Texas 2025 - 89th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB2027 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	89R11963 AMF-F
2	2	By: Campbell S.B. No. 2027
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7	7	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	8	AN ACT
9	9	relating to the liability of a funeral service provider for mental
10	10	anguish damages.
11	11	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
12	12	SECTION 1. Title 4, Civil Practice and Remedies Code, is
13	13	amended by adding Chapter 77A to read as follows:
14	14	CHAPTER 77A. FUNERAL SERVICE PROVIDERS
15	15	Sec. 77A.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
16	16	(1) "Body or remains" means a human corpse or the body
17	17	parts of a human corpse.
18	18	(2) "Claimant" means a person described by Section
19	19	77A.002(a) who brings an action described by that section.
20	20	(3) "Funeral service" means a service performed by a
21	21	funeral service provider related to the care, preparation, and
22	22	disposition of a body or remains, including:
23	23	(A) retrieving, loading, and transporting the
24	24	body or remains;
25	25	(B) storing, embalming, dressing, casketing,
26	26	interring, or cremating the body or remains;
27	27	(C) arranging, supervising, and conducting a
28	28	funeral ceremony; and
29	29	(D) arranging, supervising, and implementing the
30	30	final disposition of the body or remains.
31	31	(4) "Funeral service provider" means a person engaged
32	32	in the business of providing funeral services. The term includes an
33	33	employee or contractor of the person engaged in the business of
34	34	providing funeral services, including an employee or contractor
35	35	used in the provision of a funeral service and who is:
36	36	(A) an embalmer;
37	37	(B) a crematory operator;
38	38	(C) a funeral director;
39	39	(D) a provisional license holder; or
40	40	(E) a transporter.
41	41	Sec. 77A.002. APPLICABILITY; EXCLUSIVE REMEDY. (a) This
42	42	chapter applies only to an action:
43	43	(1) brought by a person who has a special relationship
44	44	with a funeral service provider due to a claimant's right of
45	45	sepulcher, a right to possess a body or remains, a right to control
46	46	the disposition of a body or remains under Section 711.002(a),
47	47	Health and Safety Code, or another related right; and
48	48	(2) in which the person seeks to recover mental
49	49	anguish damages from a funeral service provider based on that
50	50	special relationship.
51	51	(b) A claimant may not pursue an action governed by this
52	52	chapter under any other law to obtain mental anguish damages from a
53	53	funeral service provider.
54	54	Sec. 77A.003. LIMITED LIABILITY FOR MENTAL ANGUISH DAMAGES.
55	55	(a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), a funeral service
56	56	provider is not liable to a claimant for mental anguish damages
57	57	unless the claimant proves:
58	58	(1) the funeral service provider mishandled a body or
59	59	remains;
60	60	(2) if the funeral service provider had acted in a
61	61	manner consistent with the common practice of reasonably prudent
62	62	funeral service providers, the mishandling of the body or remains
63	63	would not have occurred;
64	64	(3) as a result of the mishandling of the body or
65	65	remains and the close personal relationship between the claimant
66	66	and the decedent, the claimant experienced grievous or debilitating
67	67	angst, distress, torment, emotional suffering, or turmoil that
68	68	caused a substantial disruption in the claimant's daily routine;
69	69	and
70	70	(4) a reasonable person in the position of the funeral
71	71	service provider would have foreseen that the mishandling of the
72	72	body or remains would cause significant emotional harm to the
73	73	claimant.
74	74	(b) Except as provided by Subsection (c), mental anguish
75	75	damages that may be recovered from a funeral service provider by a
76	76	claimant in an action governed by this chapter are limited to the
77	77	lesser of:
78	78	(1) three times the amount paid to the funeral service
79	79	provider for funeral services for the decedent; or
80	80	(2) $50,000.
81	81	(c) A claimant may not recover mental anguish damages from a
82	82	funeral service provider in an action governed by this chapter if
83	83	the claimant seeks relief from the funeral service provider under
84	84	Subchapter E, Chapter 17, Business & Commerce Code.
85	85	Sec. 77A.004. JURY INSTRUCTIONS. In a trial to a jury for
86	86	an action governed by this chapter, the court shall provide the jury
87	87	a definition for mental anguish that conforms to Section
88	88	77A.003(a)(3) and instruct the jury regarding the requirements of
89	89	this chapter.
90	90	Sec. 77A.005. CONSTRUCTION OF CHAPTER. This chapter does
91	91	not:
92	92	(1) create a cause of action in favor of, or confer
93	93	standing to bring an action against a funeral service provider on,
94	94	any person; or
95	95	(2) limit a claimant's recovery of other forms of
96	96	economic or exemplary damages or apply to other actions, including
97	97	actions to recover damages for death or physical injury caused to
98	98	the claimant by negligence of a funeral service provider.
99	99	SECTION 2. Chapter 77A, Civil Practice and Remedies Code,
100	100	as added by this Act, is an exercise of authority under Section
101	101	66(c), Article III, Texas Constitution, and takes effect only if
102	102	this Act receives a vote of three-fifths of all the members elected
103	103	to each house, as provided by Subsection (e) of that section.
104	104	SECTION 3. Chapter 77A, Civil Practice and Remedies Code,
105	105	as added by this Act, applies only to an action commenced on or
106	106	after the effective date of this Act. An action commenced before
107	107	the effective date of this Act is governed by the law applicable to
108	108	the action immediately before the effective date of this Act, and
109	109	that law is continued in effect for that purpose.
110	110	SECTION 4. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
111	111	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
112	112	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
113	113	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
114	114	Act takes effect September 1, 2025.