Rule 201 Judicial Notice Texas Rules of Evidence

Judicial notice is an exception to the normal requirements of proof. A trial court may take judicial notice of an adjudicative fact if it is not subject to reasonable dispute. Garza v. State, 996 S.W.2d 276, 279 (Tex. App.-Dallas 1999, no pet.); see also TEX. R. EVID. 201(b). Reliance on judicial notice must be justified by a high degree of indisputability. Garza, 996 S.W.2d at 280. To be indisputable, the adjudicative fact must be: (1) generally known within the territorial jurisdiction of the trial court or (2) capable of accurate and ready determination by resort to sources whose accuracy cannot reasonably be questioned. Id. at 279. The theory behind judicial notice is that, where a fact is well known by all reasonably intelligent people in the community or its existence is so easily determinable with certainty from sources that are considered reliable, it would not be sensible to require formal proof. Gonzales v. State, 723 S.W.2d 746, 751 (Tex. Crim. App. 1987). The municipalities of Dallas and Fort Worth operate D/FW airport through a jointly created board. See: City of Irving v. Dallas/Fort Worth Intern. Airport Bd., 894 S.W.2d 456, 459 (Tex. App.-Fort Worth 1995, writ denied); Dallas/Fort Worth Intern. Airport Bd. v. City of Irving, 854 S.W.2d 161, 164 (Tex. App.-Dallas 1993), judgment vacated without reference to merits, 868 S.W.2d 750 (Tex. Crim. App. 1993) (per curiam).