Richards v. Mena

907 S.W.2d 566, 1995 WL 274947
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedSeptember 28, 1995
Docket13-92-100 CV
StatusPublished
Cited by32 cases

This text of 907 S.W.2d 566 (Richards v. Mena) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Richards v. Mena, 907 S.W.2d 566, 1995 WL 274947 (Tex. Ct. App. 1995).

Opinions

OPINION

BURGESS, Justice.

This appeal involves the propriety of attorneys’ fees in a redistrieting and voting rights case. In a non-jury trial the court permanently enjoined use of the 1991 legislative enactments redistrieting the Texas House of Representatives and the Texas Senate. An agreed judgment settled all issues except appellees’ attorney fees. By sixteen points of error, the State contends the trial court erred by awarding attorney fees against the State.

Originally, appellees, the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF), the Texas Civil Rights Project (TCRP), and the Texas Rural Legal Aid Fund (TRLA), on behalf of thirteen Mexican-Americans and the El Paso Coalition for Fair Redistrieting, a voting rights community organization, sued to prevent Texas officials [569]*569from using 1990 census figures for legislative redistricting purposes. Appellees claimed violations of the Texas Constitution’s Bill of Rights and other statutory provisions.

The Legislature passed HB-150 and SB-31, Texas House of Representatives and Senate redistricting plans. Appellees then amended their lawsuit claiming the newly enacted legislation illegally and unconstitutionally discriminated against Mexican-Americans.

After a hearing, the trial court entered a temporary injunction, partial summary judgment, and declaratory relief invalidating the House and Senate plans and ordering the State to develop new redistricting plans, adjusting for the census undercount.

Because of the impending March 1992 primaries, a second suit, Quiroz v. Richards, was filed complaining about the Senate redistricting plan. An agreed final judgment was entered enjoining implementation of SB-31 and replacing it with the Quiroz plan, which provided a different method of redistricting. The same Quiroz plan was entered and adopted in this ease. Entering the Quiroz plan was only a partial settlement of this case because the House reapportionment plan remained in dispute. Later, in this case, the trial judge signed an agreed final judgment enjoining the appellants from implementing HB-150 and ordering House elections under a different plan.

The Legislature, on January 8, 1992, in special session, passed SB-1 and HB-1, Senate and House redistricting plans identical to those approved in Quiroz and by the trial judge in this case.

The State, through its various points of error, actually raises only two issues; the legal availability of attorneys’ fees for the plaintiffs and the evidentiary basis for the award.

The first issue is determined by an interpretation of the scope of the waiver of governmental immunity under Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code, chapter 106. The State contends the trial court erred because chapter 106 does not waive governmental immunity for the payment of attorney fees.

An officer or employee of the state or a political subdivision of the state who is acting or purporting to act in an official capacity may not, because of a person’s race, religion, color, sex, or national origin, impose an unreasonable burden on the person. TexCiv. Prao. & Rem.Code Ann. § 106.001(a)(6) (Vernon 1986). If a person has violated or there are reasonable grounds to believe a person is about to violate section 106.001, the person aggrieved by the violation or threatened violation may sue for preventive relief, including a permanent or temporary injunction. Tex. CrvPRAC. & Rem.Code Ann. § 106.002(a) (Vernon 1986). Additionally, the court may award the prevailing party, other than the state, reasonable attorneys’ fees as part of the costs. Tex.Civ.PRAC. & Rem.Code Ann. § 106.002(b) (Vernon 1986). Thus, section 106.002(b) provides for an express waiver of the State’s governmental immunity to those prohibited acts listed in section 106.001.

Initially, we note the State does not challenge the trial court’s finding that the House and Senate bills imposed an unreasonable burden upon appellees. The State argues chapter 106 is not an all-purpose antidiscrim-ination statute, thus no waiver of governmental immunity for attorney fees and costs in a redistricting cause of action. The State argues that any unintentional racially discriminatory impact of the redistricting legislation is not the type of discriminatory act addressed in section 106.001(a)(6) whereby sovereign immunity is waived in 106.002(b). Without citing authority, the State contends the prohibited acts referred to in section 106.001(a)(6) are only intentional acts, not, as in this ease, the unintentional racially discriminatory impact of the Legislature’s redistricting legislation.

Appellees respond that the use of HB-150 and SB-31 are within the prohibited acts contemplated by 106.001(a)(6). Appellees contend that because they pleaded and the trial court held the use of HB-150 and SB-31 redistricting plans and their underlying census data imposed an unreasonable burden on the rights of Mexican-American voters because of their race, color, or national origin, chapter 106 applies. They assert, therefore, [570]*570the trial court acted within its discretion when awarding their attorney’s fees.

When interpreting statutes we are bound by three principles. The State is immune from liability for attorney’s fees except when that immunity is waived by clear statutory language. Lowe v. Texas Tech Univ., 540 S.W.2d 297, 298 (Tex.1976); Texas Dept. of Human Services v. Methodist Retirement Services, Inc., 763 S.W.2d 613, 614 (Tex.App.—Austin 1989, no writ). Statutes must be interpreted so as to give effect to legislative intent. Knight v. International Harvester Credit Corp., 627 S.W.2d 382, 384 (Tex.1982). A statute must be read as a whole and interpreted to give effect to every part. Ex parte Pruitt, 551 S.W.2d 706, 709 (Tex.1977).

The State contends section 106.001 refers primarily to acts of discrimination by the government in employment situations. However, the Austin court of appeals addressed a summary judgment case involving an alleged prohibited act under 106.001(a)(6) which was not related to an employment issue. See Toungate v. Bastrop Indep. School Dist., 842 S.W.2d 823 (Tex.App.—Austin 1992, no writ). The Toungate plaintiff complained about the school district’s assessment of iii-school suspension for violating the district’s hair length policy. The Toungate court reversed the summary judgment concluding that an issue of fact existed about whether the school district’s acts placed an unreasonable burden upon the plaintiff.

The Legislature enacted article 6252-16, the predecessor to chapter 106 of the Civil Practice and Remedies Code, in 1967. In related provisions article 6252-16 read as follows:

Section 1. (a) No officer or employee of the state or of a political subdivision of the state, when acting or purporting to act in his official capacity, may:
(1) refuse to employ a person ...;
(2) discharge a person from employment
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Bluebook (online)
907 S.W.2d 566, 1995 WL 274947, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/richards-v-mena-texapp-1995.