Texas Business Courts: A New Era for Cross-Border Commercial Disputes
In a session organized by AMCHAM Northeast’s Legal and Rule of Law Committee, legal experts and attorneys analyzed the creation and scope of the Texas Business Courts, a new specialized judicial system designed to transform the resolution of commercial disputes in Texas, a state with the highest economic exchange with Mexico. The panel featured Justice Scott K. Field of the Fifteenth Court of Appeals of Texas; Gabriel Lozano, Alan Hersh, and C. Mark Stratton from Greenberg Traurig; Craig Duewall from Greenberg Traurig’s Texas Litigation Practice; and Oziel López from Garrigues México.
The creation of the Business Courts responds to a long-standing need for a highly specialized judicial body capable of handling complex commercial disputes within a rapidly growing economic environment. In other U.S. jurisdictions, such as Delaware and New York, specialized courts have demonstrated that judicial expertise builds investor confidence, reduces costs, and ensures greater consistency in legal processes. The Business Courts aim to enhance the technical quality of rulings by placing judges with expertise in corporate law, mergers and acquisitions, intellectual property, large-scale contracts, and corporate governance. This model provides a more predictable and efficient legal environment than the traditional system, where the diversity and volume of cases may affect specialization.
Regarding institutional structure, the Business Courts are staffed by judges appointed by the governor for six-year terms, which aligns with the 2023 judicial reform. This system promotes judicial independence, ensures legal reasoning continuity, and allows periodic performance evaluation. By design, it helps ensure that the courts are led by judges with strong backgrounds in business and financial litigation, enhancing the overall quality of decisions. These courts primarily handle high-value commercial disputes, generally exceeding ten million dollars. Their strategic establishment in cities such as Austin, Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio enables focused attention on key sectors driving the Texas economy, including energy, real estate, manufacturing, and technology. Initial cases are concentrated in contractual disputes (33%), corporate governance conflicts (25%), and property or construction litigation (15%).
From an international perspective, this judicial model represents an opportunity for Mexican companies operating in Texas, providing faster and more predictable proceedings with a lower risk of local bias. The possibility of obtaining provisional or emergency measures (ex parte relief) represents a significant advantage over traditional mechanisms or arbitration, as it combines procedural speed with the possibility of judicial appeal, an option not always available in arbitral forums. However, it was noted that jurisdictional criteria must be clearly defined to avoid the exclusion of cases through their reclassification as “torts” or general civil disputes, which could effectively undermine the courts’ intended jurisdiction.
From a business standpoint, establishing the Business Courts could strengthen international investor confidence and position Texas as a regional hub for dispute resolution, setting valuable precedents for future jurisdictions. Given that Texas accounts for over 40% of bilateral trade between Mexico and the United States, an efficient and specialized judicial system may be decisive in maintaining the dynamism of economic exchange. Mexico, in turn, can also look to this experience as a helpful benchmark. The global trend toward specialized commercial courts underscores that judicial efficiency is key to economic competitiveness. The eventual creation of national courts with judges trained in corporate law and supported by streamlined procedures would strengthen confidence in the rule of law and improve Mexico’s attractiveness as an investment destination.
Texas Business Courts mark a significant structural advancement in the administration of commercial justice across the region. Their long-term success will hinge on the consistency of their rulings and the technical expertise of their judges. Beyond their immediate impact, this model conveys a clear and forward-looking message: judicial modernization is key to strengthening competitiveness and deepening legal and economic cooperation between Mexico and the United States. Initiatives like this reaffirm AMCHAM’s shared commitment to a more integrated and reliable North American business environment by fostering greater certainty, transparency, and efficiency.
AMERICAN CHAMBER/MEXICO
Monterrey, Nuevo León | 15 | 10 | 2025
