Darlene Duncan v. Joe Pogue

Darlene Duncan, a court reporter, sued the Hopkins County Commissioners Court to compel it to fund a ten percent salary increase
ordered by the district judge pursuant to Tex. Gov't Code Ann. § 52.051 (Vernon 1988). The Commissioners Court counterclaimed
for relief under the Uniform Declaratory Judgments Act, Tex.Civ.Prac. & Rem.Code Ann. § 37.009 (Vernon 1986). The trial
court, with another judge sitting by appointment, granted Duncan's motion for summary judgment, ordered the Commissioners
Court to fund the salary increase, and awarded Duncan attorney fees. The court of appeals reversed that judgment and remanded
the cause for trial on the merits. S.W.2d . Because the court of appeals' decision conflicts with Mays v. Fifth Court
of Appeals, 755 S.W.2d 78 (Tex.1988) and is contrary to the Uniform Declaratory Judgments Act, we grant the application for
writ of error and, without hearing oral argument, reverse the judgment of the court of appeals and remand the cause to that
court for further consideration. See Tex.R.App.P. 133(b). In Mays we held that so long as a district judge's order of a pay increase was within the ten percent authorized by section
52.051(d) it was presumptively valid. Although it is undisputed in this case that the pay increase with within the statutory
ten percent, the court of appeals did not recognize any presumption of validity but instead concluded that Duncan had the
burden of establishing that the pay increase was reasonable. This decision conflicts with our own opinion in Mays.