Tex. Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 101.029
This is the official text of Tex. Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 101.029, part of Texas’s Civil Practice and Remedies Code — sets procedural rules and available remedies for civil lawsuits.
Not legal advice. This page reproduces the official text of a government statute for reference only. Laws change, and how a statute applies depends on your specific facts. For advice about your situation, consult a licensed attorney in your state.
§ 101.029. LIABILITY FOR CERTAIN CONDUCT OF STATE PRISON INMATES.
Official statutory text
(a) The Department of Criminal Justice is liable for property damage, personal injury, and death proximately caused by the wrongful act or omission or the negligence of an inmate or state jail defendant housed in a facility operated by the department if:
(1) the property damage, personal injury, or death arises from the operation or use of a motor-driven vehicle or motor-driven equipment;
(2) the inmate or defendant would be personally liable to the claimant for the property damage, personal injury, or death according to Texas law were the inmate or defendant a private person acting in similar circumstances; and
(3) the act, omission, or negligence was committed by the inmate or defendant acting in the course and scope of a task or activity that:
(A) the inmate or defendant performed at the request of an employee of the department; and
(B) the inmate or defendant performed under the control or supervision of the department.
(b) A claimant may not name the inmate or state jail defendant whose act or omission gave rise to the claim as a codefendant in an action brought under this section.
(c) A judgment in an action or a settlement of a claim against the Department of Criminal Justice under this section bars any action involving the same subject matter by the claimant against the inmate or state jail defendant whose act or omission gave rise to the claim. A judgment in an action or a settlement of a claim against an inmate or state jail defendant bars any action involving the same subject matter by the claimant against the Department of Criminal Justice under this section.
(d) This section does not apply to property damage, personal injury, or death sustained by an inmate or state jail defendant.
(1) the property damage, personal injury, or death arises from the operation or use of a motor-driven vehicle or motor-driven equipment;
(2) the inmate or defendant would be personally liable to the claimant for the property damage, personal injury, or death according to Texas law were the inmate or defendant a private person acting in similar circumstances; and
(3) the act, omission, or negligence was committed by the inmate or defendant acting in the course and scope of a task or activity that:
(A) the inmate or defendant performed at the request of an employee of the department; and
(B) the inmate or defendant performed under the control or supervision of the department.
(b) A claimant may not name the inmate or state jail defendant whose act or omission gave rise to the claim as a codefendant in an action brought under this section.
(c) A judgment in an action or a settlement of a claim against the Department of Criminal Justice under this section bars any action involving the same subject matter by the claimant against the inmate or state jail defendant whose act or omission gave rise to the claim. A judgment in an action or a settlement of a claim against an inmate or state jail defendant bars any action involving the same subject matter by the claimant against the Department of Criminal Justice under this section.
(d) This section does not apply to property damage, personal injury, or death sustained by an inmate or state jail defendant.
Status: in_force · Read it on the official government site
Need a lawyer in Texas?
Find a Texas lawyer
About this page: Statute text is reproduced from official government publishers via the
Open US Law dataset
(Vaquill AI, snapshot v2026.08, CC BY 4.0). Primary legislative text like this is public domain under the government-edicts doctrine
(Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 2020). We link every section back to its official source so you can verify it independently.