14th Court of Appeals holds flooded property owners’ claims lack jurisdiction in district court
San Jacinto River Authority v. Reba Ogletree, et al., 14-18-00043-CV, (Tex App – Hou [14th dist.], Jan 28, 2020)
In this inverse condemnation case the Fourteenth Court of Appeals dismissed the homeowner’s claims for lack of jurisdiction.
Homeowners, whose properties allegedly flooded when water was released from Lake Conroe in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey, sued the San Jacinto River Authority (SJRA) and the Texas Water Development Board in a Harris County district court. SJRA filed a plea to the jurisdiction and the TWB filed a Rule 91a motion. The trial court denied the plea but granted TWB’s motion. SJRA and the Homeowners appealed.
SJRA and the Texas Water Board contend on appeal that Texas Government Code section 25.1032(c) imbues the county civil courts at law with exclusive jurisdiction over all inverse condemnation claims filed in Harris County. Generally, Texas district courts and county courts at law have concurrent jurisdiction in eminent-domain cases, but section 25.1032(c) creates an exception for certain cases filed in Harris County. Inverse condemnation claims and statutory condemnation claims are distinct categories of eminent-domain proceedings. The homeowners also raised substantive and procedural due process claims. The court concluded that the district court lacks subject matter jurisdiction over the purported substantive and procedural due process claims because, as pled, they are necessarily dependent upon the viability of the inverse-condemnation claims over which the district court lacks jurisdiction. When the homeowners requested the ability to amend their petitions, the court noted it lacked authority to lift the legislatively mandated stay in section 51.014(b) [interlocutory appeal provision], even for a limited purpose. Further, in this situation, the homeowners’ live pleading affirmatively negates the district court’s jurisdiction; hence, the homeowners are not entitled to a remand to plead new claims. All of the homeowner’s claims should have been dismissed.
If you would like to read this opinion click here. Panel consists of Chief Justice Frost, and Justices Jewell and Bourliot. Opinion by Justice Bourliot. Docket page with attorney information found here.
