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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to the prosecution of the offense of barratry and |
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solicitation of professional employment. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Section 38.12(d), Penal Code, is amended to read |
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as follows: |
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(d) A person commits an offense if the person: |
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(1) is an attorney, chiropractor, physician, surgeon, |
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or private investigator licensed to practice in this state or any |
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person licensed, certified, or registered by a health care |
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regulatory agency of this state; and |
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(2) with the intent to obtain professional employment |
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for the person [himself] or for another, provides [sends] or |
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knowingly permits to be provided [sent] to an individual who has not |
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sought the person's employment, legal representation, advice, or |
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care a written communication or a solicitation, including a |
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solicitation in person or by telephone, that: |
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(A) concerns an action for personal injury or |
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wrongful death or otherwise relates to an accident or disaster |
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involving the person to whom the communication or solicitation is |
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provided [addressed] or a relative of that person and that was |
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provided [mailed] before the 31st day after the date on which the |
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accident or disaster occurred; |
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(B) concerns a specific matter and relates to |
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legal representation and the person knows or reasonably should know |
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that the person to whom the communication or solicitation is |
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directed is represented by a lawyer in the matter; |
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(C) concerns an arrest of or issuance of a |
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summons to the person to whom the communication or solicitation is |
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provided [addressed] or a relative of that person and that was |
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provided [mailed] before the 31st day after the date on which the |
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arrest or issuance of the summons occurred; |
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(D) concerns a lawsuit of any kind, including an |
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action for divorce, in which the person to whom the communication or |
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solicitation is provided [addressed] is a defendant or a relative |
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of that person, unless the lawsuit in which the person is named as a |
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defendant has been on file for more than 31 days before the date on |
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which the communication or solicitation was provided [mailed]; |
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(E) is provided [sent] or permitted to be |
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provided [sent] by a person who knows or reasonably should know that |
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the injured person or relative of the injured person has indicated a |
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desire not to be contacted by or receive communications or |
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solicitations concerning employment; |
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(F) involves coercion, duress, fraud, |
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overreaching, harassment, intimidation, or undue influence; or |
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(G) contains a false, fraudulent, misleading, |
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deceptive, or unfair statement or claim. |
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SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act applies only |
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to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act. |
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An offense committed before the effective date of this Act is |
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governed by the law in effect at the time the offense was committed, |
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and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For |
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purposes of this section, an offense was committed before the |
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effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurred |
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before that date. |
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SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009. |