Texas District Courts' General Jurisdiction in Family Law Adoption Matters

Texas district courts are courts of general jurisdiction. Dubai Petroleum Co. v. Kazi, 12 S.W.3d 71, 75 (Tex. 2000). Moreover, article five, section eight of the Texas Constitution provides that a district court’s jurisdiction “consists of exclusive, appellate, and original jurisdiction of all actions, proceedings, and remedies, except in cases where exclusive, appellate, or original jurisdiction may be conferred by this Constitution or other law on some other court, tribunal, or administrative body.” Tex. Const. art. V, § 8; see also Kazi, 12 S.W.3d at 76.

The government code further specifies that district courts “may hear and determine any cause that is cognizable by courts of law or equity and may grant any relief that could be granted by either courts of law or equity.” Tex. Gov’t Code Ann. § 24.008 (West 2004). In other words, district courts sometimes have overlapping jurisdiction to hear cases recognizable in law or equity. Unless the legislature or Congress has provided that a claim be heard elsewhere, district courts are presumed to have subject matter jurisdiction over a claim. Kazi, 12 S.W.3d at 75. Further, the modern trend is to “‘reduce the vulnerability of final judgments to attack on the ground that the tribunal lacked subject matter jurisdiction.’” Id. at 76 (quoting Restatement (Second) of Judgments § 11 cmt. E, at 113 (1982)). Lastly, the Texas Family Code specifically authorizes district courts to issue adoption orders. See Tex. Fam. Code Ann. § 162.016 (West 2002).