Texas Government Code Title 2, Chapter 53 - Bailiffs

SUBCHAPTER A BAILIFFS FOR CERTAIN COURTS

• Texas Section 53.001 - Mandatory Appointments
  (a) The judges of the 30th, 70th, 71st, 78th, 89th, 161st, and 341st district courts, the judges of the district courts having jurisdiction in Taylor...
• Texas Section 53.002 - Permissive Appointments
  (a) The judges of the 34th, 86th, 130th, 142nd, 238th, 318th, 355th, and 385th district courts may each appoint a bailiff. (b) The judge of...
• Texas Section 53.003 - Evidence Of Appointment; Notification
  (a) An order signed by the appointing judge entered in the minutes of the court is evidence of the appointment of a bailiff or grand...
• Texas Section 53.004 - Qualifications
  (a) A bailiff in the 34th, 70th, 71st, or 161st district court must be a resident of the county in which the bailiff serves the...
• Texas Section 53.005 - Term Of Office
  A bailiff or grand jury bailiff appointed under this subchapter holds office at the will of the judge of the court that the bailiff or...
• Texas Section 53.006 - Duties
  (a) A bailiff or grand jury bailiff appointed under Section 53.001 or 53.002(a), (c), (d), (e), or (f) is an officer of the court. (b)...
• Texas Section 53.007 - Bailiff Deputized
  (a) This section applies to: (1) the 34th, 70th, 71st, 86th, 97th, 130th, 142nd, 161st, 238th, 318th, 341st, 355th, and 385th district courts; (2) the...
• Texas Section 53.0071 - Bailiff As Peace Officer
  Unless the appointing judge provides otherwise in the order of appointment, a bailiff appointed under Section 53.001(b) or (g) or 53.002(c), (e), or (f) is...
• Texas Section 53.008 - Oath
  The bailiffs of the 34th, 70th, 86th, 97th, 130th, 142nd, 161st, 238th, 318th, 341st, 355th, and 385th district courts, the bailiffs of the courts described...
• Texas Section 53.009 - Compensation
  (a) Each bailiff appointed by a judge of the 30th, 78th, 89th, or 355th district court, by a district judge in Potter, Randall, or Taylor...

SUBCHAPTER B BAILIFF TO ACT AS INTERPRETER

• Texas Section 53.0091 - Compensation In El Paso County
  (a) Each bailiff appointed under Section 53.002(c) shall be paid an annual salary out of the general fund of El Paso County. The appointing judge...

SUBCHAPTER C BAILIFFS IN BEXAR COUNTY

• Texas Section 53.021 - Special Provision: Bailiff To Act As Interpreter
  (a) The judges of the 24th, 135th, and 267th district courts may each appoint, with the approval of the commissioners court, an officer of the...
• Texas Section 53.031 - Appointments
  (a) The Bexar County sheriff shall appoint one deputy to serve as bailiff for each of the district courts in Bexar County not designated as...
• Texas Section 53.032 - Oath
  Before assuming the duties of office, each bailiff must take the oath prescribed for officers of this state. Acts 1985, 69th Leg., ch. 480, Sec....
• Texas Section 53.033 - Bond
  The sheriff may require a bailiff to give a bond. The sheriff may prescribe the conditions and amount of the bond, or those terms may...
• Texas Section 53.034 - Powers
  A bailiff appointed under this subchapter has the same powers that sheriffs and deputy sheriffs have in this state. Acts 1985, 69th Leg., ch. 480,...
• Texas Section 53.035 - Duties
  (a) A bailiff acts in the name of his principal and may perform all official acts that the county sheriff may perform. (b) A bailiff...
• Texas Section 53.036 - Term Of Office; Vacancy
  (a) A bailiff serves at the pleasure of the judge of the court the bailiff serves. (b) If the office of a bailiff becomes vacant,...
• Texas Section 53.037 - Acting For Another Bailiff
  The bailiffs may act for each other and shall act for each other when requested to by a judge or the sheriff. A bailiff acting...
• Texas Section 53.038 - Salary
  The sheriff shall fix the annual salary of the bailiffs of each court. The salary must be approved by the commissioners court and shall be...

SUBCHAPTER D BAILIFFS FOR FAMILY DISTRICT COURTS IN HARRIS COUNTY

• Texas Section 53.039 - Additional Deputies
  This subchapter does not prevent the sheriff from assigning additional deputies to any of the district courts when circumstances require or when a district judge...
• Texas Section 53.051 - Office Of Bailiff
  The judges of the 245th, 246th, 247th, 257th, 308th, 309th, 310th, 311th, and 312th family district courts shall appoint a person to serve their respective...
• Texas Section 53.052 - Appointment
  An order signed by the appointing judge and entered on the minutes of the court is evidence of appointment of a bailiff. The judge shall...
• Texas Section 53.053 - Qualifications
  A bailiff must be a citizen of the United States and must be 19 years of age. Added by Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 148,...
• Texas Section 53.054 - Bailiff As Deputy
  On written notice of the appointment from the judge, a constable of said county may deputize the bailiff in addition to other deputies authorized by...
• Texas Section 53.055 - Oath
  The following oath must be administered by the appointing judge to the bailiff appointed under this subchapter: "I solemnly swear that I will perform faithfully...
• Texas Section 53.056 - Term Of Office
  The bailiff holds office at the will of the judge of the court served by the bailiff. Added by Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 148,...
• Texas Section 53.057 - Duties
  A bailiff shall perform the duties imposed on bailiffs under the general laws of this state and the other duties required by the judge of...

SUBCHAPTER E GRAND JURY BAILIFFS IN CERTAIN COUNTIES

• Texas Section 53.058 - Compensation
  The bailiff shall be compensated out of the general fund of the county in an amount to be set by the Commissioners Court of Harris...
• Texas Section 53.071 - Grand Jury Bailiffs In Counties Of 250,000 Or More
  (a) In any county with a population of 250,000 or more, the judges of the district courts to whom the grand jury reports may, with...

SUBCHAPTER F APPELLATE COURT PEACE OFFICERS

• Texas Section 53.072 - Grand Jury Bailiffs In Galveston County
  The judge of a district court in Galveston County impaneling a grand jury shall appoint not more than six grand jury bailiffs. Added by Acts...
• Texas Section 53.091 - Employment
  (a) The supreme court, the court of criminal appeals, and each of the courts of appeals may employ and commission a peace officer to protect...

SUBCHAPTER G BAILIFFS FOR COUNTY COURTS AT LAW

• Texas Section 53.092 - Powers And Duties
  Any peace officer commissioned under this section shall be vested with all the rights, privileges, obligations, and duties of any other peace officer in this...
• Texas Section 53.101 - Assignment Of Bailiff
  At least one bailiff shall be assigned regularly to each county court at law of Tarrant County. Added by Acts 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., Ch....
• Texas Section 53.102 - Office Of Bailiff; Appointment
  (a) The judge of each county court at law of Tarrant County may appoint one person to serve as bailiff of that court. (b) The...
• Texas Section 53.103 - Term Of Office
  The bailiff holds office at the will of the judge of the court served by the bailiff. Added by Acts 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., Ch....
• Texas Section 53.104 - Duties
  A bailiff shall perform the duties imposed on bailiffs under the general laws of this state and the other duties required by the judge of...
• Texas Section 53.105 - Assignment Of Bailiff By Sheriff
  (a) If the judge of a county court at law of Tarrant County does not appoint a person to serve as bailiff under Section 53.102,...

SUBCHAPTER H BAILIFFS FOR FAMILY DISTRICT COURTS IN TARRANT COUNTY

• Texas Section 53.106 - Compensation
  A bailiff appointed by the judge of a county court at law of Tarrant County shall be compensated out of the general fund of the...
• Texas Section 53.121 - Office Of Bailiff
  The judges of the 231st, 233rd, 322nd, 323rd, 324th, 325th, and 360th district courts may appoint one person to serve as bailiff of that court...
• Texas Section 53.122 - Appointment
  An order signed by the appointing judge and entered on the minutes of the court is evidence of appointment of a bailiff. The judge shall...
• Texas Section 53.123 - Qualifications
  A bailiff must be a citizen of the United States and must be 18 years of age or older. Added by Acts 2015, 84th Leg.,...
• Texas Section 53.124 - Bailiff As Deputy
  On written notice of the appointment from the judge, a constable of the county may deputize the bailiff in addition to other deputies authorized by...
• Texas Section 53.125 - Oath
  The following oath must be administered by the appointing judge to the bailiff appointed under this subchapter: "I solemnly swear that I will perform faithfully...
• Texas Section 53.126 - Term Of Office
  The bailiff holds office at the will of the judge of the court served by the bailiff. Added by Acts 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., Ch....
• Texas Section 53.127 - Duties
  A bailiff shall perform the duties imposed on bailiffs under the general laws of this state and the other duties required by the judge of...
• Texas Section 53.128 - Compensation
  The bailiff shall be compensated out of the general fund of the county in an amount to be set by the Commissioners Court of Tarrant...

Last modified: September 28, 2016