The short answer is no. There are, when you think about it, many occasions when a quorum of members may be present; either at an event related to or wholly unrelated to government process. Three times when a quorum is not a meeting For precise language about this...
Texas Municipal Law Blog
The uncanny history of Monopoly
No, this is not a post about the Sherman Antitrust Act or the FTC. It's about the game Monopoly, and how conventional wisdom about the game's origins can be misleading. Two different inventors According to the book The Monopolists: Obsession, Fury, and the Scandal...
Municipal law has been around since medieval times
Municipal law—those laws relating to a city, as opposed to a state, nation or many nations— can be traced to medieval times. As far as we can ascertain the city of Freiburg im Breisgau was one of the first urban areas in Europe to institute municipal laws. These laws...
What is a referendum, anyway?
You hear it all the time; that a school board is trying to pass a referendum. You see it on your voting slip. People might ask you, are you for the referendum or against it? Some of us are profoundly involved in the referendum process. To us, it can be a real...
Social media fuels local government engagement
Are you looking for a way to get people engaged with their local government? One of the best things you can do is organize on social media. Sites like Facebook, YouTube and others have become rallying points for civic-minded people and places to create more...
How Covid-19 affected city population trends
There are many reasons that might prompt someone to move to or from a city. Before the advent of the pandemic the three top reasons for a move according to Livability.com were for family reasons and: To get a new home or a better home To have their own home or...
What is municipal law?
Everyone wants to talk about municipal law. Well, that may not actually be the case. The truth is that not many people truly understand the full scope of municipal law. What is compelling is that it can, and often does, influence and affect our day-to-day lives....
What effect has Covid-19 had on the practice of law?
Law firms are typically based on tradition. They are not usually on the cutting edge of technology. In fact, for most people the image of a successful attorney is one sitting behind a broad, sturdy, century-old desk, with a wall of law books as the backdrop. But the...
What is a heritage preservation commission?
Many cities across the nation have commissions of passionate and subject-matter educated residents who participate in their city's Heritage Preservation Commission (HPC). Cities across Texas have these bodies. The aim is to protect and promote the architecture and...
Ethics guidelines for Texas officials
The performance of public officials comes under routine scrutiny in Texas. When assessing the work of an official, ethics laws become the central measuring stick. Everyone who receives a public-service role has a responsibility to the public they serve. Ethics is...
