Johnson County ALR Hearing Guide
How to request your Administrative License Revocation (ALR) Hearing and protect your driving privileges after a DWI arrest.
Last verified: September 12, 2026
15-Day Deadline
You have exactly 15 days from your arrest to request a hearing. Miss this deadline and your license is automatically suspended. No exceptions.
Enter your arrest date to see your deadline:
If You Request in Time
- • Temporary permit until hearing
- • Chance to keep your license
- • Gather evidence for defense
If You Miss the Deadline
- • Automatic 90-180 day suspension
- • No hearing, no appeal
- • Starts after waiting period
How to Request Your Hearing
Online Request
Fee: Typically $50-$125
Available: 24/7
Instant confirmation
Phone Request
Fee: Same as online
Hours: Business hours only
Expect hold times
Information You'll Need
From Your Notice:
- • Driver License Number
- • Date of Arrest
- • Arresting Agency
- • Arresting Officer Name
Personal Information:
- • Full Legal Name
- • Current Address
- • Date of Birth
- • Phone Number & Email
After You Request
Temporary Permit
ImmediateDrive legally until your hearing
Hearing Notice
20-40 daysDate, time, and format mailed to you
Prepare Defense
Before hearingGather evidence, hire attorney
Attend Hearing
Scheduled dateUsually phone or video
Decision
Same dayWin: keep license. Lose: suspension starts
Temporary Permit
Immediate
Drive until hearing
Hearing Notice
20-40 days
Date mailed to you
Prepare
Before hearing
Gather evidence
Attend Hearing
Scheduled
Phone or video
Decision
Same day
Win or suspension
What to Expect at the Hearing
Most hearings are by phone or video
You usually don't need to travel. When you receive your hearing notice, it will specify whether it's phone, video, or in-person.
Duration
30-60 minutes typically
Who's There
You, your attorney (optional), state attorney, hearing officer
What They Review
Probable cause for stop, proper arrest procedure, test validity
Evidence That Can Help
- Dashcam or bodycam footage showing procedural errors
- Breathalyzer calibration records (if not current)
- Witness statements about your sobriety
- Medical conditions affecting field sobriety tests
Should You Hire an Attorney?
With an Attorney
- Can subpoena arresting officer
- Knows how to challenge evidence
- Uses hearing to strengthen criminal defense
- Higher success rate at hearings
Without an Attorney
- State has experienced attorney present
- May not know proper objections
- Can't effectively cross-examine officers
- Lower win rate statistically
If You Lose Your Hearing
Losing the hearing isn't the end. You still have options to maintain limited driving privileges:
Ignition Interlock
Drive with device installed
Occupational License
Limited driving for work/essentials
Frequently Asked Questions
Related Guides
Requesting an ALR hearing in Johnson County is rarely about actually winning it. The real value shows up months later: subpoenaing the arresting officer to testify under oath at the SOAH hearing locks their account of the stop and the field sobriety tests into the record long before the criminal trial, and if that officer simply doesn't show up, the state's suspension case collapses outright and the license is reinstated by default.
The 15-day cliff
When a driver tests over 0.08 or refuses testing altogether, the officer confiscates the physical Texas license and hands over a DIC-25, which works as both a temporary permit and the formal suspension notice. The request to contest that suspension has to reach Texas DPS within 15 calendar days of the arrest, no extensions for a weekend or holiday landing on day 15. Miss it, and the license is automatically suspended on the 40th day, no hearing required.
File it toward Austin, not Cleburne
Requests go to the DPS Enforcement and Compliance Service in Austin, whether by mail, the online portal, or fax. There's no fee to request the hearing itself, though reinstatement later comes with its own cost.
The upside of the backlog
Filing on time triggers an automatic stay on the suspension while the case waits for a hearing date, and SOAH's docket is backed up 60 to 120 days in a typical case. That delay isn't a downside: it means months of continued legal driving on the DIC-25 that would otherwise disappear on day 40. Most hearings now run by Zoom or phone rather than in person.
If the license does get suspended
A defendant can petition the County Court at Law, filed at the Guinn Justice Center, for an Occupational Driver's License covering work, school, or essential household needs. Johnson County keeps standardized forms on hand for defendants who can't afford the filing costs. Whether the petition is granted comes down to Judge Neill or Judge McClure's discretion, and a spotty compliance record with the rest of the case doesn't help the argument.
Last updated: September 12, 2026
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