Establishing Essential Need For An Occupational Driver License in Texas

If you intend to file a petition for an occupational driver license in Texas, you have to establish one thing above all else.  That is essential need.  This article is intended to take a closer look at the essential need element for occupational driver license requests and what it will take make sure a judge has no reason to deny your petition.  If you would like to discuss your occupational driver license with an experienced attorney after reading this article, feel free to contact our office at 214-321-4105.

What Is Essential Need?

Essential need is the main element that must be proven before a judge can approve an occupational driver license petition.  So what is essential need?  Essential need basically falls into six general categories.  Those categories are as follows:

• Do you have a job?  If you have a job, then you have established essential need.
• Do you need to drive to get to work?  If you need to drive to get to your place of employment, then you have established essential need.
• Do you travel due to work?  If you have to travel in relation to work, then you have established essential need.
• If you don’t have a job, are you in pursuit of obtaining employment?  If you can establish that you need to travel to conduct interviews or pursue job opportunities, then you have established essential need.
• If you don’t have a job, do you need to travel to perform necessary household duties?  If you have to travel to take children to school, an ailing family member to doctor’s visits, etc., then you have established essential need.
• If you don’t have a job, but you are attending a university or trade school.  If you are a college student or attending a trade school, then you have established essential need.

Detail is key.  In order to establish essential need, you need to be detailed.  So we will break these categories down even further in an effort to ensure that no judge can deny your request for an occupational driver license.

Currently Employed

If you are currently employed, then what our occupational driver license attorneys will do is attach proof of employment to your occupational driver license request.  For example, a pay stub is the best way to ensure that a judge cannot deny your request for an occupational driver license if you are currently employed.  A letter of employment also helps if your employer will take the time to draft one.

Traveling to and from Work

If you work at a permanent location, then our occupational driver license attorneys will ask for the location of your work location.  This will be included in the petition.  Proof of that location will also be added as exhibit to the petition.  We then break down the counties necessary for you to travel from home to work on a daily basis.  Once the route is set between home and work, we request the ability to drive in every county necessary to travel to and from work.

Traveling as a Part of Employment

If you are employed and need to drive as a part of your employment, then we usually like to attach proof of your drive schedule and most commonly used routes.  The best way to provide the court with proof of this is to first establish the line of work.  For example, if you are a home healthcare nurse and travel to various residences to take care of patients, then what we try to do is determine your working area.  For example, are you assigned a region in North Texas?  If yes, then we don’t necessarily need the actual house locations or work-site locations.  We do need the counties where those locations are.  Our petition would then outline those counties that are necessary for you to perform your work duties.

If You Don’t Have a Job

If you don’t have a job, then it can become a little trickier on the geography of where to request drive times.  Normally in that situation, our occupational driver license lawyers like to request the county you currently live in along with all the surrounding counties.  This gives you a broad range of areas to pursue employment opportunities in.  If you obtain employment in another county not included in the request, don’t fret.  An occupational driver license petition and order can always be amended to account for changes in your life.

Performance of Household Duties

Household duties can vary widely.  Do you have doctor’s appointments that must be met?  Are you caring for children or a person that is handicapped?  Household duties have to be explored in detail to establish essential need because our lives vary from person to person.  Make sure you are detailed in your need for drive times based on your individual household needs and duties.  This can come in the form of affidavits from those that you love and care for that need you to perform essential household duties for them.  It can come in the form of your own affidavit outlining what your household duties are and why they are necessary.

Attending a University or Trade School

In these types of occupational driver license requests, we like to attach transcripts of the last semester and current semester.  If transcripts are not possible, then the payment receipt showing that the university or trade school has been compensated for the current semester.  Basically, any proof that you are actively attending the university or trade school.

The Statute – Essential Need

The requirement to establish essential need is by statute.  It must be done before a judge can grant an occupational driver license petition.  This statute is contained in the Texas Transportation Code and is listed below for you to review and compare on how our occupational driver license lawyers like to establish the essential need element.  If you would like to hire an occupational driver license attorney after reading this article, feel free to contact us at 214-321-4105.

Sec. 521.241.  DEFINITIONS.  In this subchapter:

(1)  “Essential need” means a need of a person to operate a motor vehicle:

(A)  in the performance of an occupation or trade or for transportation to and from the place at which the person practices the person’s occupation or trade;

(B)  in the pursuit of an occupation or trade;

(C)  for transportation to and from an educational facility in which the person is enrolled; or

(D)  in the performance of essential household duties.