New Texas Personal Injury and Wrongful Death Laws (2025–2026): What Actually Changed

Two online claims that are not Texas law

Claim: Texas extended the injury deadline to three years

It did not. Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code Section 16.003 still gives most people two years from the date a personal injury claim accrues to file suit.

A wrongful death lawsuit generally must be filed within two years of the death. Tolling rules and other exceptions may change the calculation, while a claim against a government unit can require notice much sooner.

Do not wait for the deadline to approach. Video can be overwritten, equipment can be repaired, electronic data can be lost, and witnesses can become harder to find.

Claim: Texas added stepchildren and foster children as wrongful death beneficiaries

It did not. Section 71.004 still authorizes a wrongful death action for the deceased person’s surviving spouse, children, and parents.

Legally adopted children may qualify as children. A stepchild or foster child does not automatically qualify based only on that relationship, and siblings are expressly excluded.

This rule can be painful for a family whose closest relationships do not match the legal categories. A survival claim may belong to the deceased person’s estate, but that is different from an individual wrongful death claim; who may receive estate property depends on the will or Texas inheritance law.

Our Texas wrongful death attorneys can help determine who has the legal right to bring the claim and whether a separate survival action may also be available.

Texas Supreme Court decisions that affect injury claims

The following are published Texas Supreme Court cases, not Keith & Lorfing case results. Each decision is limited by its facts, but each shows why the evidence must support every element of a claim against each defendant.

Werner Enterprises, Inc. v. Blake

In Werner Enterprises, Inc. v. Blake, No. 23-0493 (Tex. June 27, 2025), a pickup lost control on icy Interstate 20 near Odessa, crossed a wide median, and struck a tractor-trailer. One child died, and other occupants suffered severe injuries.

The jury awarded about $89.7 million and assigned 70% responsibility to Werner employees other than the truck driver, 14% to the truck driver, and 16% to the pickup driver. The Texas Supreme Court reversed and rendered judgment for Werner and its driver.

The Court held that the truck driver’s conduct was not a substantial factor in causing the injuries. On the record before it, the pickup driver’s loss of control was the sole proximate cause.

The claims against Werner also failed because they depended on the driver’s conduct being a proximate cause of the crash. The decision does not create a rule that every direct-negligence claim against a motor carrier fails whenever its driver wins; the result depends on the pleaded theories, evidence, and causal link in the particular case.

Practical point: A plaintiff must connect a defendant’s specific act or omission to the injury. Showing only that the defendant was present somewhere in the sequence of events is not enough.

In re East Texas Medical Center Athens

Texas employers may choose not to subscribe to the workers’ compensation system. When an employee sues a nonsubscriber employer for a work injury, Section 406.033 prevents the employer from using certain defenses, including contributory negligence by the employee.

In In re East Texas Medical Center Athens, No. 23-1039 (Tex. Apr. 25, 2025), the Court held that Chapter 33 proportionate responsibility still applies to that negligence action. The employer may seek to designate a responsible third party even though it cannot reduce liability by blaming the injured employee.

A designation does not automatically reduce the employee’s recovery. It allows the factfinder to decide whether the third party bears a percentage of responsibility, which may reduce the share assigned to the employer.

Practical point: This ruling can matter in oilfield, construction, and industrial cases involving several companies. Counsel should identify the worker’s employer, determine whether it carried workers’ compensation coverage, and investigate every company’s role.

JMI Contractors, LLC v. Medellin

In JMI Contractors, LLC v. Medellin, No. 24-0846 (Tex. June 26, 2026), an independent contractor was injured after falling from a roof. The Court treated the claim as premises liability rather than negligent activity.

The Court held that an independent contractor generally cannot recover on a premises-liability theory for an open and obvious condition. It also held that the necessary-use exception did not apply to the independent contractor in that case.

The decision does not erase every claim involving an independent contractor or a dangerous worksite. A different duty, concealed condition, or evidence that the property owner retained control may require a different analysis.

Practical point: How a claim is classified can decide which duties and defenses apply. The facts must show who controlled the work, who controlled the property condition, and what each party knew.

Rules that did not change

For many injured people, these existing rules remain more important than the new developments:

• Two-year limitations period: Most personal injury claims must be filed within two years after they accrue, and wrongful death claims generally must be filed within two years after death. Exceptions may apply.

• Wrongful death beneficiaries: The surviving spouse, children, and parents may bring the claim. If none of them files within three calendar months after the death, the executor or administrator generally must file unless all beneficiaries ask that no action be brought.

• The 51% bar: A claimant whose responsibility is greater than 50% cannot recover under Section 33.001. A claimant at 50% may recover damages reduced by that percentage.

• Paid or incurred medical expenses: Recovery of medical expenses is limited to the amount actually paid or incurred under Section 41.0105, not simply the amount first listed on a bill.

• Ordinary injury damages: Texas has no general statutory cap on pain and suffering in an ordinary personal injury or wrongful death action.

• Health care liability caps: Noneconomic damages are generally capped at $250,000 per claimant for all physicians and health care providers. A separate $250,000 limit applies to each health care institution, with a combined $500,000 institutional limit.

• Exemplary damages caps: Section 41.008 generally limits exemplary damages to the greater of $200,000 or two times economic damages plus an amount equal to noneconomic damages, up to $750,000. Statutory exceptions apply to specified criminal conduct.

• Government claims: The Texas Tort Claims Act generally requires notice within six months, and some local rules may demand earlier notice. Immunity exceptions and damage limits also apply.

The absence of a general cap does not mean every case has the same value. Our guide to wrongful death settlements after car accidents explains the factors that can affect compensation and why settlement amounts vary from case to case.

What these changes mean for a West Texas claim

A legal update is useful only if it changes what you do. For an injury or wrongful death claim, the most important steps are practical:

• Confirm the deadline: Calculate limitations and every notice deadline from the actual facts. Do not rely on a social media post or a general two-year estimate.

• Preserve short-lived evidence: Send preservation requests for video, vehicle downloads, phone data, dispatch records, maintenance files, and employment records when relevant.

• Identify every responsible party: A commercial crash or worksite injury may involve an employer, contractor, property owner, equipment company, motor carrier, shipper, or automated-driving company. A company’s involvement alone does not prove liability.

• Match proof to each legal element: Evidence of unsafe conduct must also show duty, breach, causation, and damages under the legal theory that applies.

• Prepare before summary judgment: The new Rule 166a response period leaves little time to locate missing witnesses or build an expert record after a motion is filed.

Those same steps apply across many types of Texas personal injury claims, from vehicle crashes to workplace and premises-related injuries.

Our firm focuses exclusively on West Texas and has offices in Abilene, Lubbock, Midland, and San Angelo. That local focus helps us investigate the industries, roads, courts, and working conditions involved in a West Texas claim.

What comes next

The 89th Legislature’s regular session ended without enacting SB 30 or HB 4806. The 90th Legislature is scheduled to convene on January 12, 2027, and adjourn on May 31, 2027.

A similar proposal could be filed again, but a proposal is not law unless it completes the legislative process and takes effect. Anyone with an active claim should rely on current statutes, court rules, and case law rather than predictions about the next session.

Which version of a law applies can depend on its effective-date language and whether the change is substantive or procedural. A lawyer should check those questions against the dates and facts of the specific claim.

Keith & Lorfing represents injured people and grieving families across West Texas. With offices in Abilene, Lubbock, Midland, and San Angelo, our team brings more than 75 years of combined experience and more than 500 jury trials to its work for West Texans.

Call Keith & Lorfing at (325) 480-8100 for a free consultation.

Frequently asked questions

Did Texas cap pain and suffering damages in 2025?

No. SB 30 and HB 4806 did not become law, so Texas did not create a new general cap for ordinary personal injury or wrongful death cases.

Separate limits still apply to health care liability claims, claims against government units, and exemplary damages.

Does Werner mean I cannot sue a trucking company?

No. Werner held that the evidence in that case did not show that the truck driver’s conduct was a substantial factor in causing the injuries.

A trucking claim may still proceed when admissible evidence supports duty, breach, proximate cause, and damages against the driver or another defendant.

Did the Texas wrongful death statute change?

No. The statute still identifies the surviving spouse, children, and parents as beneficiaries, and siblings remain excluded.

A separate survival action may preserve a claim the deceased person could have brought, but that claim belongs to the estate and follows different rules.

Is the deadline to file still two years?

For most personal injury and wrongful death suits, yes. Exceptions, tolling rules, and early government-notice requirements can change the actual deadline, so the date should be checked promptly.

What is the biggest procedural change?

The rewritten Rule 166a creates a defined schedule for summary judgment motions. A response is generally due within 21 days after filing, and the evidence needed to defeat the motion should be ready by then.

Did the law change for workers employed by nonsubscribers?

The statute did not newly authorize nonsubscriber suits, but In re East Texas Medical Center Athens clarified that Chapter 33 applies to them. An employer may ask the factfinder to assign responsibility to a properly designated third party, while the employer remains barred from blaming the injured employee through the defenses listed in Section 406.033.