General Counsel – Legal Opinions and Advice Records
Texas Governor Rick Perry:
An Inventory of Governor Rick Perry General Counsel Legal Opinions and Advice Records at the Texas State Archives, 2000-2014, bulk 2001-2003
| Arrangement | History | Scope and Contents | Restrictions | Related Materials | Inventory |
Overview
Creator: Texas. Governor (2000-2015 : Perry)
Title: Governor Rick Perry General Counsel legal opinion and advice records
Dates: 2000-2014
Dates: bulk 2001-2003
Abstract: The Office of the General Counsel in the Texas Office of the Governor was responsible for providing legal advice to Governor Rick Perry. These records of legal opinions and advice consist of correspondence and memoranda maintained by the Office of the General Counsel during Governor Rick Perry’s tenure, dating 2000-2014, bulk 2001-2003. The memos contain analysis, opinions, or advice on a variety of issues handled by the governor’s office, including contracts, deeds, patents, warranties, easements, litigation, settlements, bond issuance, resignations and appointments, legislative matters, extradition, and policy matters.
Quantity: 2.5 cubic ft. and 34.42 MB (42 files)
Language: These materials are written predominately in English with scattered Spanish throughout.
Repository: Texas State Archives
Other Finding Aids
A description of non-electronic records referenced in this finding aid is available at https://txarchives.org/tslac/finding_aids/50123.xml.
Arrangement of the Records
These records are arranged as received from the Governor’s Office.
- Legal opinions and advice records, 1985-1989, 2000-2014, bulk 2001-2003, 2.5 cubic ft. and 34.42 MB (42 files) (RESTRICTED)
Click here to see a full inventory of the General Counsel Legal opinions and advice records.
Agency History
The General Counsel position within the Texas Office of the Governor was created in October 1973 when the Executive Director of the Governor’s Criminal Justice Division appointed an individual as General Counsel, to assist him in providing statute interpretations and in other matters relating to policies and procedures. Today the Office of the General Counsel is a separate division in the Governor’s Office.
Duties of the General Counsel include providing statute interpretations; tracking inmates on death row as their cases move through the judicial process including all appeals to the governor for commutations or stays of execution; handling pardon requests sent to the governor; reviewing proposed settlements, land patents, grant requests, contracts, easements, and deeds for the governor; analyzing proposed legislation and regulations for validity and legal effect; assisting appointments staff in determining eligibility and other legal issues related to proposed appointments; handling extradition and requisition matters; coordinating ethics guidelines and training for the governor’s office; advising the governor on federal programs administered by the state; coordinating the governor’s criminal justice policy with the governor’s Policy Director; and providing legal advice and handling litigation filed against the governor or the Governor’s Office, in conjunction with actions of the Attorney General on the governor’s behalf.
(Sources include: Guide to Texas State Agencies, 11th edition (2001); Office of the Governor, accessed on February 26, 2016; the contents of the records; and the Texas Governor’s Office website during Governor Perry’s term, accessed via the Internet Archive Wayback Machine on February 29, 2016.)
Scope and Content of the Records
The Office of the General Counsel in the Texas Office of the Governor was responsible for providing legal advice to Governor Rick Perry. These records of legal opinions and advice consist of correspondence and memoranda maintained by the Office of the General Counsel during Governor Rick Perry’s tenure, dating 1985-1989, 2000-2014, bulk 2001-2003. The memos contain analysis, opinions, or advice on a variety of issues handled by the governor’s office, including contracts, deeds, patents, warranties, easements, litigation, settlements, bond issuance, resignations and appointments, legislative matters, extradition, and policy matters. The majority of the records are from the General Counsel or Deputy General Counsel to the governor and his executive assistants; staff in other divisions of the office, such as Economic Development and Tourism and Office of the First Lady; other agencies, such as Comptroller of Public Accounts, Attorney General’s Office, and Secretary of State; and private legal firms. Staff names appearing frequently are Bill Jones, David M. Medina and Brian Newby, who each served as Governor Perry’s General Counsel during Perry’s term as governor.
Some memos have attachments, including correspondence (usually with state or other governmental bodies), copies of laws and statutes, printouts of the results of online legal research, legal documents (largely deeds, easements, land patents, and some contracts), bonds, certifications, and resolutions.
Some memos to the governor require his approval or denial and his signature, such as settlements, bonds, and deeds. Memos with more detail on settlement offers as well as supporting documentation can be found in the series General Counsel Litigation files. Contract information includes outside counsel, book royalties, and an internal contract log for general counsel staff.
Formats of the original electronic files include word processing or plain text files (.doc, .txt, .pdf), spreadsheets (.xls), and emails (.msg). Digital files presented for public use will generally be PDF for text documents or spreadsheets. Files in their original format are available on request; restrictions may apply.
To prepare this inventory, the described materials were cursorily reviewed to delineate series, to confirm the accuracy of contents lists, to provide an estimate of dates covered, and to determine record types.
Restrictions and Requirements
Restrictions on Access
Records described in this finding aid may contain information that is confidential under the Texas Public Information Act (PIA) (Texas Government Code, Chapter 552) or other statutes. Restricted information, as outlined in the statutes, applies to both physical and electronic records. As laws change, statutory restrictions may be added to or removed from these records. See our Texas Public Information Act and Researching in the State Archives web page for the more common types of restrictions found in state government records.
Requests for materials held within the State Archives, whether a Research Request or Public Information Act Request, must be submitted via this form: https://www.tsl.texas.gov/sites/default/files/public/tslac/ref/Texas_State_Archive_Material_Request_Form.pdf. A Research Request is sufficient for requesting most State Archives materials. While a PIA Request is always an option, a PIA Request for State Archives materials is required only if a researcher does not agree to the redaction or removal of restricted government information (see: Texas Gov’t Code Chapter 552).
For further assistance with accessing materials within the State Archives, contact the Reference Desk: archinfo@tsl.texas.gov or 512-463-5455.
Restrictions on Use
Most records created by Texas state agencies are not copyrighted. State records also include materials received by, not created by, state agencies. Copyright remains with the creator. The researcher is responsible for complying with U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17 U.S.C.).
Related Material
The following materials are offered as possible sources of further information on the agencies and subjects covered by the records. The listing is not exhaustive.
Administrative Information
Preferred Citation
(Identify the item), Texas Governor Rick Perry General Counsel legal opinions and advice records. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.
Accession Information
Accession numbers: 2015/067, 2015/117
Paper records were transferred to the Archives and Information Services Division of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission by the Office of the Governor on December 19, 2014 through March 2015. Electronic records were transferred to the Archives and Information Services Division of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission by the Office of the Governor on January 29, 2015.
Processing Information
Processed by Halley Grogan, December 2015.
Inventory
Inventory of the Legal opinions and advice records
2015/067-2926
2015/067-3008
2015/067-2925
Texas Digital Archive
| Box | Return to Inventory | ||||||||||||
| 2015/067-2926 | Attorney General, opinion request, 2003 [3 folders] | ||||||||||||
| Adjutant General’s Department, 2001 | |||||||||||||
| AG (Attorney General)’s opinion on civil forfeiture, correspondence, 2002 | |||||||||||||
| Attorney General’s opinion request, 2004 | |||||||||||||
| Bonds, Water Development Board bonds, 2001 | |||||||||||||
| Financial disclosure statement, 2001 | |||||||||||||
| Jurisdiction of Governor in International Water, 2002 | |||||||||||||
| Legal research: | |||||||||||||
| [Official memos stating positions and collected research.] | |||||||||||||
| Acceptance of gifts, 2001 | |||||||||||||
| Governor powers, emergency matters, 2001 | |||||||||||||
| Injunctions, 2001-2002 | |||||||||||||
| Registration, 2001 | |||||||||||||
| Robin Hood, 2003 | |||||||||||||
| Texas grant, 2001 | |||||||||||||
| TxDOT (Texas Department of Transportation) authority to accept and place paid advertising, 2004 | |||||||||||||
| SB (Senate Bill) 536, wrongful incarceration statute, 2001 | |||||||||||||
| Box | Return to Inventory | ||||||||||||
| 2015/067-3008 | Memberships of Rick Perry, 2000-2001 | ||||||||||||
| Pease Mansion, 2001-2002 | |||||||||||||
| Secretary of State, 2001-2002 | |||||||||||||
| Texas Commission on Private Security, 2000-2001 | |||||||||||||
| Texas Council on Workforce & Economic Competitiveness (TCWEC), 2001 | |||||||||||||
| Public Information Act (PIA), 2001 | |||||||||||||
| Texas Department of Criminal Justice, 2001 | |||||||||||||
| Texas Department of Transportation, SB (Senate Bill) 725 claims, 2004 | |||||||||||||
| Texas Government Code, 2001 | |||||||||||||
| Texas Mutual Insurance Board, 2001 | |||||||||||||
| TRANs (Tax and Revenue Anticipation Notes), 2001 | |||||||||||||
| Lucas, Henry Lee, 1985-1989 [2 folders] | |||||||||||||
| [Regarding extradition to Florida.] | |||||||||||||
| Red River Depot, 2003, 2009, 2012-2013 | |||||||||||||
| Department of Information (DIR), 2002, 2006-2007 | |||||||||||||
| Allen, Ray, resignation, 2006 | |||||||||||||
| Baxter, Todd, resignation, 2005-2006 | |||||||||||||
| DeLay, Tom, resignation, 2006 | |||||||||||||
| Juneteenth Commission, 2004-2005 | |||||||||||||
| (University of) Malta (delegation), 2007 | |||||||||||||
| Tax and Revenue Anticipation Notes (TRANs), series 2005 signature package, 2005, 2009 | |||||||||||||
| Texas Tech Board of Regents, Gary Paterson, 2004-2005 | |||||||||||||
| Settlements, 2015 [wallet] | |||||||||||||
| National Parks, 2006-2007, 2010, 2013 [wallet] | |||||||||||||
| Deeds, patents, warranties and easements, 2014 [wallet] | |||||||||||||
| Deeds, 2011-2013 [wallet] | |||||||||||||
| Box | Return to Inventory | ||||||||||||
| 2015/067-2925 | Texas Medical Board, informal AG opinion request, 2007 [wallet] | ||||||||||||
| Governor’s Authority and the State Lottery, 2007 | |||||||||||||
| HB (House Bill) 3540 Floor Amendment, 2005 | |||||||||||||
| Bonds, 2001 [wallet] | |||||||||||||
| Bonds, 2002 [wallet] | |||||||||||||
| Bonds, 2003 [wallet] | |||||||||||||
| Texas-Digital-Archive | Return to Inventory | ||||||||||||
| E2015/117 | Contracts and MOUs (Memorandum of understanding), 2005-2009, 2014 [2.11 MB (34 files)] | ||||||||||||
| Ike Bonds, 2008-2009 [421 KB (8 files)] | |||||||||||||
