CCL ONLINE FORM INSTRUCTIONS

(September 30, 2011)

 PLEASE DO NOT USE VERSIONS OF A FORM RELEASED BEFORE THE LAST REVISION!  If you have downloaded and are maintaining a set of forms, please destroy your current set and replace all forms with the updated forms on this site!  The file name for each form, if it has been revised, will contain the revision date.

             The Texas Legislature has mandated new documentation and notifications requiring Courts to update various forms.  In addition, a number of updates and corrections have been addressed in existing forms, thanks to the input of the Bar, the Probation Department, and the County Clerk's office.  Most forms have been replaced or upgraded..

            The most commonly utilized forms are provided on this site in "fillable" pdf format.  All you need is a pdf file reader, (the Adobe reader is free on the web), and a printer.  Download and save the files to your computer for repeated or later use, replacing your current plea form files, or open them now.  Either way, you can complete the forms and print them in very little time.

            As an additional service to the Bar, the forms typically required in the most common plea circumstances are also provided below in fillable "packets." Type in information once, such as the cause number, and it is inserted automatically everywhere it appears in the packet.  The packets will save a lot of time over individual forms!

            Each plea situation is different, and additional individual forms are often required, even when you use a packet.  You are responsible for knowing the local Court rules, including memos from the Courts to the Bar, in determining which forms must be provided for the plea.

            For diehard fans of forms completed in handwriting, simply open the form in your pdf file reader and, without entering any information, print it.  The blank form will print.  If you choose this method, remember your handwritten entries must be completely LEGIBLE.

            All forms submitted in Court must be consistent; therefore, any reproduction of these forms in another format must match the Courts' version of the form exactly, including font size, page breaks, margins and word or space placement, and may not exclude any portion of the official version.

            Regular problems with plea papers have been occurring, and both the prosecution bar and the defense bar need to pay attention to the issues which routinely arise, including:

1.         Insufficient description of offense, [e.g. Theft O/$500, DWI (Enhanced);

            Possession of Marijuana  2 oz or less]

2.         Incomplete defendant information on probation applications and orders

            granting probation;

3.         Incomplete attorney information on requisitions, (e. g. no printed name);

4.         More than one requisitions for the same client in multiple cases disposed of

            in the same transaction;

5.         Failure of prosecutor to fill in name on jail plea judgment;

6.         Inaccurate or incomplete Disclosure of Plea Agreement, (see below);

7.         Application for Community Supervision is not properly marked, (see below);

8.         Use of outdated forms;

9.         Work release requirements, (see below).

Disclosure of Plea Agreement