By: Wentworth S.B. No. 1190
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to certain procedures governing health care liability
claims.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subsection (b), Section 74.002, Civil Practice
and Remedies Code, is amended to read as follows:
(b) Notwithstanding Subsection (a), in the event of a
conflict between this chapter and Section 33.004, 101.023, 102.003,
or 108.002, those sections of this code control to the extent of the
conflict.
SECTION 2. Section 74.051, Civil Practice and Remedies
Code, is amended by adding Subsection (f) to read as follows:
(f) This section applies to any party seeking to designate a
responsible third party under Section 33.004.
SECTION 3. Subsections (a) and (u), Section 74.351, Civil
Practice and Remedies Code, are amended to read as follows:
(a) In a health care liability claim, a claimant shall, not
later than the 120th day after the date the original petition
[claim] was filed, serve on each party or the party's attorney one
or more expert reports, with a curriculum vitae of each expert
listed in the report for each physician or health care provider
against whom a liability claim is asserted. The date for serving
the report may be extended by written agreement of the affected
parties. Each defendant physician or health care provider whose
conduct is implicated in a report must file and serve any objection
to the sufficiency of the report not later than the 21st day after
the date it was served, failing which all objections are waived.
(u) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section,
after a claim is filed all claimants, collectively, may take not
more than two depositions of any party or other person, including a
defendant, before the expert report is served as required by
Subsection (a).
SECTION 4. The change in law made by this Act applies only
to a cause of action that accrues on or after the effective date of
this Act. A cause of action that accrues before the effective date
of this Act is governed by the law in effect immediately before that
date, and that law is continued in effect for that purpose.
SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2005.