New law makes going green easier for HOA residents

San Antonio HOA Lawyer Trey Wilson wrote:

SAN ANTONIO – The Texas legislature put some limits on homeowners associations, adding rules that would make going green easier for homeowners.

That change in the law actually took place a year and a half ago but groups that promote solar say many HOAs don’t even know about it and continue to ban solar panels from their neighborhoods.

GALVESTON HOA PREZ files $10 million defamation suit against resident

San Antonio HOA Lawyer Trey Wilson wrote:

GALVESTON – A local homeowners association president alleges he is the focal point of certain false statements made by another resident and has filed a $10 million lawsuit. 

In recent court papers filed Nov. 29 in Galveston County District Court, Seascape Owners Association president Ron Benotti accuses Richard Alan Collier of making defamatory remarks and emailing them to numerous individuals.

The suit alleges Collier wrongfully labeled Benotti as “arrogant,” “incompetent,” “dishonest,” “unethical” and “harassing.”

Things the defendant said included that the plaintiff mishandled a beach nourishment dune restoration project, acted unethically and illegally with no regard to the association’s bylaws or state laws and engaged in character assassination and a “personal vendetta” against him, according to the original petition.

Benotti points out that in the emails Collier “negligently or maliciously” stated the plaintiff committed election fraud; spied on Collier and his family, friends and business associates; and blamed the respondent for lying and financially misleading the homeowners association.

“The defendant intentionally or recklessly made statements that created a high degree of risk of harm yet deliberately proceeded to act with conscious disregard or indifference to the risk,” the suit says.

Benotti insists he has incurred substantial loss of his reputation and has suffered severe emotional distress.

A jury trial is requested.

Galveston County 56th District Court Judge Lonnie Cox is presiding over the case.

Case No. 12-CV-2972

'Jesus is the reason for the season' sign sparks controversy in Washington

San Antonio HOA Lawyer Trey Wilson wrote:

PASCO, Wash. - Jesus seems to be the reason for neighbors to fight about a sign in one Pasco man's yard. His large Christmas decoration has become the cause of controversy. The homeowner's association says this sign breaks its rules.

Missouri HOA Garnishes Man's Bank Account days before Christmas

San Antonio HOA Lawyer Trey Wilson wrote:  Talk about heartless.  Days after the death of his granddaughter, and the week before Christmas, a Kansas City HOA garnished the bank account of a past due homeowner.  Watch the video here:

Man's rough month includes homeowners association fight | Local News - KMBC Home

Bexar County Jury Awards HOA $208K from former President and Lawyer

San Antonio HOA Lawyer Trey Wilson wrote:

A jury has spoken in the somewhat protracted dispute between the Ventura s HOA and various owners of properties in that northeast Bexar County subdivision. The former HOA President and its former attorney were hit with a whopping $280K verdict on December 21, 2012.

Watch the videos from WOAI TV below.

HOA Sued for Cleaning Up Home Owner’s Patio Trash

San Antonio HOA Lawyer Trey Wilson wrote:

From The Buffalo News, N.Y.

Dec. 17 — When neighbors took it upon themselves to clean Suzanne Taylor’s cluttered patio in Buffalo’s exclusive Waterfront Village, she accused them of trespassing and discrimination, and eventually sued them in federal court.

After a three-year legal battle, a federal appeals court found Taylor’s suit to be “groundless and frivolous” and ordered a lower-court judge to award attorney fees to the home owners organization she sued.

Senior U.S. District Judge John T. Curtin, who had previously denied attorney fees to the defendants, did exactly that last week to the tune of $107,322.

“It’s not enough to prevail. Our clients had to prove her suit was frivolous,” said Minryu Kim, a lawyer for the Harbour Pointe Homeowners Association. “It’s very, very rare that courts award attorney fees to prevailing defendants.”

In discrimination cases, courts have a long history of not awarding attorney fees to defendants because of the “chilling effect” that might have on future discrimination cases.

Taylor had claimed disability discrimination — she said she suffers from depression — and Curtin found that her case was not “entirely unreasonable or without foundation.”

Now Taylor feels that the decision to award attorney fees will have other ramifications. 

“I really think there’s going to be a chilling effect,” Taylor said of the courts’ ultimate ruling. “I really think lawyers are going to be afraid to take these cases.”

The case of Taylor v. Harbour Pointe began more than four years ago, when neighbors, who 

had complained that Taylor’s patio was a “pigsty,” cleaned it up and moved several items to the inside of her garage.

When Taylor, who was out of town at a college reunion, returned home and found that her patio had been cleaned, she called police and filed a report accusing her neighbors of trespassing and burglary.

She eventually took her case, which became a housing discrimination complaint, to the state Division of Human Rights and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Read more: http://www.houselogic.com/news/home-thoughts/dispute-about-pigsty-in-buffalo-turns-into-a-legal-battle-royal/#ixzz2FbDLpXmZ

Former CrimeStoppers Head, Veteran Dallas Cop Theadora Ross, Sentenced After Stealing $250,000 From CrimeStoppers Reward Fund

From 2006 to 2010, Dallas police officer Theadora Ross was the respected head of the Dallas area Crime Stoppers program.  You know Crime Stoppers:  there are branches of Crime Stoppers all over the world, dedicated to solving crimes by allowing people to provide information that may lead to an arrest of an evildoer without having to directly deal with the police face to face. 

Crime Stoppers Organizations Are Big Deals These Days, With Big Reward Funds

Being able to share what someone knows without having to give their name has proven to be an invaluable tool to law enforcement, and Crime Stoppers is viewed as a major crime-fighting tool in most law enforcement circles.  Part of its reputation has come from the ability of Crime Stoppers to bring new information to police when investigations don't have much to go on, using money:  Crime Stoppers offers rewards to folk who come forward and spill what they know.  You've probably seen an advertisement or two, where a reward is offered for information in an unsolved case. 

Dallas Cop Sentenced for Taking $250,000 From Dallas Crime Stoppers' Pot of Reward Money

Which means that Crime Stoppers has money in a pot for those rewards, something that Theadora Ross found just too, too tempting there at the Dallas Crime Stoppers office.  Never mind that Theadora Ross was a Dallas police officer, who had sworn to perserve, protect, and defend:  Officer Ross was sentenced this week to 46 months incarceration in a federal pen for income tax evasion and conspiracy to commit wire fraud (she pled guilty back in August 2012, there was no trial). 

Dallas Police Department Senior Corporal Theodora Ross was arrested back in June 2010 by Dallas police while setting in her Crime Stoppers office; seems her pal, Malva Delley, spilled the beans on Ross after Delley was questioned by police.  How did the cops find out?  An observant bank teller became suspicious after seeing Delley collecting more than one CrimeStoppers reward, and picked up a phone.

Delley and Ross were both arrested, and Delley pled guilty back to one count of conspiracy to make a false statement to a financial institution in May 2011. 

While Dallas citizens (and Dallas police) trusted Theodora Ross to run Crime Stoppers, seems that the Dallas police officer was busy creating fake tip numbers to be paid on Crime Stopper cases.  These tip numbers are the tools to allow CrimeStoppers to pay rewards to anonymous tippers: present the tip number to the bank, and you are paid the reward in cash.  It was an easy scheme:  Delley would use Ross's fake tip number to collect the money from the bank as a Crime Stoppers reward. 

The rewards added up.  By the time that these two grifters were caught, they had taken a quarter of a million dollars from the North Texas Crime Commission, which funds the Dallas Crime Stoppers (along with Dallas court fines, Collin County court fines, fundraising efforts and charitable donations to Crime Stoppers).  That's right:  $250,000.00.

Ross Ordered to Pay Back the Money and To Pay Her Income Taxes, Too

Luckily, the money may be recouped.  Ross has been ordered to pay $274,304.00 in restitution as part of her sentencing.  That's covering losses to Crime Stoppers as well as taxes due:  over a four year time period, it was found that Officer Ross failed to pay around $38,000 in income taxes on the $175,000 of income she received in her conning.  That's right:  the IRS expects to be paid even if the income is from an illegal grift.

Here's a question that hasn't been answered in the news coverage or the court opinions or FBI press releases:  is that bank teller whose tip lead to the discovery of this huge fraud on CrimeStoppers going to get a reward for calling in her suspicions?  Just wondering. 

DA files charges to force Camelot II, Windsor Oaks cleanup

The Bexar County district attorney's office charged 12 landlords with misdemeanors Thursday, alleging they failed to clean up their properties in two troubled Northeast Side neighborhoods.

The charges of maintaining a public nuisance come almost two months after officials announced a crackdown aimed at helping clean up conditions in those two neighborhoods, which District Attorney Susan Reed described as Third World-like.

“This is quite a bit of work for a short period of time,” said Adriana Biggs, the chief of the DA's white-collar-crime division. “I don't see as quick results as we would like, but there really is no other way to go around it, other than this just jumping through these hoops in the civil and criminal arena.”

The 12 landlords own 10 properties in the troubled Camelot II and Windsor Oaks neighborhoods, which have been plagued by illegal dumping and vacant homes that have become magnets for trash and debris.

Those 10 homes were among the 30 cited by the DA's office in October for violating the state's Health and Safety code.

Briggs added that 11 landlords had avoided misdemeanor charges by “abating the nuisance” on their properties so they no longer violated state law.

Additionally, she said the DA's office still was attempting to identify and locate the owners of three of the homes.

One of the houses is owned by a limited liability corporation that apparently hasn't registered with the Texas secretary of state; two of the landlords list their vacant property as their mailing address.

“It just takes a little bit of sleuthing to figure where these people are,” Biggs said.

Both Camelot II and Windsor Oaks are unincorporated neighborhoods that lie outside any city's boundaries and rely on the Bexar County government for services.

However, county governments don't have the ordinance-making powers that city governments have, which prevents Bexar County commissioners from simply requiring that landlords set up trash and solid waste removal services for their properties.

The DA's office adopted a strategy to try to force the landlords to clean up the mess by charging them with violating the state's Health and Safety Code. However, the code requires that property owners be given notice 30 days before any legal action can be taken, preventing a quick resolution of the problem.

“It can turn into a very long and drawn-out legal process,” Precinct 3 Commissioner Kevin Wolff said. “It's not what the courts were created for, they weren't created for enforcement. But that's essentially what we're having to utilize them for.”

He added that having to depend on the Health and Safety Code to mandate the cleanup also meant the problem had to reach a threshold where public health was endangered before the county could act.

Commissioners Court voted Nov. 20 to lobby for legislation that would give it the power to mandate that landlords with two or more properties in unincorporated areas of the county must set up trash service for their property. The Legislature convenes in January.

Prosecutorial Misconduct in Michael Morton Case: Judge Ken Anderson Faces Court of Inquiry and Now State Bar of Texas Disciplinary Proceedings, Too

Among the instances of prosecutorial misconduct that we've monitored, the continuing saga of Williamson County Prosecutor Ken Anderson (later Judge Kenneth Anderson) is one of the most shocking.  So much so that an official Court of Inquiry has been ordered by the Texas Supreme Court upon recommendation of State District Judge Sid Harle.

For details on that recommendation, read our earlier post.  Suffice to say, Judge Harle found probable cause that District Attorney Ken Anderson illegally withheld evidence in the murder trial of Michael Morton.

For all the details, check out the Report to Court filed by Gerry Goldstein of San Antonio, John Wesley Raley of Houston and Barry Scheck of New York City on behalf of the Innocence Project.  It's around 150 pages and provides the details that went into the Texas Supreme Court's decision to move forward with a Court of Inquiry.

What Happened to Michael Morton - The Withheld Evidence

As you'll recall, Mr. Morton was unjustly convicted of killing his wife, Christine, and as an innocent man spent 25 years of his life in a Texas prison.  Most agree that Michael Morton is a free man today because of the continued efforts of the Innocence Project, and now Mr. Morton is dedicating his efforts to help others who have been victims of prosecutorial misconduct.

What happened to Mr. Morton?  You can read the full opinion of the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals here, where they overturned his 1987 conviction.  DNA evidence convinced the CCA that another person, not Michael Morton, was responsible for the death of his young wife.

The key to the pending Ken Anderson proceeding is the allegation that Morton would not have been convicted in the first place if the evidence held by the District Attorney's Office had been revealed.  This included (1) the Mortons' young son eyewitness account that the man who killed his mother was not his dad; (2) the bandanna found at the scene with DNA evidence (this proved to be someone else's DNA, not Mr. Morton's DNA; (3) the victim's credit card found at a store in San Antonio; and (4) a forged endorsement on a check payable to the victim that was cashed almost two weeks after Mrs. Morton died.

State Bar of Texas Files Disciplinary Action Against Anderson - Fight For His Bar License

The State Bar of Texas investigated the allegations of prosecutorial misconduct against Ken Anderson and after 10 months, a formal grievance was filed against him.  This is another lawsuit.

You can read the Disciplinary Petition filed against Ken Anderson here.  This was filed in September 2012.  The Texas Supreme Court has appointed State District Judge Kelly G. Moore (of Yoakum and Terry Counties) to preside over the trial, which will be a public proceeding at the Williamson County Courthouse.  

On Monday, Judge Ken Anderson filed affirmative defenses in that case, arguing the statute of limitations has run in this case against him by the Bar.  That's right: he's arguing that the State Bar filed its case too late, under the State Bar of Texas' own Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct. 

 Court of Inquiry Into Morton Prosecutor Ken Anderson Begins December 10, 2012 - Fight Over Evidence Tampering Charges / Contempt

Meanwhile, Tarrant County Judge Louis Sturns is presiding over the Court of Inquiry where the issues involve whether or not Ken Anderson should face evidence tampering charges and contempt of court charges for withhold evidence that led to the conviction of an innocent man and his incarceration for over two decades.

Discovery fights are ongoing in that matter, with the expected "shield and sword" arguments being used by Anderson's attorneys to try and get past Michael Morton's lawyers' claims of attorney-client priviledge, among other things.  Rusty Hardin is acting as Special Prosecutor in this case.

Randy Sorrells honored at STCL

South Texas College of Law has moved their legal clinics into a new home and greatly expanded their student legal clinics in order to serve the Harris County indigent population.



They have named the new legal clinic the Randy Sorrels ('87) Legal Clinic in his honor.

The Honorable Leta Parks

The Honorable Leta Parks has been named Chair of the College of the State Bar of Texas - congratulations Leta!



What a great honor for an outstanding lady!

Harris County, Texas Free Legal Services Phone Numbers

Attorney General Office

713-802-9293



Aid to Victims of Domestic Abuse

713-224-9911



Lone Star Legal Aid

713-652-0077



Houston Volunteer Lawyers Program

713-228-0732



University of Houston

Legal Aid Clinic

713-743-2094



South Texas College of Law

Randy Sorrells Legal Aid Clinic

713-652-0009



Free Legal Advice

Houston Bar Association

Free Legal Line - first & third Wednesday each month for 5pm - 9 pm

713-759-1133



Texas Father's for Equal Rights

713-960-0407



Women's Legal Hotline

800-777-3247



Crisis Hotline

713-228-1505



District Attorney for Harris County

713-755-5888



Houston Area Women's Center

713-528-6798



SAFE Program

Court Ordered Supervised Visits with Minor Children

713-755-5625



Harris County Child Protective Services

To report abuse and/or neglect of minor children

800-252-5400



This is not an exclusive list

Look on-line for more agencies



You can always call the "United Way" for more agencies



Crisis Hotline or Houston Area Women's Center might have other referrals if

they are unable to assist you - remember - never give up - keep calling if

you need assistance of any kind - funding changes each year because

grant money moves - so no list is ever accurate for more than a year --

if you need help -- you have to call around to find the help YOU NEED!



Good luck!

9-year-old boy’s fort causes a stir with the neighbors -- Austin

Nicholas Aarsvold, 9, built this wooden play fort between two shrubs on a strip of grass that separates his driveway from his neighbor’s. The Summerwood Homeowners Association wants the structure dismantled because it breaks homeowner rules. Nicholas’ mother, Ramona Aarsvold, is refusing to take it down.

Read the full story in the Austin American Statesman:

9-year-old boy’s fort causes a stir with the neighbors

Bank of America sues Nevada homeowner associations

Even financial giant Bank of America seems to get the run-around from some HOAs.

 

In Nevada, B of A has had enough, and on October 16, the bank filed a lawsuit alleging various modes of malfeasance by homeowners associations exercising control over properties foreclosed by the Bank.  

 

Here's a copy of the lawsuit.

 

The gist of B of A's complaint is one that Texas property owners regularly voice when they fall behind in HOA dues and assessmemnts -- the penalties, late fees, attorneys' fees and other collection costs are substantial, and are unjust.  It seems that HOAs in Nevada are rejecting B of A's tender of payments that don't inlude those annoying extra costs of collecting HOA assessments. Then, after refusing payment of assessments (only), the HOAs are refusing to remove liens, preventing the Bank from passing clear title to buyers at foreclosure sales.

 

However, the bank has a differnt angle on the HOA upcharges, which it alleges are not afforded priority lien status under Nevada mortage laws. That is, as a secured lender, with a securitized lien interest in the property, B of A believes that the attorneys' and related HOA collection fees don't have equal lien rights. Thus, the Bank has asked the District Court of Clark County, Nevada to decide what priority should be assigned to the various components of HOA charges against foreclosed properties.

 

The full story can be seen here: Bank of America sues Nevada homeowner associations - www.ktnv.com

Committee Finds Cinco Ranch HOA Board Violated State Law, Association Procedures

Committee Finds Cinco Ranch HOA Board Violated State Law, Association Procedures | InstantNewsKaty.com

'Party Rock Anthem' Halloween house shut down by HOA

Kevin Judd enjoys programming elaborate holiday light shows at his Riverside, Calif. home. But after a video of last Halloween's 'Party Rock Anthem' display went viral, his HOA decided that enough was enough.

Read the full article from MNN: 'Party Rock Anthem' Halloween house shut down by HOA | MNN - Mother Nature Network

UT Professors Relase Study on Contracts for Deed in Texas

San Antonio Texas Real Estate Attorney Trey Wilson wrote:

On October 19, Professors Peter Ward, Heather Way, and Lucy Wood from the University of Texas at Austin (my alma matter) presented their key findings of the Contract for Deed Prevalence Project, a year-long study examining emerging titling practices in low-income informal settlements in Texas. The study was commissioned by the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs, and focused on estimating the current number of recorded and unrecorded Contracts for Deed in Texas colonias in Cameron, El Paso, Hidalgo, Maverick, Starr, Webb and  Val Verde counties.

 

Here are some of the study's key findings with regard to RECORDED Contracts for Deed:

• RCFDs continue to be in use and recorded at significant rates in the border region and also interior counties far from the border.
• An estimated 16,261 total CFDs were recorded between 1989 and 2010 in the 10 counties, and that 5,451 of these CFDs are still active
• Most of the State's active RCFDs are in five counties: Bastrop, Travis, Webb, Maverick, and El Paso counties. The fewest outstanding contracts are in Starr, Guadalupe, and Val Verde counties.
• As one might expect, border counties with larger colonia populations had the largest absolute numbers of recorded CFDs.

Even more problematic, the study showed, is the widespread use of UNRECORDED Contracts for Deed. According to the study:

• approximately one of out of five recent purchasers in the surveyed counties purchased with a UCFD.
• UCFDs are most often used with consumer-to-consumer transactions, but can still be found in developer/land company sales.
• Consumers enteringinto UCFDs lack access to information about the land acquisition process and how to protect their interests.

The study also identified the following trends: 

• A “dramatic increase in clouded property titles” is anticipated in coming years as contract for deed properties are passed down to heirs, often without formal wills.


• Consumer-to-consumer transactions in older colonias, financed by sellers, are replacing sales by developers, with an accompanying lack of buyer safeguards such as title insurance and recorded deeds.


• Nearly half the homeowners in colonias and informal homestead subdivisions do not claim the homestead tax exemption to which they are entitled.

All persons interested in Texas Contracts for Deed would be fascinated by this terifficly informative study. The full report can be found HERE.

Child Support in Texas: So Many Questions!

Every week, it seems that several people ask me what they ought to be paying in child support, or how to change the amount of child support in their case. Child support is one of the most hotly contested matters in many Texas divorces, and often remains a bone of contention until the child is no longer eligible for child support.

In a series of topics in this blog, we’ll go over some of the most frequently asked questions about child support in Texas. The answers will be generic; you should always consult a family lawyer about the facts concerning your specific situation before making any decisions about setting, modifying or enforcing child support in your case.

By:  Cynthia W. Veidt, cindy@lpvlaw.com

Texas Employment Law Basics for Employers: Employee Discipline

Employers face the unenviable task of determining when and how to discipline employees for violations of the company’s policies or federal/state laws. Inevitably, the employer must consider whether taking disciplinary action will result in a claim by the employee of discrimination, harassment or other legal claims.

As an employer, you will never be “bulletproof.” But there are a few things that you can do to help minimize risk and maximize your defense when you must take appropriate disciplinary action.

First, make sure that you have communicated your policies and procedures to your employees in writing, preferably with a signed acknowledgment of receipt by each employee.  This should include your workplace rules and expectations concerning attendance, safety, employee conduct, and how you will address theft or other violations of criminal law, violations of non-discrimination and anti-harassment laws, and violations of workplace rules.

A progressive disciplinary policy is recommended, with a range of discretionary measures from an oral or written warning to immediate termination depending on the gravity of the violation. But if you do implement such a policy, be aware that you must BE CONSISTENT. No exceptions or exemptions for your favored or star employee should be allowed without a compelling and urgent (and reasonable) business necessity.

Make sure that the employee knows what your next step will be if the violations continue.

When you decide to take disciplinary action - document, document, document. Conduct an impartial investigation, obtain written statements from witnesses, make notes to the personnel file, and have the employee sign the warning or other disciplinary action.

Don’t act in haste or while emotions are running high. Take some time for reflection and consider all of the options available to you before deciding on a course of action.

When in doubt, run your proposed disciplinary action past another person. If you cannot articulate a neutral and compelling argument for taking that action, under these circumstances, you may wish to consider another alternative.


By: Cynthia W. Veidt, cindy@lpvlaw.com

San Antonio HOA Lawyer Trey Wilson wrote

Neighbors vs. HOA – A battle heats up in Houston

KTRK-TV: Neighbors vs. HOA: A battle heats up in Houston

Demond Fernandez

October 15, 2012

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- A group of neighbors is taking their homeowner's association to court. They say residents are paying up but not seeing results, and now they want to know what happened to hundreds of thousands of dollars. This is happening in the community of Pine Village North in northeast Houston. A group of fed-up homeowners who gathered in court Monday told us their HOA went too far when some board members were removed after questioning the spending.  Inside Pine Village North, there are townhomes with shattered windows and hazardous vacant units. 

Read more:http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?section=news/local&id=8829464

Florida homeowners form anti-HOA group

This is an interesting situation out of Florida. 200 property owners rally against an HOA.

Lake County homeowners form anti-HOA group

San Antonio HOA Lawyer Trey Wilson wrote:

Do Texas HOAs Have Power to Limit Display of Political Signs?

San Antonio HOA Lawyer Trey Wilson wrote:

With presidential elections in full swing, political signs are a common sight these days. Campaign signs appear on almost every corner, but did you know that Texas law authorizes HOAs to regulate and limit the display of political signs?

Section 202.009 of the Texas Property Code governs HOA regulation of political display signs, and authorizes property owners' associations to adopt restrictive covenants prohibiting  a property owner from displaying on the owner's property  signs advertising a political candidate or ballot item for an election with the following limits:

No restriction may be adopted or enforced which prohibits the display of political signs on private property:

(1)  on or after the 90th day before the date of the election to which the sign relates; or

(2)  before the 10th day after that election date.

An HOA may, however, enforce or adopt of a covenant that requires a sign to be ground-mounted; or limits a property owner to displaying only one sign for each candidate or ballot item.

An HOA may also enforce or adopt of a covenant that prohibits (and is allowed to remove) a sign that:

(1)  contains roofing material, siding, paving materials, flora, one or more balloons or lights, or any other similar building, landscaping, or nonstandard decorative component;

(2)  is attached in any way to plant material, a traffic control device, a light, a trailer, a vehicle, or any other existing structure or object;

(3)  includes the painting of architectural surfaces;

(4)  threatens the public health or safety;

(5)  is larger than four feet by six feet;

(6)  violates a law;

(7)  contains language, graphics, or any display that would be offensive to the ordinary person; or

(8)  is accompanied by music or other sounds or by streamers or is otherwise distracting to motorists.

Political Sign Thief Wrongfully Relies on HOA Restrictions

Homeowner catches Obama sign thief

What is a BVS form in the State of Texas?

You will need to submit a BVS form to the Court for all divorces and other family law cases in Texas.



BVS stands for Bureau of Vital Statistics.



This form is sent to Austin to be filed -- it is entered into a central computer system available to people to "track" to see if you are divorced.



Before Texas started the BVS Form tracking system, attorneys had to call each county clerk's office to see if a person was divorced in that county.  It was time-consuming and inaccurate.



I think this tracking system started less than 10 years ago - but I could be wrong on the exact time of when it started -- quite frankly I've forgotten.  



Initially attorneys hated filling out the form because it required getting a lot of information from clients - Social Security numbers, dates of birth, Texas Driver's License Numbers, home addresses, city they were born in, race, maiden name, kid's social security number, kid's date of birth, etc.



Also, a lot of attorneys did not like a state agency having all of this information available on Texas residents - but now attorneys have gotten grown accustomed to it.



The judges will not grant a divorce without submitting the form -- no form - no divorce.



Now an attorney can just contact Austin and find out if a divorced has been filed -- quick and easy!