(Note: As I have done in past elections, I am running a series of Q&As for judicial candidates in contested Democratic primaries. This is intended to help introduce the candidates and their experiences to those who plan to vote in March. I am running these responses in the order that I receive them from the candidates. Much more information about Democratic primary candidates, including links to the interviews and judicial Q&As, can be found on Erik Manning’s spreadsheet.
Judge James Horwitz
1. Who are you and in which court do you preside?
Judge James Horwitz, Presiding Judge for Harris County Probate Court # 4 and current (2025) Administrative Judge for all five probate courts in Harris County, Texas
2. What kind of cases does this court hear?
Jurisdictions involving (a) Probate of Wills (both contested and uncontested); (b) Heirship Determinations when one dies without a Will (both contested and uncontested); (c) Guardianships (both contested and uncontested); (d) trusts involving estates for both decedents and guardianship wards (both uncontested and contested) and (e) a special jurisdiction over mental health commitments with only one other Harris County judge.
3. What have been your main accomplishments during your time on this bench?
I have been on this bench since January 1. 2019. I have been instrumental in coordinating the same processes in all five probate courts to accomplish goals such as the probate of Wills, heirship determinations, and guardianships. Before 2019, it was common for attorneys to have to learn four different ways to accomplish the completion of their case, always depending on which court their case was in. In 2019 I saw that court reporters working in the Harris County Courthouses were vastly underpaid compared to the salaries of reporters in all the other major metropolitan areas and successfully petitioned the Harris County Commissioners to increase their salaries.
In 2020 as covid enveloped the world, as the administrative judge for all the probate courts, I oversaw the introduction of zoom to handle our dockets (Probate Courts were the first to use zoom) so that justice involving probate was never interrupted.
In 2022 I discovered that approx. 20% of the ad litem attorneys (who are the lifeblood of probate courts) were not getting paid after the completion of their respective cases. After trying in vain for almost two years to get the clerk’s office to make applicants be required to deposit a set amount of money into the court registry for the payment of ad litem fees,
I decided in Oct, 2024 to make it a requirement in my court for all applicants in cases requiring an ad litem appointment to deposit money in their own trust account and send me affidavits stating the same before they got a hearing date. Six months later the clerk’s office finally followed suit so now all the probate courts can guarantee the ad litems can get paid.
Through 2025 I have reduced our caseload by having our eleven person staff work more efficiently.
4. What do you hope to accomplish in your courtroom going forward?
In regard to this Court’s mental health jurisdiction, more intensive interactions with the staff at the Harris County psychiatric hospitals will in my opinion result in more out-patient commitments thereby freeing up bed space for more severe cases. Additionally, I would like to see Harris County require private hospitals (that receive insurance money for mental health commitments) pay filing fees for seeking such commitments from the county. This court continues to process probate cases to resolution more quickly and needs to do more. I would like to begin a training program for attorneys in mediation techniques that can assist them in helping families resolve their differences. Because this Court has so many regularly scheduled dockets on a recurring weekly basis, the scheduled trials (both bench and jury) which dominate the court’s time can be lessened through resolution.
5. Why is this race important?
A person may never need to sue anyone in civil court or be sued by someone else, or never be involved in a divorce, child custody, visitation and support issues in a family law court. That person may never be a victim of a crime or be charged as a criminal defendant in a criminal court, but everyone comes to probate court eventually as either a decedent and/or an heir. We need experienced empathic probate judges that can provide families with the proper procedures that guarantee that equitable justice can prevail.
6. Why should people vote for you in March?
Over my long career as an attorney and as a probate judge, I have demonstrated my sound judgement and wisdom in providing the proper way to help Harris County families solve their difficult family matters. I have cared deeply about public service throughout my entire career, and I do not want to see this court fall into inexperienced hands to the detriment of our community.
PREVIOUSLY:
Judge Jim Kovach, Harris County Civil Court at Law No. 2
Jimmie L. J. Brown, Jr, 270th Civil District Court
Ebony Williams, Harris County Civil Court at Law No. 2
Julia Maldonado, 183rd Criminal District Court