At the highest level, the Texas Supreme Court hears civil cases and the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals hears criminal cases.
"Bail" is the security given by the accused that he will appear and answer before the proper court the accusation brought against him, and includes a bail bond or a personal bond.
Two of the County Courts-at-Law handle civil cases, on a full time basis, in which the matter in controversy exceeds $500 but does not exceed $200,000. They provide adjudication in suits of debt, negligence, personal injury, delinquent taxes, and eminent domain.
A bond forfeiture case is filed when a misdemeanor defendant failed to appear for a hearing or trial. If an answer is not filed in a timely fashion, the plaintiff may take a default judgment. For case information or citation inquiries, contact our Bond Forfeiture Department at 210-335-2237.
If the defendant resides in the state where the court case is filed, once the defendant has been legally notified, the court gets personal jurisdiction over that party and can now start the legal process. It is more complicated if the defendant lives in a different state than where the lawsuit was filed.
Definition: Jurisdictional limits refer to the boundaries or limits set by the law or constitution that determine the extent of a court's authority to make decisions. This means that a court can only make decisions within a certain geographic area or within the limits set by the law.
Counties having statutory county courts, the district courts generally have exclusive jurisdiction in civil cases where the amount in controversy is $200,000 or more, and concurrent jurisdiction with the statutory county courts in cases where the amount in controversy exceeds $500 but is less than $200,000.
If the defendant fulfills their obligation to appear in court, the bail bond company recovers the full amount of the bond. Conversely, if the defendant fails to appear, the bail bond company loses this amount, and the defendant may be liable for the financial loss incurred by the bond company.
Bail is an agreement that you will attend court if you have been charged with one or more offences. This agreement means that you won't be held in custody while the matter is in court. It may have one or more conditions that you must follow.