INTRODUCTION
The fundamental role of a court is to settle disputes, civil and criminal. A plaintiff makes a claim of wrongdoing by a defendant. Legal trials are rule-based. It is the rules that matter when choosing an attorney, whether you become a plaintiff or a defendant.
“A man who represents himself has a fool for a client.” Attributed to Abraham Lincoln, Quote Origin
“A plaintiff is the individual, organization (such as a business or non-profit), or other legal entity that formally starts legal action by filing a lawsuit in court. The core of the plaintiff’s position is asserting they’ve been wronged—perhaps suffering physical injury, financial loss, or a violation of legal rights—allegedly due to the defendant’s actions or inactions. — When a plaintiff brings a case, they seek a “remedy” from the court.” GovFacts, Plaintiff vs. Defendant: A Clear Guide to U.S. Legal Roles
CRIMINAL CASE
“In a criminal case, there is no plaintiff. Instead, the government brings legal action against the individual accused of a crime. This is because a crime is considered an offense not just against an individual victim, but against society as a whole. The government, whether at the state or federal level, takes on the responsibility of prosecution to maintain public order and uphold the law. Criminal case titles reflect this, styled as “The People of the State” or “The United States of America” versus the defendant.” LegalClarity: The Government is the Prosecuting Party in a Criminal Case
INNOCENT UNTIL PROVEN GUILTY
“In the U.S. legal system, a person accused of a crime is, by law, considered innocent until proven guilty. In other words, it is assumed that he is innocent, and it is the prosecutor’s responsibility to prove he committed the crime. This benefit of the assumption is extended to civil lawsuits as well. When a person files a civil lawsuit, claiming the other party did something wrong that somehow harmed him, he is required to bring enough evidence to convince the judge or jury. The other party does not have to provide evidence that he didn’t do it, though he can submit evidence that contradicts the plaintiff’s evidence.” Legal Dictionary: Burden of Proof
THE PRINCIPLE OF APPEAL
“An appeal is a request to a higher court to review a decision made by a lower court. The higher court can review the entire case, certain aspects of the case, or the sentence imposed by the lower court. The appellant, who may be the plaintiff or the defendant in the lower court case, must show the higher court that mistakes or errors were made during the previous trial, and that the case should be overturned, dismissed, or re-tried.” Legal Dictionary: Appeal
WHY IT MATTERS
The federal government features one supreme arbiter of appeals: the U.S. Supreme Court. The President appoints all federal judges, and the Senate confirms or denies the President’s appointees.
The State of Texas features two supreme arbiters of appeals.
- The Texas Supreme Court is the supreme appellate court for civil matters and juvenile matters.
- The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals is the supreme appellate court for criminal matters.
“The Court of Criminal Appeals is Texas’s highest court for criminal cases. The Court consists of a Presiding Judge and eight Judges. They are elected by the voters of the entire state, and they hold their offices for terms of six years.” Texas Judicial Branch: Court of Criminal Appeals
“Composed of the chief justice and eight justices, the Supreme Court of Texas is the court of last resort for civil matters in the state. The Supreme Court is in Austin, immediately northwest of the state Capitol.
“Supreme Court justices are elected to staggered six-year terms in statewide elections. When a vacancy arises, the governor may appoint a Justice, subject to Senate confirmation, to serve the remainder of an unexpired term until the next general election. Justices must be at least 35 years old, a citizen of Texas, licensed to practice law in Texas and must have practiced law (or have been a lawyer and a judge of a court of record together) for at least ten years (see Texas Constitution, Art. 5, Sec. 2).” Texas Judicial Branch: Supreme Court
ALL APPEALS, CRIMINAL AND CIVIL, START IN THE COURT OF APPEALS
“Texas has fifteen courts of appeals with intermediate appellate jurisdiction. The First through Fourteenth Court of Appeals have intermediate appellate jurisdiction in both civil and criminal cases appealed from district or county courts. Each of these 14 courts of appeals has jurisdiction in a specific geographical region of the state.” Texas Judicial Branch: Courts Of Appeal
Why does the fact that the above judges are elected in statewide elections matter to you?
Back in 2018, the Fifth Court of Appeals in one election turned from a highly qualified conservative (Republican) majority to an unqualified liberal (Democratic) majority.
“The Republican majority that Texas’s 5th Court of Appeals held for almost 20 years came to an end after last week’s elections in what is probably the real local upset of the midterms. Overnight, the court of 13 Republican judges became majority Democrat with eight winning seats, including a new Democratic chief justice.” The Dallas Observer, November 13, 2018
Ahead of the November 2018 general elections, the Dallas Morning News posted a review of all the candidates. That article rated 100% of the Republican candidates imminently qualified while rating 100% of the Democratic candidates unqualified. Consequently, a flood of faulty appeals was sent to the Texas Supreme Court and to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals.
You have 8 hours each day to be productive. The top appellate courts cannot dispense justice for all cases presented to them. Like you, there is just so much time in a day for personal activity.
REPUBLICAN PERSPECTIVE
Our form of government in the State of Texas is the representative republican form of government stipulated in the U.S. Constitution, Article IV, Section 4. The first recorded instance of this form of government is recorded in Exodus 18:13-26. Moses was unable to judge all disputes, working “from the morning until the evening.” Moses’ father-in-law, Jethro, prescribed a tier of judges to settle the small matters, leaving Moses to represent the people to God, the Supreme Judge.
In the Democratic Party, the platform is a top-down directive of the will of the oligarchs of the party to their underlings. Generally speaking, most Democrats follow the dictates of the platform.
The word republic derives from the Latin phrase, res publica, meaning “the people’s thing”. The Republican Party Platform is the product of propositions from qualified Republican voters, that is to say, voters of record in the Primary Elections.
The key differentiator between Democratic voters and Republican voters is the political force that constructs the platforms of the respective parties.
“The grassroots are the ordinary people in a region, or in a political party.
The “grassroots” level is the opposite of the leadership level. In politics, having grassroots support means having the backing of the people, rather than of party bigwigs.
A grassroots movement, or campaign, is one which organizes people at the most local level to take political action.” The Political Dictionary: Grassroots
ACTION & CLOSING
There are three fundamentals to good Republican government: understanding the highest authority, education, and participation.
AUTHORITY: “The Americans are the first people whom Heaven has favored with an opportunity of deliberating upon and choosing the forms of government under which they should live.” Founding Father John Jay
EDUCATION: “Freedom can exist only in the society of knowledge. Without learning, men are incapable of knowing their rights.” Founding Father Benjamin Rush
PARTICIPATION: “We do not have government by the majority. We have government by the majority who participate.” Founding Father Thomas Jefferson
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