According to Hancock, the following laws will have a great impact on contractors who work in the state. Here’s more detail on what each one does:
SB 219 Contractors Not Liable for Design Defects:
- In most states, the contractor is typically not held liable for work that’s completed under the owner’s defective design. But Texas’ 1907 case Lonergan v. San Antonio Loan & Trust put the responsibility on the builder. The logic goes that since contractors are in the business of construction, they can be held liable because they have the expertise to know better — even if no one on staff is an architect or engineer. SB 219 goes a long way to correct this legal doctrine, Hancock said, but does not apply if the contractor provides the faulty design.
