Texas Property Code 27.003 – Liability
(a) In an action subject to this chapter arising from a construction defect:
(1) a contractor is liable only to the extent a defective condition proximately causes:
(A) actual physical damage to the residence;
(B) an actual failure or lack of capability of a building component to perform its intended function or purpose; or
(C) a verifiable danger to the safety of the occupants of the residence;
(2) a contractor is not liable for damages caused by:
(A) negligence of a person other than the contractor or an agent, employee, or subcontractor of the contractor;
(B) failure of a person other than the contractor or an agent, employee, or subcontractor of the contractor to:
(i) mitigate the damages;
(ii) maintain the residence; or
(iii) timely notify a contractor of a construction defect;
(C) normal wear, tear, or deterioration;
(D) normal cracking or shrinkage cracking due to drying or settlement of construction components within the tolerance of building standards; or
(E) the contractor’s reliance on written information relating to the residence, appurtenance, or real property on which the residence and appurtenance are affixed that was obtained from official government records, if the written information was false, modified, or inaccurate and the contractor did not know and could not reasonably have known of the falsity, modification, or inaccuracy of the information; and
(3) if an assignee of the claimant or a person subrogated to the rights of a claimant fails to provide the contractor with the written notice and opportunity to inspect and offer to repair required by § 27.004 before performing repairs, the contractor is not liable for the cost of any repairs or any percentage of damages caused by repairs made to a construction defect at the request of an assignee of the claimant or a person subrogated to the rights of a claimant by a person other than the contractor or an agent, employee, or subcontractor of the contractor.
(b) Except as provided by this chapter, this chapter does not limit or bar any other defense or defensive matter or other defensive cause of action applicable to an action to recover damages or other relief arising from a construction defect.
Terms Used In Texas Property Code 27.003
- Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
- Person: includes corporation, organization, government or governmental subdivision or agency, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, association, and any other legal entity. See Texas Government Code 311.005
- Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
- Settlement: Parties to a lawsuit resolve their difference without having a trial. Settlements often involve the payment of compensation by one party in satisfaction of the other party's claims.
- Written: includes any representation of words, letters, symbols, or figures. See Texas Government Code 311.005
(c) To maintain a claim of breach of a warranty of habitability, a claimant must establish that a construction defect:
(1) was latent at the time the residence was completed or title was conveyed to the original purchaser; and
(2) has rendered the residence unsuitable for its intended use as a home.