June 11, 2024
Gov. Greg Abbott on Tuesday appointed three conservative justices to the new 15th Court of Appeals, which lawmakers created last year to oversee appeals involving the state, challenges to the constitutionality of state laws and cases from business courts.
Proponents say the new appeals court will improve judicial efficiency, place people with business expertise on the bench and allow issues with implications statewide to be heard by judges elected statewide. Critics say Republicans created the new courts so businesses and the state could avoid having their cases heard by judges in urban counties where Democrats dominate local judicial races.
Former Texas Supreme Court Justice Scott Brister will serve as chief justice alongside Justices Scott Field and April Farris. They will each serve two-year terms from Sept. 1 through 2026.
“These highly experienced individuals will serve a vital role in our state’s effort to ensure that the Texas Constitution and state statutes are applied uniformly throughout Texas and that businesses have a sophisticated and efficient process to resolve their disputes,” Abbott said in a news release.
Farris has served on the 1st Court of Appeals in Houston since January 2021. She was previously an appellate litigation partner at Yetter Coleman LLP, a Houston-based firm, and an assistant solicitor general at the Texas Solicitor General’s office. She is an honorary board member for Houston’s Christian Legal Society.
