 1. Subchapter G, Chapter 51, Government Code, is | ||
| amended by adding Section 51.609 to read as follows: | ||
| Sec. 51.609. IMMUNITY FROM LIABILITY FOR DISCLOSURE OR | ||
| RELEASE OF COURT DOCUMENTS. (a) In this section: | ||
| (1) "Court clerk" means the clerk of the supreme court | ||
| or the court of criminal appeals or the clerk of a court of appeals | ||
| district court, county court, statutory county court, statutory | ||
| probate court, justice court, or municipal court. | ||
| (2) "State court document database" means a database | ||
| accessible by the public and established or authorized by the | ||
| supreme court for storing documents filed with a court in this | ||
| state. | ||
| (b) A court clerk is not responsible for the management or | ||
| removal of a document from a state court document database and is | ||
| not liable for damages resulting from the release of a document in | ||
| the database if the clerk in good faith performs the duties as clerk | ||
| as provided by law and the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure. | ||
| (c) If a court clerk in good faith performs the duties as a | ||
| clerk as provided by law and the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure, the | ||
| clerk, the county in which the court is located, and the | ||
| commissioners court of the county in which the court is located are | ||
| immune from suit and from liability for the release or disclosure of | ||
| information that is confidential or otherwise prohibited from | ||
| disclosure by law, rule, or court order and that is accessed from a | ||
| state court document database. | ||
| (d) A court clerk is not liable for the release of a sealed | ||
| or confidential document in the clerk's custody unless the clerk | ||
| acted intentionally, or with malice, reckless disregard, or gross | ||
| negligence in the release of the document. | ||
| SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives | ||
| a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as | ||
| provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this | ||
| Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this | ||
| Act takes effect September 1, 2019. | ||
| ______________________________ | ______________________________ | |
| President of the Senate | Speaker of the House | |
| I certify that H.B. No. 685 was passed by the House on April | ||
| 24, 2019, by the following vote: Yeas 133, Nays 0, 3 present, not | ||
| voting. | ||
| ______________________________ | ||
| Chief Clerk of the House | ||
| I certify that H.B. No. 685 was passed by the Senate on May | ||
| 22, 2019, by the following vote: Yeas 30, Nays 1. | ||
| ______________________________ | ||
| Secretary of the Senate | ||
| APPROVED: _____________________ | ||
| Date | ||
| _____________________ | ||
| Governor | ||
