The Texas Supreme Court will not command a State District Court in Lubbock to take back an order that put Jason Corley back in his seat as Precinct 2 county commissioner. The state’s high court announced its decision to attorneys in the case Friday.
Corley, the State of Texas, and the man who sought to take office as Commissioner, Mark Meurer, have been locked in a legal battle since December.
County Judge Curtis Parrish swore Meurer into office on the morning of December 8 – immediately after announcing Corley tripped the state’s resign-to-run rule. In other words, Parrish tried to make the case Corley became a candidate for another office with more than one year and 30 days left in his term of office as Commissioner. If so, then Corley automatically resigned. Corley disputed the claim – which LubbockLights.com covered in detail here.
Corley sued and then the State of Texas also got involved taking Corley’s side. In a court hearing in mid-December, visiting judge Patrick Pirtle issued a temporary order for Meurer to step aside and Corley to return to his seat.
Meurer’s attorney appealed to the Seventh Court of Appeals in Amarillo, which declined to give Meurer “emergency relief.” The case then went to the Supreme Court of Texas, which is also now declining to intervene. The Supreme Court issued a stay (a temporary pause) more than two months ago to prevent the court in Lubbock from going any further. The stay is now gone.
The high court’s notice on Friday said, “Today the Supreme Court of Texas denied the petition for writ of mandamus in the above-referenced case. The stay order issued February 20, 2026 is lifted.”
Technically, there are two cases pending in the Seventh Court – doing different things. One is an appeal of the temporary order that put Corley back in office. The other was a “mandamus” which is legal procedure for a higher court to order a lower court to do – or stop doing – something. Both continue and an April 24 trial date in Lubbock has not yet been rescheduled.
