| 1 | 1 | | By: Leach H.B. No. 3849 |
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| 2 | 2 | | |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 5 | 5 | | AN ACT |
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| 6 | 6 | | relating to the liability of a person granting access to a gated |
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| 7 | 7 | | community to a process server. |
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| 8 | 8 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 9 | 9 | | SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 17, Civil Practice and |
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| 10 | 10 | | Remedies Code, is amended by adding Section 17.033 to read as |
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| 11 | 11 | | follows: |
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| 12 | 12 | | Sec. 17.033. SERVICE AT GATED COMMUNITY. (a) In this |
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| 13 | 13 | | section: |
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| 14 | 14 | | (1) "Civil process" means all process issued or |
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| 15 | 15 | | sanctioned by a civil court. |
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| 16 | 16 | | (2) "Gated community" means a residential subdivision |
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| 17 | 17 | | or housing development that contains two or more dwellings not |
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| 18 | 18 | | under common ownership and that has a vehicular or pedestrian gate. |
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| 19 | 19 | | (3) "Process server" means a person certified by the |
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| 20 | 20 | | supreme court who serves civil process. |
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| 21 | 21 | | (b) It is an affirmative defense to a civil action for |
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| 22 | 22 | | damages arising as a result of a property owner, manager, or |
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| 23 | 23 | | security guard granting a person access to a gated community that |
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| 24 | 24 | | the property owner, manager, or security guard granted the access |
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| 25 | 25 | | in the exercise of reasonable care to a process server, constable, |
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| 26 | 26 | | or sheriff for delivery of process. |
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| 27 | 27 | | SECTION 2. Section 17.033, Civil Practice and Remedies |
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| 28 | 28 | | Code, as added by this Act, applies to all process served on or |
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| 29 | 29 | | after the effective date of this Act, without regard to whether the |
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| 30 | 30 | | process was issued before, on, or after that date. |
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| 31 | 31 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015. |
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