Texas Court of Appeals Upholds Dismissal for Retailer in Premises Liability Case
September 25, 2019 (Houston, TX) – Hawkins Parnell & Young secured an important victory in the Court of Appeals of Texas, Fourteenth District, Houston, on behalf of H-E-B, LP. H-E-B is one of the largest, independently owned food retailers in the nation operating over 400 stores throughout Texas and Mexico, with annual sales generating over $26 billion. The appeals court upheld the trial court’s traditional and no-evidence summary judgments dismissing H-E-B from the plaintiffs’ slip-and-fall lawsuit. The 15-page memorandum opinion dispenses with almost every argument typically attempted by plaintiffs in premises liability cases, including negligent activity/ordinary negligence, res ipsa, dangerous display, employee proximity, condition created by employee, actual notice and the time-notice test of constructive notice. This appeal was transferred to the Houston Court of Appeals from the Austin Court of Appeals. It will have precedential value in both jurisdictions, as well as throughout Texas.