Courts

A new report finds that Texas courts use very different yardsticks to decide who’s poor enough to get a court-appointed lawyer. That patchwork often leaves people without the legal defense in a criminal trial that the Constitution promises.

The U.S. sued Texas after the Biden administration vowed to oppose Texas’ new near-total abortion ban. The lawsuit joins several legal challenges already in progress.

As dozens of legal battles play out, Texas parents have found themselves caught in confusion about whether their children have to mask up at school.

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said Monday that the Justice Department will protect people trying to obtain or provide abortions in Texas, in the wake of the state's new restrictive abortion law.

The law allows private citizens to sue anyone who performs or helps someone get an abortion after roughly six weeks. If successful, the plaintiff could be awarded at least $10,000.

The law would allow private citizens to sue abortion providers and anyone who provides any kind of support to a woman who gets an abortion after six weeks.

The U.S. Justice Department sued Abbott and Texas after U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland called the order “dangerous and unlawful.”

A federal court ruled Texas was violating the National Voter Registration Act by not allowing people to register when they updated their drivers' license information online while allowing it in person.

Immigrant advocates say DACA was only a band-aid. U.S. District Judge Andrew Hanen's recent order to halt new DACA applications puts the pressure on Congress to Act.

Some Democrats have said it's ultimately Gov. Abbott's responsibility to restore the funding he chose to veto.