Retention or Employment of Attorneys
The state’s attorney general has the exclusive right to represent the state before the Texas Supreme Court and any of the state’s Court of Appeals. District and county attorneys have the exclusive right to represent the state in all cases in the district and inferior courts in their respective counties. This right, however, is subject to any specific statutory or constitutional authorization or requirement for the attorney general to represent the state in those courts.
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Texas Constitution, Article IV, Section 22, and Article V, Section 21.
Texas Government Code, Section 402.021.
A contract for legal services between a state agency and an attorney who is not a full-time employee of the agency is valid only if the attorney general approved the contract. The attorney general may require the agency to obtain the services through a competitive procurement process, under conditions prescribed by the attorney general.
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Texas Government Code, Sections 402.0212, 2254.151-2254.154 and 301.061.
Texas Attorney General Opinion MW-191 (1980).