This chart shows the 2,877 reported COVID-19 cases in Texas as of Monday, March 30, 2020. Photo: Texas Department of State Health Services

The number of civil filings dropped steadily in March as the coronavirus shut down Texas courts, and many lawyers started working from home.

In past years, the number of week-by-week civil filings in March has stayed relatively the same—but not this time.

This month: a steady week-by-week decline in filings. And while data showed a steady increase in cases coming into civil courts in recent years, this March saw a steep drop.

The reason: COVID-19, according Jennifer Doan, chairwoman of the litigation section of the State Bar of Texas. And the main reason is because lawyers are human.

"In the last couple of weeks, really since the beginning of the month, their lives have been turned upside down," said Doan, a partner in Haltom & Doan in Texarkana.

As attorneys care for children during the virus outbreak, and juggle work-from-home duties, getting to the courthouse to file lawsuits might not be on the top of their minds, Doan said.

"It's challenging to be productive, when there are greater concerns that need to be addressed immediately," she said.

Texas Lawyer researched civil filing numbers on re:SearchTX, the Texas courts' document-retrieval system, to look at week-by-week filings in March and compare them to the same time frames in past years.

Interactive chart: Place your cursor over the chart to view actual numbers.

Source: re:SearchTX. Graphic: Angela Morris/ALM

Filings have dropped steadily every week: In the first week of the month, there were about 7,500 filings, in the second week there were 6,700, in the third week there were 6,600 and in the fourth week, only 4,700 filings came in. The steady decline is much different than in past years, when roughly the same number of filings came in during all four weeks of March.

Another trend emerged by comparing week-by-week filings in 2017, 2018 and 2019. In earlier years, a clear trend of the civil filings climbing steadily over time, but then this year, a steep decline.

For example, in the first week of March, court data show 20% fewer filings than the first week of March 2019. In the second week, litigants filed 30% fewer civil cases than the same time one year earlier. And the third week of March this year brought 31% fewer filings compared with last year. The trend continued in the final week of the month, with 51% fewer filings at the end of March 2020, compared to the same time in 2019.

The number of civil filings during the fourth week of March this year was lower than it's been in years, dipping 35% below the same period in 2017.

"So many of our practices depend on face-to-face meetings with clients," said State Bar of Texas president-elect Larry McDougal. "We're not having those any more."

Some attorneys who don't have the technology to work remotely from home have simply closed down their practices temporarily, McDougal explained. Other counsel are setting up work-from-home practices.

"We are all on a learning curve right now," McDougal said.

Doan, the Texas Bar litigation chairwoman, said that the litigation decrease is temporary, not permanent. She expects the numbers to rise again in May or June, or perhaps take longer, if social distancing remains in place into the summer.

"I don't think it is a permanent issue," she said. "Historically, when there's a downturn in the economy, more companies and individuals resort to litigation."