[12] The court was to meet for one session a year, beginning on the first Monday in December, and required a majority of the judges to be present.

[17] The first Chief Justice was James Collinsworth, who was an ally of Sam Houston, the president-elect of the new republic.

[20] When Mirabeau B. Lamar became president, Congress refused to confirm Birdsall and elected Thomas Jefferson Rusk instead.

[26] Hemphill has been compared to John Marshall in laying down the legal foundation of Texas law, especially in the area of land titles, marital property, and homestead exemptions.

[27] The original four district court judges elected by Congress were Shelby Corzine, Benjamin Cromwell Franklin,[fn 4] Robert McAlpin Williamson, and James W.

[39] Two weeks after the Court was supposed to have met, Congress passed a statute which would impose a $1,000 fine on a judge who did not appear for a session.

[40] A short time later, Congress eliminated the scheduled 1838 session when it moved the annual date to the second Monday in January.

[41] In the meantime, Collinsworth died and Houston replaced him with Birdsall until Congress could meet and elect a new Chief Justice.

[fn 5] The January 1841 session was attended by Chief Justice Hemphill and District Judges Baylor, Hutchinson, Terrell, Scurry, and Hansford.

[49] The January 1842 session was attended by Chief Justice Hemphill and District Judges Morris, Baylor, Hutchinson, Ochiltree, Jack, and Mills.

[50] The June 1843 session was attended by Chief Justice Hemphill and District Judges Morris, Baylor, Ochiltree, and Jack.