Texas 13th Court of Appeals

Texas 13th Court of Appeals, Personal Injury & Tort, Real Estate

Texas Cordia Construction v. Cantu — Private Government Contractor Cannot Invoke Interlocutory Appeal as “Governmental Unit”; Derivative Sovereign Immunity Fact Question Survives Plea to Jurisdiction

automatic / June 8, 2026

The Thirteenth Court of Appeals dismissed a private contractor’s interlocutory appeal of a denied plea to the jurisdiction because a private LLC is not a “governmental unit” under § 51.014(a)(8); treating the filing as a mandamus petition, the court denied relief because the contractor’s own contract gave it sole responsibility for means and methods of construction, raising a fact question that defeats derivative sovereign immunity — a doctrine the Texas Supreme Court has not yet adopted.

Texas 13th Court of Appeals, Civil Procedure, professional-liability

Melden & Hunt v. Cantu — Citing the Certificate-of-Merit Statute and Promising a Future Affidavit Does Not Satisfy Texas’s Contemporaneous-Filing Requirement

automatic / June 8, 2026

The Thirteenth Court of Appeals held that an original petition that cites Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 150.002(c) and promises a forthcoming certificate of merit does not substantially comply with the contemporaneous-filing requirement for professional-negligence claims against engineers, requiring reversal and remand for a determination on prejudice.

Texas 13th Court of Appeals, anti-slapp, defamation, Employment, Workers Compensation

Baseline Energy Services v. Martin — TCPA Requires Dismissal of Libel Claim Based on TWC Statements When Employee Presents No Evidence in Response

automatic / June 8, 2026

The Thirteenth Court of Appeals reversed the denial of Baseline Energy’s TCPA motion to dismiss a libel claim based on statements made to the Texas Workforce Commission, holding that TWC communications implicate the right to petition and that an employee’s failure to present any evidence in response to the motion required dismissal of the libel claim.

Texas 13th Court of Appeals, Appellate Procedure, Civil Procedure, Municipal Law

City of Edinburg v. Texas Cordia Construction — City Cannot Block Contractor’s Immunity Evidence by Limiting Its Jurisdictional Challenge to Pleadings

automatic / June 8, 2026

The Thirteenth Court of Appeals held that a city cannot bar a contractor from presenting jurisdictional evidence by framing its plea to the jurisdiction as a pleadings-only challenge, and that amounts owed under a termination-for-convenience clause are “due and owed” within the Texas Local Government Code’s immunity waiver.

Texas 13th Court of Appeals, Constitutional, Criminal

Magnuson v. State — Trial Court Violated Defendant’s Faretta Right to Self-Representation at Deferred Adjudication Hearing

automatic / June 8, 2026

The Texas Thirteenth Court of Appeals reversed a ten-year deferred-adjudication conviction, holding the trial court violated Magnuson’s Faretta right to self-representation at the adjudication hearing when it denied his unequivocal request to proceed pro se—over the State’s delay-tactic objection—without making the required findings that the request was knowing, voluntary, and timely.

Texas 13th Court of Appeals, Appellate Procedure, Civil Procedure, Contract Interpretation, Insurance Coverage

In Re Germania Farm Mutual — Texas Appeals Court Compels Insurance Appraisal Despite Insurer’s Full Claim Denial

automatic / June 7, 2026

The Thirteenth Court of Appeals conditionally granted mandamus compelling appraisal in a homeowner's insurance dispute, holding that Germania's outright claim denial did not preclude appraisal and that the policyholder failed to establish waiver or prejudice from any delay in demanding the process.