Trespasser Liability Reform: SB 1160 (2011)
S.B. 1160 codifies traditional common law rules with respect to
S.B. 1160 codifies traditional common law rules with respect to the duty a landowner owes to a trespasser and prevent courts from adopting the new radical standard recommended in the Restatement of Torts (third). In Texas, landowners currently do not owe a duty of care to trespassers and are not liable for their injuries. There are certain exceptions, but these are narrow in scope and well defined. Specifically, S.B. 1160: (1) defines a trespasser; (2) codifies the existing rule that land possessors owe no duty of care to trespassers; (3) provides well-recognized exceptions to the general rule; (4) provides that a child who is at least 14 years of age appreciates the risk of a highly dangerous artificial condition on land; (5) makes clear that the use of justifiable force to repel an intruder, as permitted under the Penal Code,
will not result in civil liability for injury to a trespasser; (6) clarifies that this new code does not affect other statutory provisions regarding the duty owed by land possessors, or otherwise create or increase the liability of any person or entity; and (7) provides that the legislation is prospective only.
Latest News
View all news
Louisiana’s “Judicial Hellhole®” Status Costs Residents $965 Annually In “Tort Tax”
Nuclear Verdicts® and Insurance Fraud Plague State’s Legal System
King County Courts Named ‘Judicial Hellhole®’ for First Time
New Report Ranks Seattle-Area Courts Among Worst in US
Michigan’s Legal Climate Kills 97,000 Jobs Annually, New Report Reveals
$1,046/Person ‘Tort Tax’ — Court Expands Liability, Michiganders Pay
Show Me Your Lawsuit: St. Louis Ranks 7th in ‘Judicial Hellholes®’ Report
Courts Threaten Preemie Formula Access, Residents Pay $1,475/Person/Year ‘Tort Tax’
Cook County’s $21.3 Billion Problem: Lawsuit Abuse
Report Ranks County 6th Worst ‘Judicial Hellhole®’
California’s Judicial Hellhole® Status: Where Innovation Meets Litigation
Lawsuit Abuse Costs Every Californian $2,300 Annually, Kills 825,000 Jobs