Category Archives: Farm Animal Liability Act

Amendments to Texas Farm Animal Liability Act Effective September 1

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The Texas Legislature has passed and Governor Abbott has signed House Bill 365, which will make important changes to the Texas Farm Animal Liability Act (FALA). All farm animal owners should pay careful attention to the changes coming to the FALA, which will modify the scope of application and will also require additional steps be taken by farm animal owners. Background  The Texas Farm Animal Liability Act is a statute offering limited liability to farm animal owners if injuries are caused by an inherent risk to a farm… Read More →

June 11, 2021 Weekly Round Up

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If you expected it to be a quiet summer for agricultural law, you were sorely mistaken!  If the rest of the summer is anything like the first couple of weeks, we’re in for a lot of action.  Here are a few of the ag law stories recently in the news.   * Governor Abbott signs HB 365, modifying the Texas Farm Animal Liability Act.  We’ve discussed this bill previously while it was in committee, but Governor Abbot has now signed the FALA amendment passed by the legislature.  This… Read More →

May 21, 2021 Weekly Round Up

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Welcome to Friday! I hope everyone has fun weekend plans.  I will be running a Dinosaur 5K with my kids tomorrow, so we will see how Mama survives with a 4 and 5 year old in tow! Here are some of the biggest ag law stories in the news over the past couple of weeks. *Potential tax policy changes cause concern.  President Biden’s administration has indicated there may be policy changes related to capital gains taxes that have caused concern for many agricultural groups. In particular, President Biden’s… Read More →

Court Analyzes TX Farm Animal Liability Act When Horse Injures Bridesmaid at Wedding Venue

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Lobue v. Hanson, a case involving a wedding venue, a bridesmaid, a horse, and the Farm Animal Liability Act recently caught my attention.   [Read case here.] Background Todd Hanson owns a fifty-six acre property in Crosby, which he rents as a wedding venue called The Barn at Four Pines Ranch.  The weddings are held in a barn on the property.  Cattle and horses are on the property, but there is a fence separating the livestock from the barn. When the bride and groom arrived on their wedding day,… Read More →

April 9, 2021 Weekly Round Up

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Happy Friday!  Spring has sprung here in the Texas Panhandle and I’m enjoying the green grass and warmer weather.  Here are few of the ag law stories in the news over the past couple of weeks.   * Farm Animal Liability Act bill moves forward as amended.  You may recall from our post a week ago that HB 365 is currently pending and would modify the Texas Farm Animal Liability Act to ensure application to working farms and ranches.  For more detail, click here.  The bill continues to… Read More →

TX House Bill to Modify Farm Animal Liability Act Unanimous Out of Committee

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A bill that would seek to essentially undo a 2020 Texas Supreme Court decision limiting the scope of the Texas Farm Animal Liability Act (FALA) has been unanimously passed out of the House Judiciary and Civil Jurisprudence Committee.  For farmers and ranchers, this is an important issue as it relates to their legal protection from liability for injuries caused by horses or livestock. Statutory Background The Texas Equine Act was passed in 1995.  The scope of the statute was amended in 2011 to expand the scope of the… Read More →

March 12, 2021 Weekly Round Up

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Happy Friday!  We’re back with some more of the ag law stories in the news over the past couple of weeks. * Bill would modify Texas Farm Animal Liability Act to ensure applicability to working ranches.  You may remember last year that the Texas Supreme Court issued a ruling in Waak v. Zuniga holding that the Texas Farm Animal Liability Act does not apply if the injured party is a rancher or ranch hand. [Read prior post here.]  There are a couple of bills in the Texas Legislature seeking… Read More →

2020 Agricultural Law Year in Review – Texas

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If you missed our National Year in Review post, click here.  I am not sure I can remember a year with more agricultural law-related opinions being issued by Texas appellate courts. From fence law to eminent domain, hemp to liability, here are some of the biggest legal stories of 2020 from the Lone Star State.   Dicamba Registration Vacated, New Registration Issued, Lawsuit Filed Although this is a national issue, and we addressed it in more detail on our National Year in Review post, because it had such… Read More →

Texas Supreme Court Holds Farm Animal Liability Act Inapplicable to Ranchers & Ranch Hands

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The Texas Supreme Court issued a divided opinion on a case involving the death of a ranch employee and determined the Farm Animal Liability Act does not apply to “ranchers and ranch hands.”  This interpretation limits the scope of the Act and is important for livestock owners to be aware of. [Read full opinion here.] Background The Waaks raise Charolais cattle in Fayette County.  In 2005, they hired Raul Zuniga to work part time with the cattle, landscaping, and cutting hay.  In 2008, he began working full-time for… Read More →

So Many New Opinions!

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Over the last month, there have been a large number of agricultural-related opinions released here in Texas.  I plan to blog on each of these individually, but many of you have asked for some basic information about several of the opinions.  Today, I will be giving brief summaries of the cases and links to read the full opinions for those of you who may be interested in doing so.  Stay tuned over the next couple of months to see much deeper dives into the decisions in each of… Read More →