The Court of Appeals for the First District of Texas was recently presented with a novel claim: that a Seller's representations contained in a Seller's Disclosure Notice is protected speech under the Texas Citizens Participation Act ("TCPA"). This case is...
WHAT IS AN EASEMENT? An easement confers upon one person the valuable right to use the land of another for a specific purpose. Hubert v. Davis, 170 S.W.3d 706, 710 (Tex. App.-Tyler 2005, no pet.). An easement is a "liberty, privilege or advantage in land without...
WHAT IS AN "EASEMENT?" “A property owner’s right to exclude others from his or her property is recognized as ‘one of the most essential sticks in the bundle of rights that are commonly characterized as property.’” Marcus Cable Associates, L.P. v. Krohn, 90 S.W.3d 697,...
The validity of a deed -- and the conveyance of land it purports to represent -- often turns on formalities. Whether a deed is subject to being invalidated by a Court often depends on the ability of the party contesting it to prove that it was secured by fraud, or...
WHAT IS TRESPASS TO TRY TITLE LAWSUIT? A suit to quiet title is a statutory cause of action grounded in Chapter 22 of the Texas Property Code. Generally speaking, a quiet title lawsuit is the exclusivemethod to adjudicate rival claims of title to real property. See...
BAD NEWS ALL OVER The destructive impact of COVID-19 is undeniable. Virtually every industry in the American (and possibly worldwide) economy has been negatively impacted. The practice of law is no exception. According to a recent report, 64,000 legal jobs were lost...
COVID-19 has affected all of us. My small business is not immune from the pandemic's economic and life-altering impact. Yet, we are here, adapting to the new "normal" to best serve our clients. Whether this means attending court hearings via ZOOM or meeting with...
On April 6, 2020, Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff entered a revised Emergency Order in response to the COVID-19 Disaster Declaration. This Order (NW-o5) contains strict guidelines for all persons entering the Bexar County Courthouse. Among other provisions, the Order...
The Texas Association of Realtors (TXR) is not taking the COVID-19 pandemic lying down. Instead, they have issued a series of responsive forms designed to assist their Realtor members and buyers/sellers in navigating the current market uncertainties. The forms are...
On March 25, 2020, the Bexar County Civil District Courts issued the COVID-19 Court Operations Plan. The Plan is effective April 6, 2020 and requires that ALL hearings be conducted remotely. I made this video to provide information on the plan, and my initial "take"...
From Texas Realtors: The COVID-19 pandemic is causing unprecedented impact and uncertainty for Texas real estate transactions. Voluntary and mandatory quarantines and the closure of government and private offices may impede the ability of parties to successfully fund...
“The right of individuals to use their own property as they wish remains one of the most fundamental rights that individual property owners possess.”[1] Texas’ population explosion and climate change[2] have intensified the need for conservation of increasingly-scarce...
TEXAS COURT DEFINITION OF "OPTION TO PURCHASE" Under Texas court decisions, an option to purchase is a land contract by which the owner gives another the right to buy property at a fixed price within a certain time. Bryant v. Cady, 445 S.W.3d 815, 819 (Tex....
In December 2016 we filed suit on behalf of Laredo landowners whose access to their subdivision was being denied by a neighboring property owner. The neighbor claimed that he owned the roadway leading to the subdivision as his private property. To bolster his claim,...
WHAT IS LIS PENDENS? "Lis pendens provides a mechanism for putting the public on notice of certain categories of litigation involving real property." Prappas v. Meyerland Cmty. Improvement Ass'n, 795 S.W.2d 794, 795 (Tex. App.-Houston [14th Dist.] 1990, writ denied)....
GENERAL REQUIREMENT FOR WRITTEN NOTICE OF PROPERTY CONDITION Section 5.008(a) of the Texas Property Code provides A seller of residential real property comprising not more than one dwelling unit in this state shall give to the purchaser of the property a written...
Not all failures of a Seller to disclose property conditions constitute actionable fraud. In fact, sometimes Sellers have no duty to disclose at all. Sellers can be excused from a disclosure obligation where the Buyer/Purchaser had an equal opportunity to discover the...
Given the rapid expansion of Texas cities and changing nature of many subdivisions, deed restrictions sometimes seem antiquated. This is especially true where once residential streets are now busy thoroughfares more appropriate for commercial use. Landowners...
WHAT IS A CONTRACT FOR DEED? A contract for deed is a form of real property conveyance in which the purchaser obtains an immediate right to possession but the seller retains legal title and has no obligation to transfer it unless and until the purchaser finishes...
Beauty, like supreme dominion Is but supported by opinion -Benjamin Franklin, Poor Richard's Almanack, 1741 [T]he law will not declare a thing a nuisance because it is unpleasant to the eye. —Schamburger v. Scheurrer, 198 S.W. 1069 (Tex.Civ.App.–Fort Worth 1917, no...
NUISANCE AS A TYPE OF LEGAL INJURY Under Texas law, the term“nuisance” refers not to a defendant’s conduct or to a legal claim or cause of action but to a type of legal injury involving interference with the use and enjoyment of real property. Though once recognized...