Reata Construction Corp. v. City of Dallas
197 S.W.3d 371 | Texas Supreme Court | 2006
What This Case Means for Subcontractors
Reata Construction drilled into a water main while working on a City of Dallas fiber optic project and was sued for negligence. The City claimed governmental immunity to block Reata's counterclaim for the City's own negligence in misidentifying the water main location. The Texas Supreme Court ruled that when a city sues for damages, it loses immunity protection against the contractor's defensive claims that are directly related to and offset the city's claims.
Key Takeaways
- •If a government entity sues you for damages, you can countersue them for their own negligence—they can't hide behind immunity for claims that defend against their lawsuit
- •Your defensive claims must be 'germane, connected, and properly defensive' to the government's claims to pierce their immunity; make sure your counterclaim directly relates to the same project or incident
- •Document everything about the government's role, instructions, and site conditions from day one—this evidence becomes critical if they sue you and you need to prove their comparative negligence
City does not have immunity from Reata's claims germane to, connected with, and properly defensive to claims asserted by the City.
Frequently Asked Question
Can a city or government agency sue me while claiming immunity from my counterclaim?
No. When a government entity files a lawsuit against you for damages, it waives its governmental immunity shield against your defensive counterclaims—but only if your claims are directly connected to and offset theirs. This means if a city sues you for negligence on a project, you can countersue them for their own negligence on that same project.
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