Coronavirus information from the State Bar of Texas
Court guidance and closures
We wanted to share some Texas specific updates related to the COVID-19 pandemic, courtesy of the State Bar of Texas.
“Stay Home, Stay Safe” Orders and Travel Authorization for Lawyers
Many Texas cities and counties have issued “stay home, stay safe” orders in response to the pandemic. To provide guidance on these orders, the Office of Court Administration (OCA) issued a Travel Authorization letter on March 26 for attorneys and staff. It states that as the need for legal services increases during the pandemic, Texas lawyers should lead by example with telework, alternatives to in-person meetings, and social distancing, but that they also must be permitted to practice law during local stay-at-home orders and other restrictions on travel and business practices—as long as every effort is made to avoid risks to the public health. To read all of the court operations guidance released by the OCA, click here.
Videoconference Proceedings and Resources
The OCA is providing judges the ability to stream and host court proceedings via Zoom and YouTube. CSI provides remote / video-conference depositions services using Zoom. Contact us to learn more.