By Davis of Harris H.B. No. 2225
77R7183 AJA-D
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to the amount of exemplary damages that may be awarded in
1-3 actions involving injury to an elderly individual or a disabled
1-4 individual.
1-5 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-6 SECTION 1. Section 41.008, Civil Practice and Remedies Code,
1-7 is amended to read as follows:
1-8 Sec. 41.008. LIMITATION ON AMOUNT OF RECOVERY. (a) In an
1-9 action in which a claimant seeks recovery of exemplary damages, the
1-10 trier of fact shall determine the amount of economic damages
1-11 separately from the amount of other compensatory damages.
1-12 (b) Except as provided by Subsection (d), exemplary
1-13 [Exemplary] damages awarded against a defendant may not exceed an
1-14 amount equal to the greater of:
1-15 (1) [(A)] two times the amount of economic damages[;]
1-16 plus the lesser of:
1-17 (A) [(B)] an amount equal to any noneconomic
1-18 damages found by the jury; or
1-19 (B) [, not to exceed] $750,000; or
1-20 (2) $200,000.
1-21 (c) Subsection (b) does not apply to a cause of action
1-22 against a defendant from whom a plaintiff seeks recovery of
1-23 exemplary damages based on conduct described as a felony in the
1-24 following sections of the Penal Code if, except for Sections 49.07
2-1 and 49.08, the conduct was committed knowingly or intentionally:
2-2 (1) Section 19.02 (murder);
2-3 (2) Section 19.03 (capital murder);
2-4 (3) Section 20.04 (aggravated kidnapping);
2-5 (4) Section 22.02 (aggravated assault);
2-6 (5) Section 22.011 (sexual assault);
2-7 (6) Section 22.021 (aggravated sexual assault);
2-8 (7) Section 22.04, as that section applies to
2-9 [(]injury to a child[, elderly individual, or disabled
2-10 individual)];
2-11 (8) Section 32.21 (forgery);
2-12 (9) Section 32.43 (commercial bribery);
2-13 (10) Section 32.45 (misapplication of fiduciary
2-14 property or property of financial institution);
2-15 (11) Section 32.46 (securing execution of document by
2-16 deception);
2-17 (12) Section 32.47 (fraudulent destruction, removal,
2-18 or concealment of writing);
2-19 (13) Chapter 31 (theft) the punishment level for which
2-20 is a felony of the third degree or higher;
2-21 (14) Section 49.07 (intoxication assault); or
2-22 (15) Section 49.08 (intoxication manslaughter).
2-23 (d) Damages awarded against a defendant for conduct
2-24 described by Section 22.04, Penal Code, as that section applies to
2-25 injury to an elderly or disabled individual, may not exceed an
2-26 amount equal to the greater of:
2-27 (1) four times the amount of economic damages plus the
3-1 lesser of:
3-2 (A) an amount equal to any noneconomic damages
3-3 found by the jury; or
3-4 (B) $1.5 million; or
3-5 (2) $400,000.
3-6 (e) [(d)] In this section, "intentionally" and "knowingly"
3-7 have the same meanings assigned those terms in Sections 6.03(a) and
3-8 (b), Penal Code.
3-9 (f) [(e)] The provisions of Subsections (a), [and] (b), and
3-10 (d) may not be made known to a jury by any means, including voir
3-11 dire, introduction into evidence, argument, or instruction.
3-12 SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2001, and
3-13 applies only to an action filed on or after that date. An action
3-14 filed before September 1, 2001, is governed by the law in effect
3-15 immediately before that date, and that law is continued in effect
3-16 for that purpose.