Chief Justice of the Texas Supreme Court Nathan Hecht gave his biennial State of the Judiciary address, urging for various reforms and warning against partisanship.

The Supreme Court serves as the highest civil and juvenile court in Texas, while the Court of Criminal Appeals holds the “final appellate jurisdiction in criminal cases.”

Supreme Court justices are elected, and Chief Justice Hecht is currently serving his seventh term. Since first being elected in 1988, Hecht has become “the longest-serving member of the Court in Texas history and the longest-tenured Texas judge in active service.”

The address opened with an examination of how the COVID-19 pandemic affected the way the justice system worked, noting that some of the innovations were productive developments.

“Lawyers and judges resist change. To their credit, stability and predictability are virtues in the law,” Hecht said. “But obstinacy is not.”

“The pandemic is — and we must see it as — a defining moment … an impetus for innovation and change,” he continued. “I don’t mean change for change’s sake. And I certainly don’t mean change for the worse.”

“But we have long known that improvements can and should be made, and we have not adequately responded,” Hecht added. Hecht then noted how COVID-19 led to the introduction of Zoom hearings, which he considered to be a positive addition to the judicial system.

However, Hecht cautioned that “electronic participation is not right for every proceeding, like most jury trials, for example.” “And losing the benefits of in-person exchanges and the experience of the solemn awe of the courtroom carry their own costs.”

Nevertheless, the veteran Chief Justice suggested that virtual hearings ought to remain a feature in the Texas judicial system as they have increased access and participation.

“It would be virtually impossible, for example, for visiting judges and lawyers willing to assist small border counties with increased dockets in Operation Lone Star if they had to travel across the State,” he noted.

Hecht also advocated for increasing judicial wages, pointing to the fact that no salary increase has been made since 2013. He insisted that “the gross inadequacy of compensation for Texas judges, a perennial issue, is once again critical.”

“Texas is in next-to-last place in the nation, behind all states but West Virginia, and just behind Guam,” he said. “We cannot expect to recruit top-notch lawyers to be judges when they not only must take a substantial pay cut leaving practice, they are [also] faced with no reasonable hope for dependable raises.”

Hecht also indicated his support for several legislative proposals, including the institution of business courts, improvement in the bail process, increased access to legal services, and other items related to the judicial system.

Hecht concluded by saying, “I grow concerned that political divisions among us threaten the judicial independence essential to the rule of law.”

“When judges follow the law, even against the popular will of the time — especially against the popular will of the time — they have done their job,” he reminded his colleagues. “The pressure is on the judge to surrender independence, and the law, to popular will — to take sides.”

“That pressure destroys the rule of law essential to justice for all,” Hecht said. “We must oppose it in every form at all costs.”

“The Texas Judiciary is committed to upholding the rule of law. It is committed to a court system that is fair, efficient, and just, interpreting and applying the law guided by fixed principles,” Hecht said. “God bless you, and may God bless Texas.”