Texas Appellate Law Podcast The New Rule 166a: What Texas Lawyers Need to Know | Michael Duncan
Mar 12, 2026
Michael Duncan, an Austin appellate and motions lawyer who clerked for a Texas Supreme Court justice, breaks down the rewritten Texas Rule 166a. He explains clarified burdens for traditional motions and the new evidence requirement. Short deadlines, filing-triggered response risks, deadline-extension by agreement, and transition-period timing puzzles get focused attention.
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Use Party Agreements To Extend Deadlines
- Parties may now extend response or reply deadlines by agreement without court leave.
- Use Rule 11 agreements to avoid scheduling conflicts and preserve flexibility when multiple motions and trials collide.
Clerk Notice Added But 'Promptly' Removed
- The clerk must serve notice of the hearing under the new rule but the court removed the word 'promptly' for setting hearings.
- That deletion may permit later or shorter-notice scheduling and could reduce predictability for practitioners.
Always File A Response Within 21 Days
- Don't let the movant control you; file a timely response because the rule now says responses must be filed within 21 days of the motion.
- At minimum, file a short response stating the movant failed to meet its burden to preserve issues.