Coale Mind

Are "Business Courts" Acceptable Under the Texas State Constitution?

David Coale Season 3 Episode 8

This episode examines arguments for why the proposed new system of business courts may not pass muster under Texas' state constitution. 

Specifically, it examines the constitutionality of appointing trial-level judges, and of creating a new "Fifteenth Court of Appeals" with statewide jurisdiction over one specific type of questions.

It  reviews whether this structure is consistent with an "originalist" understanding of Texas' Reconstruction-era constitution and its vision of highly decentralized state government. 

The episode concludes by asking whether it really advances the stated goal of "certainty" in Texas business law to create a new court system whose constitutional legitimacy is sure to be challenged. 

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