| Vote Recommendation | Economic Freedom | Property Rights | Personal Responsibility | Limited Government | Individual Liberty |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yes | Neutral | Neutral | Neutral | Positive | Neutral |
Relating to requiring the Texas Supreme Court to adopt rules
and provide judicial instruction regarding the application of foreign laws in
certain family law cases.
This bill would require the supreme court to adopt rules of evidence and procedure to implement limitations on the granting of comity to a foreign judgement or an arbitration award involving a marriage relationship or a parent-child relationship. The rules would have to protect against violations of constitutional rights and public policy. This bill outlines some requirements for the rules including that the court may issue any orders the court considers necessary to preserve principles of comity or the freedom to contract for arbitration, while protecting against violations constitutional rights and public policy.
This bill would also require the supreme court to provide a course for judges that hear certain cases in the family code that relate to issues regarding foreign law, foreign judgments, and arbitration awards.
HB 45 supports the rule of law under the Texas and United States constitutions. This bill makes clear that foreign law does not superseded our state or federal constitutions, Texas common law, or the public policies of this state. This supports our principle of limited government. For these reasons we support HB 45.