Fence law was the topic of two recent opinions issued by appellate level courts in Texas.  Today, we will look at Dearbonne v. Courville a case out of Jefferson County, followed next week by a case out of Wilson County.  Both cases illustrate real-life situations involving fence law and offer differing approaches to the legal analysis of whether landowners can be liable for animals hit on the roadway. Background  The Beaumont Court of Appeals recently decided Dearbonne v. Courville. [Read Opinion here.]  In this case, the plaintiffs were injured when their vehicle… Read More →

Suppose I purchased land in Texas and there was a barbed wire fence on the property line dividing my neighbor’s land and my own.  Could I remove or replace that boundary fence?  If I had fences on my property that attached to that boundary fence, would I be allowed to remove those adjoining fences? There is actually a Texas statute that provides requirements for a landowner seeking to remove certain fences on his or her own property.  The “Removal of Adjoining Fences” statute, Texas Agric. Code Sections 143.121-.123,… Read More →

Fannin County residents have had an ongoing disagreement about whether the county is closed range or open range.  The District Attorney, Richard Glaser, sought an opinion from Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton to answer this question. As Mr. Glaser explained, “In what has recently become an annual Fannin County tradition, this office has been repeatedly asked whether Fannin County is currently an open- or closed-range county.” According to Mr. Paxton’s opinion, Fannin County is, indeed, a closed range county and livestock owners may not allow their animals to… Read More →

For those of you who may have missed the Texas Fence Law webinar hosted a couple of weeks ago by the Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association, we’ve got you covered!  Stacy Fox was kind enough to record the presentation given by Jim Bradbury and me and it may be viewed by clicking here. I’d like to thank Stacy, Tim, and everyone at TSCRA for hosting this webinar and for their interest in our fence law book, Five Strands: A Landowner’s Guide to Fence Law in Texas To… Read More →

Earlier this year, I wrote an article for Progressive Cattleman addressing the question of whether a livestock owner could face liability is his or her animals got onto the roadway and were hit by a motorist.  As with most legal questions, the answer is “it depends.”  To read my article, click here. For more information about the Texas law on this topic, check out a prior blog series I did on fencing laws.  You can find Part 1 here and Part 2 here.    

Question:  We recently moved to rural Texas and I keep seeing purple paint on trees and fence posts.  What’s with the purple paint? Answer:  In Texas, as well as several other states (Illinois, Missouri, North Carolina, Florida, Arkansas), purple paint is a method of prohibiting trespassing.  Basically, the purple paint is one alternative to posting “No Trespassing” signs. The Texas Penal Code 30.05 provides that a person commits criminal trespass if he or she (1) enters or remains on the property of another; (2) without effective consent; and (3)… Read More →