Which two courts are the highest appellate courts in Texas?

• A. Texas Court of Appeals and Supreme Court
• B. Federal Supreme Court and Texas Supreme Court
• C. Texas Supreme Court and Texas Court of Criminal Appeals
• D. Texas Supreme Court and Texas Court of Civil Appeals

Answer: (C)

In Texas, the highest level of appellate authority is divided by jurisdiction: civil matters go to the Texas Supreme Court, while criminal matters go to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals. These two courts are the final arbiters for state law appeals, each handling its own domain. The Federal Supreme Court operates at the national level, not within Texas, so it isn’t part of the state’s appellate system. The Texas Court of Appeals are intermediate courts that review trial court decisions but are not the final authorities in state matters. There isn’t a separate highest civil court named the Texas Court of Civil Appeals. So the pair that represents the state’s highest appellate courts is the Texas Supreme Court and the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals.