Now, some Fort Bend County lawyers are worried that their cases would take even longer, after learning some members of the Commissioners Court want to cut back on the number of associate judges.
"I don't think I can stress strongly enough how important a role the (associate judges) play," said Rocky Pilgrim, an attorney and Secretary of the Fort Bend County Family Law Bar.
Currently, Fort Bend County has an associate judge for every District Judge, meaning there are eight total. Associate judges are hired by the county and take on cases at every level, helping alleviate the backlog. They are especially relied upon in family court, where custody cases and divorces are the focus.
Democratic County Commissioner Dexter McCoy says his Republican counterparts are considering changing the structure of the Associate Judges in Fort Bend in the next budget cycle. One idea is to reduce the number of judges and put the remainder in a "pool" to be shared by all the District Court judges.
"There's been a concerted effort to defund our courts by other members of Commissioners Court," McCoy said. "It's really sad at a time when public safety is top of mind for many residents, to say we need to cut judges is wild to me."
Republican County Commissioner Andy Meyers pushed back on that assertion, saying no decision has been made. He released the following statement to ABC13:
At this time, no decision has been made on associate justice staffing, as they remain under consideration as part of the budget process. Should any reductions be necessary, please know that we do not anticipate eliminating all associate justice positions.
Meyers' staff told ABC13 cuts could be budget-related, though McCoy points out that the commissioners want to do a mid-cycle redistricting, which would be more expensive than keeping all the associate judges.
For Pilgrim, her concern is not the politics of the Fort Bend County Commissioners Court. She would like politicians from both parties to sit in the courts and see how they work.
"When I say the impact on our families will be devastating, I'm not exaggerating, it's a terrible disservice, and will also cause actual harm to these families," she said.
How the Associate Judges program will be altered will come to light when Commissioners Court takes up the Fort Bend County budget in August. Any potential changes could take place as early as October, the beginning of the next fiscal year.
For news updates, follow Miya Shay on Facebook, X and Instagram.