Could a Texas county clerk record abstracts of judgment only in the real-property records instead of separate judgment records?

Texas AG Opinion JM-224: Abstracts of Judgment Records

Plain-English summary

Frio County asked whether a county clerk still had to maintain separate judgment records and an index for abstracts that established judgment liens, rather than filing the abstracts only in the county's real-property records. Source: https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/sites/default/files/opinion-files/opinion/1984/jm0224.pdf

JM-224 concluded that the newly enacted Property Code still required "a separate set of judgment records, with the appropriate indexing" for abstracts presented to the clerk. Source: https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/sites/default/files/opinion-files/opinion/1984/jm0224.pdf

Section 52.004 required the clerk to record each properly authenticated abstract in the "county judgment records" and enter it in an alphabetical index under the plaintiff's and defendant's names. Source: https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/sites/default/files/opinion-files/opinion/1984/jm0224.pdf

Article 6601 required lien instruments to be recorded "separate from those in which deeds or other conveyances are recorded." JM-224 therefore rejected ordinary filing of abstracts only in the real-property records. Source: https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/sites/default/files/opinion-files/opinion/1984/jm0224.pdf

The opinion recognized one exception. When the clerk had adopted the authorized article 1941(a) microfilm process, the abstract could be filed in microfilm form within that recordation system. Source: https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/sites/default/files/opinion-files/opinion/1984/jm0224.pdf

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 1984. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later AG opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.

Common questions

Did the Property Code eliminate separate judgment records?

No. JM-224 said the clerk remained required to maintain "a separate set of judgment records" with appropriate indexing. Source: https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/sites/default/files/opinion-files/opinion/1984/jm0224.pdf

What information had to appear in the judgment-record index?

Section 52.004 required the names of each plaintiff and defendant and "the number of the page" where the abstract was recorded. Source: https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/sites/default/files/opinion-files/opinion/1984/jm0224.pdf

Did the clerk have to note when the abstract arrived?

Yes. The quoted statute required the clerk to note "the date and hour" the abstract was received. Source: https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/sites/default/files/opinion-files/opinion/1984/jm0224.pdf

Could the abstract be kept in a microfilm system?

Yes. JM-224 said article 1941(a) authorized filing an abstract "in microfilm form" when that statutory process was in effect. Source: https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/sites/default/files/opinion-files/opinion/1984/jm0224.pdf

When could the abstract be recorded with real-property records?

The opinion allowed that treatment only through the article 1941(a) microfilm method. Otherwise, article 6601 required separate judgment records. Source: https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/sites/default/files/opinion-files/opinion/1984/jm0224.pdf

Background and statutory framework

Repealed article 5448 had required a "well bound book" for abstracts. The new Property Code no longer required that physical format but still required filing in county judgment records. Source: https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/sites/default/files/opinion-files/opinion/1984/jm0224.pdf

Section 52.004 governed immediate recording, indexing, and space for later credits or satisfaction of the judgment. Article 6601 supplied the separation requirement for lien records. Source: https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/sites/default/files/opinion-files/opinion/1984/jm0224.pdf

Article 1941(a) allowed a clerk, in the clerk's sole discretion, to adopt a microfilm process and required separate microfilm records for seven categories of documents. Source: https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/sites/default/files/opinion-files/opinion/1984/jm0224.pdf

Citations and references

• Property Code section 52.004 supplied the recording and alphabetical-index requirements for abstracts of judgment. Source: https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/sites/default/files/opinion-files/opinion/1984/jm0224.pdf
• Article 6601 required judgments used to create liens to be recorded separately from deeds and other conveyances. Source: https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/sites/default/files/opinion-files/opinion/1984/jm0224.pdf
• Article 1941(a) supplied the microfilm exception recognized by JM-224. Source: https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/sites/default/files/opinion-files/opinion/1984/jm0224.pdf

Source

• Landing page: https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/opinions/jim-mattox/jm-0224
• Original PDF: https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/sites/default/files/opinion-files/opinion/1984/jm0224.pdf

Original opinion text

Best-effort transcription from a scanned PDF. Minor errors may remain. The linked PDF is authoritative.

The Attorney General of Texas

November 2, 1984

Honorable James W. Smith, Jr.
Frio County Attorney
P. O. Box V
Pearsall, Texas 78061

Opinion No. JM-224

Re: Whether section 52.004 of the Property Code dispenses with the requirement of article 5448, V.T.C.S., that each county clerk shall keep a separate judgment record and shall immediately file and record all properly authenticated abstracts of judgment

Dear Mr. Smith:

You have asked whether a county clerk is still required to maintain a separate judgment records index for recording abstracts of judgment which establish a judgment lien. You have stated that it is the practice in one county not to maintain separate judgment records but to record judgment abstracts in the real property records of that county. You ask whether a judgment lien will be established if the abstract of judgment is filed in the real property records.

It is our opinion that, under the newly enacted Property Code, the county clerk is required to maintain a separate set of judgment records, with the appropriate indexing, for the recording of all abstracts of judgment which may be filed in his office.

Before the enactment of the Property Code, the county clerk was required by statute to keep a "well bound book" for the filing of abstracts of judgment. V.T.C.S. art. 5448 (repealed). The new provision in the Property Code does not require a separate book but requires only that the clerk file an abstract of judgment in the "county judgment records," which may be a separate book as required by article 6601, V.T.C.S., or in the real property records, if the provisions of article 1941(a) have been adopted.

With regard to the recording and indexing of abstracts, section 52.004 of the Property Code provides:

(a) The county clerk shall immediately record in the county judgment records each properly authenticated abstract of judgment that is presented for recording. The clerk shall note in the records the date and hour an abstract of judgment is received.

(b) At the same time an abstract is recorded, the county clerk shall enter the abstract on the alphabetical index to the judgment records, showing:

(1) the name of each plaintiff in the judgment;

(2) the name of each defendant in the judgment; and

(3) the number of the page in the records in which the abstract is recorded.

(c) The clerk shall leave a space at the foot of each recorded abstract for the entry of credits on or satisfaction of the judgment and shall make those entries when credits are properly shown.

Article 6601, V.T.C.S., provides:

All deeds of trust, mortgages or judgments which are required to be recorded in order to create a judgment lien, or other instruments of writing intended to create a lien, shall be recorded in a book or books separate from those in which deeds or other conveyances are recorded. (Emphasis added).

Thus, except where superseded by article 1941(a), article 6601 requires abstracts of judgment to be recorded separately from the real property records.

Article 1941(a) permits a county clerk in his sole discretion to adopt a microfilm process for the filing and recording of all instruments within his office and repeals conflicting laws. The legal documents are classified into seven categories, and a separate microfilm record is required for each of these categories. V.T.C.S. art. 1941(a), section 2. One of these categories is "official public records of real property," which includes deeds and other real property transactions. As a result, we believe that a county clerk is authorized to file an abstract of judgment in microfilm form. Thus, we conclude that an abstract of judgment is required to be recorded and filed in a book separate from real property records unless a microfilm method of recordation is in effect pursuant to article 1941(a), V.T.C.S.

SUMMARY

An abstract of judgment is required to be recorded and filed in a book separate from real property records unless a microfilm method of recordation is in effect pursuant to article 1941(a), V.T.C.S.

Very truly yours,

JIM MATTOX
Attorney General of Texas

TOM GREEN
First Assistant Attorney General

DAVID R. RICHARDS
Executive Assistant Attorney General

RICK GILPIN
Chairman, Opinion Committee

Prepared by Rick Gilpin
Assistant Attorney General

APPROVED:
OPINION COMMITTEE

Rick Gilpin, Chairman
Colin Carl
Susan Garrison
Tony Guillory
Jim Moellinger
Nancy Sutton