Texas Construction Case Law

Sovereign immunity bars a contractor's breach-of-contract suit against a state agency absent express legislative consent; neither the agency's conduct, contract terms, nor general statutes waive immunity from suit.

A manufacturer must indemnify an innocent seller for products liability litigation costs under Texas Civil Practice & Remedies Code § 82.002(a), even if the seller did not sell the particular defective product that injured the plaintiff, provided the seller qualifies as a 'seller' under the statute.

The Civil Commitment of Sexually Violent Predators Act is civil, not criminal, and does not violate due process even when applied to incompetent defendants.

The State does not waive sovereign immunity from breach-of-contract suits by accepting contract benefits; Chapter 2260's administrative procedure is the exclusive remedy for such claims.

No-damages-for-delay clauses in construction contracts need not meet the conspicuousness requirement established in Dresser for exculpatory negligence clauses, and such clauses are enforceable to bar delay damages absent specific exceptions.

A surety does not owe a common law duty of good faith to its principal, but good faith is a contractual condition precedent to indemnification, requiring proof of improper motive or willful ignorance rather than mere negligence.

A premises owner that contracts for work performance and provides workers' compensation insurance to contractors' employees qualifies as a statutory employer entitled to the exclusive remedy defense under the Texas Workers' Compensation Act.

A general contractor owes a duty of care to a subcontractor's employee for fall protection when it retains actual control over safety measures, and the evidence sufficiently supported findings of negligence and gross negligence.

A city that asserts affirmative claims for monetary damages waives its governmental immunity from suit as to the defendant's claims that are germane, connected, and properly defensive to the city's claims, to the extent they offset the city's recovery.

A standard merger clause without clear and unequivocal language expressly disclaiming reliance does not bar a fraud claim, even in a commercial lease agreement between parties.

A municipality owes no duty to a subcontractor to ensure a general contractor provides valid payment bonds, and a subcontractor cannot recover from the municipality under quantum meruit, unjust enrichment, or negligence theories when the general contractor abandons the project.

A CGL policy's contractual liability exclusion bars coverage for breach of contract claims when the insured's only liability arises from contractual obligations assumed in the underlying contract, and the insured-contract exception does not restore coverage.

A trial court abuses its discretion by granting a new trial without specifying concrete reasons, and stating the decision is in the interest of justice and fairness is insufficiently specific.

Summary judgment for defendants was properly granted because Flameout failed to satisfy the statute of frauds for an alleged three-year contract, as the three documents cited did not constitute a signed, enforceable written agreement for the sale of goods.

An insured may assert an article 21.21 claim against its excess liability carrier for unfair claim settlement practices, but liability requires proof of a proper settlement demand within policy limits that an ordinarily prudent insurer would accept.

A subcontractor's equipment failed to meet contract specifications; the trial court properly found breach of contract and awarded damages for cover costs under UCC § 2-207 battle of the forms doctrine.

An 'additional insured' insurance provision requiring a seller to extend its insurance coverage to a buyer is not prohibited by Texas's anti-indemnity statute because it is a separate insurance obligation, not an indemnity agreement, and does not directly support an indemnity provision.

A county court has jurisdiction to determine immediate possession in a forcible detainer action even when a concurrent district court suit challenges title, provided the possession determination does not necessarily require resolving the title dispute.

Media defendants' defamatory statements about a public official's conduct were substantially true or protected opinion, warranting reversal of denial of summary judgment and judgment for defendants.

A general contractor owes no duty to third parties for an independent contractor's negligence when the contract merely requires financial responsibility for the contractor's actions but does not grant the right to control the means, methods, or details of the work.

Allegations of unintended construction defects may constitute an 'accident' or 'occurrence' under a CGL policy, and damage to a homebuilder's own work may constitute 'property damage' triggering the duty to defend.

DTPA claims are not assignable because assignment would defeat the statute's primary purpose of encouraging individual consumers to bring claims themselves, and DTPA claims are too personal and punitive in nature to be transferred as property.

A developer must arbitrate its claims against the general contractor under their valid arbitration agreement, but the question of whether a contractual deadline bars arbitration is itself an arbitrable issue for the arbitrators to decide.

An indemnity agreement between a pipeline operator and independent contractor is enforceable to require the contractor to indemnify the operator for claims arising from the operator's own negligence, provided the agreement clearly expresses this intent and satisfies statutory and conspicuousness requirements.

A third party may be subrogated to a federal tax lien and foreclose on a homestead, but must compensate a non-liable spouse for their separate homestead interest.

A release agreement between an attorney and client is not a complete bar to an excess insurer's equitable subrogation claim for legal malpractice, and defendants may assert the excess carrier's comparative negligence as an affirmative defense.

Local Government Code § 89.004's presentment requirement is a condition precedent to suit, not a waiver of sovereign immunity, and a county does not waive immunity by withholding contract payments under liquidated damages clauses.

Bank's acts were not the producing cause of Brown's damages and did not violate the DTPA as a matter of law; judgment for Bank affirmed.

Texas Constitution's usury provision applies only to lending transactions, not to judicially-awarded prejudgment interest, which derives from court order rather than commercial agreement.

Claims against a corporate employee acting within scope of employment must be arbitrated under the employer's arbitration agreement, but claims against corporate affiliates without their own arbitration agreements cannot be compelled to arbitration; litigation against affiliates must be stayed pending arbitration completion.

An indemnity agreement in an oil and gas drilling contract is enforceable under Texas law where parties mutually agree to indemnify each other except for gross negligence or willful misconduct, and the indemnitor's burden to prove the gross negligence exclusion applies requires establishing all elements of gross negligence, not merely pleading allegations.

Parties may arbitrate the validity of mechanic's liens, and arbitration awards determining lien validity must be confirmed unless they clearly violate fundamental public policy.

Procedural protections in Texas Constitution Article XVI, Section 50(a)(5)(A)-(D) apply only to repairs or renovations of existing homestead improvements, not to construction of new improvements, so a mechanic's lien for new construction requires only a written contract.

Section 2.306 of the UCC does not apply to take-or-pay gas contracts where parties have specified quantity as a determinable amount (85% of delivery capacity), and good faith obligations remain applicable to increases in delivery capacity.

Co-executrix breached fiduciary duty and committed fraud by acquiring estate property through her husband in exchange for dismissing the estate's overpayment claim, creating an impermissible conflict of interest.

Expert testimony on design defect was legally insufficient because it relied on untested theories and failed to adequately address how ignited lint particles could ignite clothes in the dryer drum.

Assessments levied by the Boll Weevil Eradication Foundation are regulatory fees, not occupation taxes, but the Legislature unconstitutionally delegated authority to a private entity.

Commercial sureties do not owe a common law duty of good faith and fair dealing to bond obligees, and Article 21.21 of the Texas Insurance Code does not apply to commercial surety bonds.

A trial court must enter judgment on a properly executed mediated settlement agreement in child custody cases and cannot refuse based on best interest grounds unless family violence impaired a party's decision-making ability.

An indemnitee's contractual claim for indemnification against liabilities does not accrue until the indemnitee's liability becomes fixed and certain by judgment, making such claims not compulsory counterclaims in the initial action.

A county does not waive sovereign immunity from suit through conduct during contract formation alone, even when it accepts a bid, deposits earnest money, and sends contract documents to the buyer.

Contract clearly allocated all risk of undiscovered foreign pipeline crossings to contractor despite owner's due diligence obligation, as contractor assumed full responsibility for site conditions notwithstanding any owner representations.

A signatory to an arbitration agreement cannot be compelled to arbitrate claims against non-signatories unless clear and unmistakable evidence shows the parties agreed to arbitrate arbitrability with non-parties; mere incorporation of AAA rules does not suffice for non-signatory disputes.

A settlement agreement that expressly releases only contract claims under a shareholders' agreement does not release independent tort claims for breach of fiduciary duty, tortious interference, defamation, and business disparagement, even if the underlying conduct overlaps with contractual duties.

A general contractor that judicially admits owing a subcontractor a specific credit amount and continues treating the contract as valid waives its right to claim the subcontractor's breach excuses non-payment.

The court reversed the trial court's denial of the Better Business Bureau's motion to dismiss under the Texas Citizen's Participation Act, finding John Moore failed to establish a prima facie case for its tort claims.

Bank committed fraud by concealing material information about lender's concerns and contractor's financial instability from borrower, and such fraud cannot be waived by general contractual disclaimers that do not specifically address the withheld information.

A no-damages-for-delay provision cannot shield an owner from liability for deliberately and wrongfully interfering with a contractor's work, even if the contract broadly purports to exclude all delay damages.

A general contractor owes no duty to protect subcontractor employees from dangers arising from the subcontractor's work unless the contractor explicitly retained control over the manner of work performance in the contract or actually exercised such control.

Co-primary insurers with pro rata clauses have no direct right of contribution or subrogation against each other when one overpays a settlement, as the insured cannot enforce additional recovery once fully indemnified.

Texas Southern University retains sovereign immunity from suit for breach of contract despite accepting equipment benefits, absent clear legislative waiver, though fact issues exist regarding whether TSU waived immunity by conduct.

An umbrella insurance policy provides coverage to an additional insured for liabilities arising from the additional insured's sole negligence when the policy language independently grants coverage, and the insurer is bound by a settlement amount when it wrongfully denies coverage.

A general contractor 'provides' workers' compensation insurance under Texas law when it enters into a written agreement ensuring subcontractor coverage through an owner-controlled insurance plan, even if the owner purchases the policy, because the contractor remains ultimately responsible for alternate coverage if the plan terminates.

Insurance company breached duty of good faith and fair dealing in claims handling; actual damages affirmed but punitive damages and mental anguish reversed for lack of knowing violation.

The auto-use exclusion in the CGL policy bars coverage for workers killed when hoisted by a pickup truck with attached pulley system, but the subsequent-to-execution exclusion does not apply because the contract was executed through performance and mutual assent before the accident.

A lien-release provision in a construction contract is a covenant, not a condition precedent to final payment, and its absence does not bar a contractor's recovery for breach of contract when the contractor has substantially performed.

Mutual indemnity provisions in a drilling contract are valid and enforceable under Kansas law, which applies because the contract's services were performed in Kansas.

A trial court cannot toll statutory interest under the Prompt Payment to Contractors Act for litigation delays, a contractor cannot recover both statutory 18% interest and common law prejudgment interest, and in-house counsel fees should be calculated using the market rate method rather than cost-plus method.

A law firm may recover the reasonable value of its services under quantum meruit despite lacking a signed contingent-fee agreement, but an expert's damages opinion improperly based on the unenforceable agreement cannot support the award.

Trial court erred in denying arbitration where party resisting arbitration failed to present evidence supporting fraud claims; arbitration agreements are enforceable absent clear proof of fraud or unconscionability.

A party seeking arbitration carries its initial burden by showing the arbitration agreement exists and claims fall within its scope; the opposing party then bears a heavy burden to prove waiver by demonstrating both substantial invocation of judicial process and actual prejudice, which mere delay or costs alone cannot establish.

An executory contract seller's timely annual statement that omits some required information does not trigger liquidated damages unless the statement is so deficient as to be something other than a good faith attempt to inform the purchaser.

When parties agree to delegate arbitrability to an arbitrator, courts must compel arbitration rather than deciding arbitrability themselves, even when the dispute involves court approval of structured settlement transfers.

Trial court properly confirmed arbitration award for non-competition agreement breach; arbitrators did not err in refusing to join third-party claims against separate contracting party, and acceleration clause did not constitute unlawful penalty.