AUSTIN — State attorneys on Monday filed a motion seeking to remove the presiding judge in the long-running Texas school finance case because of alleged improper communications — primarily emails — between the judge and lawyers for the plaintiff school districts.
The motion by Attorney General Greg Abbott’s office seeks to have state District Judge John Dietz immediately recused from the case because of a series of emails between Dietz and plaintiff attorneys earlier this year that were not shared with state attorneys.
The emails in question were exchanged between March 19 and May 14, according to the motion, filed in Travis County District Court on Monday.
On May 14, Dietz invited all the attorneys from both sides to meet privately in his chambers to discuss his final ruling, which is expected to be issued later this summer. The session, which was closed to the public, included lawyers from Abbott’s office who have been defending the state in the case.
“That the record in this matter is still open, that defendants’ counsel was not notified of the communications or given an opportunity to respond, and that some of the emails’ content suggest that the judge is coaching the plaintiffs’ counsel in order to improve their case, raise a reasonable question regarding the judge’s impartiality,” state attorneys said in the motion.
The motion will be ruled on by a separate judge in the 3rd Administrative Judicial Region of Texas. The presiding judge for the region is Billy Ray Stubblefield of Georgetown.
Houston attorney David Thompson, who represents one group of plaintiffs that includes the Dallas school district, disputed the state’s allegations and said the plaintiffs will vigorously contest the motion.
“We very strongly believe all the communications that have occurred in the case have been appropriate and consistent with the rules of procedure for Texas courts,” Thompson said.
He pointed out that state attorneys previously agreed that each side would submit proposed findings of fact to the judge that would not be shared — at least initially — with the opposing side.
“We hope this motion will be considered and ruled on expeditiously so that a final judgment can be entered and process moved forward,” Thompson said. “We believe Judge Dietz has conducted a very thorough and very fair trial on an issue of extreme importance to all citizens of Texas.”
Judge Dietz originally ruled in February 2013 that the Texas school finance system was unconstitutional because it failed to provide enough money for schools to meet state requirements and also distributed funding in an inequitable manner.
After state lawmakers poured new funding into schools in the wake of the ruling, Dietz scheduled a new round of hearings earlier this year to determine whether his order should be modified because of the Legislature’s actions.
The judge is widely expected to affirm his 2013 decision in his final order this summer, but it is unclear how he will address the funding increase and a reduction in student testing approved by lawmakers. Hundreds of school districts that sued the state said the additional money barely improved the funding system.
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