JUDICIAL OFFICERS

a. Definitions. The term “judicial officer” under this Rule refers to a full-time 6 | R u l e s o f J u d i c i a l E d u c a t i o n associate judge appointed pursuant to Chapter 201 of the Family Code, or to a full-time or part-time master, magistrate, or referee appointed pursuant to Chapter 54 or 54A of the Government Code as required by the Court of Criminal Appeals under Section 74.025. b. Each judicial officer will, as an official duty: (1) complete within one year after taking office, at least 12 hours of instruction in the administrative duties of office and substantive procedural and evidentiary laws unless the judicial officer has previously complied with this requirement and has been absent from the bench less than one year before taking the present office; (2) each fiscal year thereafter, complete at least 12 hours of instruction in substantive, procedural and evidentiary laws and court administration; and *The Texas Center for the Judiciary has an exception to Rule 4(b) and may use bench dates for reporting periods. c. Instruction credit completed during any fiscal year in excess of the minimum number of hours required may be applied to the following fiscal year’s requirement. d. Those training programs sponsored by the organizations listed in Rule 2(c) can be utilized to satisfy the requirements of this rule. Any exceptions to the reporting rules must be pre-approved by the Court of Criminal Appeals.