About

The Texas Appeals Journal describes appellate court decisions in Texas cases that have drawn significant press coverage.

What the Journal covers

The Journal covers decisions from any appellate court deciding a Texas case, including:

• the Supreme Court of Texas
• the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals
• the Texas courts of appeals, including the Fifteenth Court of Appeals
• the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, in appeals from federal courts in Texas
• the U.S. Supreme Court, in cases that arose in Texas

How cases are chosen

The Journal selects Texas appellate decisions that received significant press coverage in the weeks before publication. Coverage is measured by the number of distinct news outlets reporting on a decision.

Because selection follows press coverage, the cases described here are not a representative sample of the work of Texas courts.

How articles are written

Articles describe what a court decided and the reasons the court gave, based on the court’s own opinions. Each article identifies the court, the docket number, the date of decision and the disposition, and links to the opinion and to the press coverage it draws on.

Articles do not assess whether a decision was correct, predict the outcome of other cases, or explain how a decision might apply to any other situation. See the disclaimer.