Pelzel & Associates sued Travis County for withholding $5,500 in liquidated damages from a construction contract. The Texas Supreme Court ruled that counties have sovereign immunity from payment disputes and that simply following the presentment requirement in state law does not waive that immunity. This means subcontractors cannot sue counties for contract payment disputes even if they follow all required procedures.
Government entities (counties, cities, states) have sovereign immunity and cannot be sued for contract disputes unless they explicitly waive immunity in writing