Case law

Almanza v. Salazar

33 F. Supp. 3d 747 · District Court, S.D. Texas · Aug 29, 2013

“The doctrine of qualified immunity protects government officials from liability for civil damages insofar as their conduct does not violate clearly established statutory or constitutional rights of which a reasonable person … unreasonable in light of the law that was clearly established at the time of the actions complained of.”

Vela v. Gomez

4 S.W.3d 911 · Court of Appeals of Texas · Oct 21, 1999

Appellants’ sole issue contends the trial court erred in denying their motion for summary judgment based on the doctrine of official immunity. The standard of review in a summary judgment case is well-established: 1. … Official immunity is an affirmative defense requiring the defendant to establish all elements of the defense. City of Lancaster v. Chambers, 883 S.W.2d 650, 653 (Tex.1994).

Bruce Wayne Houser v. Helen R. Bluitt

Texas Court of Appeals, 9th District (Beaumont) · Nov 30, 2006

section 1983, provided the official's conduct does not violate clearly established constitutional or statutory rights of which a reasonable person would have been aware. … Additionally, under a section 1983 action, when a governmental official asserts the affirmative defense of qualified immunity, the burden shifts to the plaintiff to show that the defendant's conduct violated clearly established

Garza v. Galena Park Independent School District

914 F. Supp. 1437 · District Court, S.D. Texas · Sep 1, 1994

Individual defendants sued in their individual capacity are entitled to qualified immunity unless they violated clearly-established statutory or constitutional rights of which a reasonable person knew or should have known … As discussed above, no constitutional right was involved in this case and the individual defendants are protected by qualified immunity.

Socorro Independent School District v. James Hamilton

579 S.W.3d 831 · Texas Court of Appeals, 8th District (El Paso) · Jul 17, 2019

Second, Hamilton asserts that the separation agreement itself qualifies as a contract on which immunity has been waived by the Legislature. … Among other entities, the Texas Supreme Court has concluded that TCHRA clearly and unambiguously waives immunity for suits 12 brought against school districts.

Campbell v. Baldwin

90 F. Supp. 2d 754 · District Court, E.D. Texas · Feb 23, 2000

Although the plaintiff has specifically plead many facts which may overcome the defense of qualified immunity, the court is of the opinion that a repleading is necessary. … More specific pleadings may assist the court in determining whether or not the qualified immunity defense is valid.

Rusk State Hospital v. Black

379 S.W.3d 283 · Court of Appeals of Texas · Jun 23, 2010

Thomas’s summary judgment motion clearly challenged the trial court’s subject matter jurisdiction. Id. at 339 . … Van Dusen, although establishing the cause of death as asphyxiation, also fails to show how the Hospital breached the applicable standard of care.

Williams v. Dumkwu

District Court, E.D. Texas · Aug 14, 2025

In so doing, the magistrate judge determined that the defendants are entitled to qualified immunity. Jd. … The Hudson factors ultimately weigh in favor of defendants, especially considering the surveillance footage, and defendants are entitled to qualified immunity.

Brown v. Board of Trustees Sealy Independent School District

871 F. Supp. 2d 581 · District Court, S.D. Texas · May 9, 2012

The doctrine of qualified immunity protects government officials “from liability for civil damages insofar as their conduct does not violate clearly established statutory or constitutional rights of which a reasonable person … County of Comal, 400 F.3d 284, 289 (5th Cir.2005) (“Even if the government official’s conduct violates a clearly established right, the official is nonetheless entitled to qualified immunity if his conduct was objectively

Kristine Zambrano, in Her Individual and Official Capacities v. Aaron Malone, TDCJ 1697643

Texas Court of Appeals, 13th District · Jan 25, 2018

By two issues, Zambrano argues (1) she is protected in her official capacity by sovereign immunity from Malone’s state law claims and (2) she is protected by qualified immunity from Malone’s federal constitutional claims … It protects governmental officers with discretionary authority from liability so long as their conduct does not violate clearly established statutory or constitutional rights of which a reasonable person would have known

Ex parte Springsteen

506 S.W.3d 789 · Court of Appeals of Texas · Dec 21, 2016

It is well established that the common law—the starting or default legal rule—recognizes no right to recover against the government for wrongful or erroneous imprisonment, 3 and sovereign *791 immunity—the age-old common-law … will bar [even] an otherwise proper [U]DJA claim that has the effect of establishing a right to relief against the State for which the Legislature has not waived sovereign immunity" (citing City of Houston v.

Madison v. Houston Independent School District

47 F. Supp. 2d 825 · District Court, S.D. Texas · Apr 22, 1999

Under the doctrine of qualified immunity, governmental employees, when sued in their individual capacities, are immune from suit when their actions are objectively reasonable as measured by reference to clearly established … Whether the act complained of by the plaintiff violates clearly established rights is essentially a legal question. Id. A two-step process is used by the court in analyzing qualified immunity.

City of Houston v. Jose Torres

Texas Court of Appeals, 1st District (Houston) · Dec 31, 2025

Thus, the City argues that Torres failed to establish a waiver of the City’s governmental immunity. We agree. … Because the evidence establishes that Ricci owed no duty to Torres—a required element of negligence—the City retained its governmental immunity from suit. See Sw. Bell Tel.

Hutchison v. BROOKSHIRE BROS., INC.

225 F. Supp. 2d 719 · District Court, E.D. Texas · Aug 13, 2002

(vi) Application of Qualified Immunity to Officer McCown Defendants argue that Officer McCown is entitled to qualified immunity. … In order to defeat defendants’ claim of qualified immunity, plaintiff must satisfy a three part test.

David Wuertz/Sam Wilson v. Sam Wilson/David Wuertz

Texas Court of Appeals, 3rd District (Austin) · Apr 24, 1996

In point of error one, Wuertz argues that the trial court erred in denying him qualified immunity by overruling his motion for judgment notwithstanding the verdict and motion for new trial because the evidence conclusively … Thus, in this case, we must consider only the evidence and inferences tending to support the finding that Wuertz was not entitled to the qualified immunity privilege and disregard all evidence and inferences to the contrary

Robert Huber v. ISI Contracting, Inc.

Texas Court of Appeals, 9th District (Beaumont) · Apr 9, 2026

A defendant seeking the immunity provided in the middle portion must, therefore, establish that it is a party who qualifies for protection according to the introduction, and must also establish all elements included in … “To the contrary, the statute contains multiple applicability requirements to create immunity, which must all be met[.]” Id. Did ISI conclusively establish it is a party that may qualify under 97.002?

South East Texas Regional Planning Commission v. Byrdson Services, LLC, D/B/A Excello Construction, LLC

454 S.W.3d 581 · Court of Appeals of Texas · Jan 22, 2015

To minimize waste, the contracts also required that the contractors performing work meet standards for quality, as established by the agreements. … 271.152’s waiver to be triggered by such contingent claims, and given the language on interpreting the intended scope of the waiver in the Code Construction Act, we are of the opinion that section 271.152 would have clearly

Henrise v. Horvath

94 F. Supp. 2d 765 · District Court, N.D. Texas · Apr 21, 2000

The Individual Defendants have asserted the defense of qualified immunity and contend that Plaintiff has not pleaded his claim with the requisite specificity to defeat their entitlement to qualified immunity. … Defendants in essence seek an order requiring Plaintiff to file a reply to their assertion of qualified immunity.

Hill v. Silsbee Independent School District

933 F. Supp. 616 · District Court, E.D. Texas · Mar 14, 1996

Defendant-Muckleroy’s Defense of Qualified Immunity Defendant Muckleroy seeks to invoke the defense of qualified immunity in his individual capacity. … However, qualified immunity does not shield a public official whose conduct violates clearly-established constitutional rights at the time of the incident, if a reasonable person would have known that such conduct was unconstitutional

University of Texas at San Antonio v. Damien Wilkerson

Texas Court of Appeals, 13th District · Jan 26, 2026

In its third issue, UTSA argues that Wilkerson failed to establish a prima facie discrimination claim because he was not “qualified” for his position. … Because Wilkerson failed to establish a prima facie retaliation claim, the trial court erred by denying UTSA’s assertion of sovereign immunity as to this claim. See Alamo Heights, 544 S.W.3d at 781–82.