Stewart v. Texas Lottery Commission

975 S.W.2d 732, 1998 Tex. App. LEXIS 5198, 1998 WL 536712
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedAugust 20, 1998
Docket13-97-126-CV
StatusPublished
Cited by16 cases

This text of 975 S.W.2d 732 (Stewart v. Texas Lottery Commission) 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
Stewart v. Texas Lottery Commission, 975 S.W.2d 732, 1998 Tex. App. LEXIS 5198, 1998 WL 536712 (Tex. Ct. App. 1998).

Opinion

OPINION

SEERDEN, Chief Justice.

This is an appeal from a summary judgment granted in favor of the Texas Lottery Commission (the “Commission”) and Maverick Markets Inc. (the “Market”), collectively, appellees. Appellant, Linda Stewart, challenges the judgment by four points of error. We affirm.

FACTUAL BACKGROUND

Stewart claims to have completed two play slips for numbers for the August 7, 1993 lottery, at a Maverick Market Store in Corpus Christi, Texas. On one play slip Stewart marked the numbers 07-22-39-2-15-49 and on the other, she marked 04r-15-31-33-40-45. She handed the play slips and two dollars to the store clerk. In return, Stewart received back the play slips and two lottery tickets, which she placed in her purse without verifying the numbers on the tickets coincided with those on the play slips. Upon returning home, Stewart placed the tickets and play slips in a drawer, again without verifying her selections.

Two weeks after the August 7 drawing, Stewart found the tickets and decided to verify the winning numbers. Stewart discovered the winning numbers were 04-15-31-33-40-45. She checked these numbers against the play slips and believed she was the winner of a $19,000,000 jackpot. When she looked at her lottery tickets, Stewart discovered she had one ticket showing the numbers 07-22-39-2-15-49. What she alleges was supposed to be the winning ticket, however, was marked “Test Ticket” and showed no numbers. Stewart then attempted to collect the jackpot from the Commission. Without a lottery ticket to support her claim, the Commission refused to acknowledge her as a winner.

Stewart brought this suit alleging claims of debt, breach of contract, breach of implied warranty, negligence, the doctrine of res ipsa loquitur, and legal fraud. The Commission responded and pleaded sovereign immunity. The Market responded and pleaded Stewart’s damages were caused by her contributory negligence, her actions were the sole proximate cause of damages, and the affirmative defenses of waiver and estoppel. In addition, the Market pleaded the following statutory defenses: Tex. Gov’t Code Ann. § 466.252(a) and 16 Tex. Admin. Code §§ 401.304, 401.305. Appellees then moved for, and were granted, summary judgment. This cause of action was severed from that against another defendant who is not party to this appeal.

SCOPE AND STANDARD OF REVIEW

The proper inquiry on appeal is whether the defendant, in seeking summary judgment, fulfilled his initial burden to: 1) establish as a matter of law that there remains no genuine issue of material fact as to one or more essential elements of the plaintiffs cause of action, or 2) establish his affirmative defense to the plaintiffs cause of action as a matter of law. Casso v. Brand, 776 S.W.2d 551, 556 (Tex.1989); Nixon v. Mr. Property Management Co., 690 S.W.2d 546, 548-49 (Tex.1985); Swilley v. Hughes, 488 S.W.2d 64, 67 (Tex.1972). In deciding whether there is a disputed material fact issue precluding summary judgment, evidence favorable to the non-movant must be taken as true. Nixon, 690 S.W.2d at 549. Every reasonable inference must be indulged in fa *735 vor of the non-movant and any doubts resolved in his favor. Id.

Any issue which the non-movant claims would justify denying summary judgment must be included in the response. McConnell v. Southside Indep. Sch. Dist. 858 S.W.2d 337, 341 (Tex.1993). An appellate court cannot reverse a summary judgment based on an issue not presented to the trial court. State Bd. of Ins. v. Westland Film Indus., 705 S.W.2d 695, 696 (Tex.1986); Amoroso v. Aldine Indep. Sch. Dist., 808 S.W.2d 118, 122 (Tex.App.—Houston [1st Dist.] 1991, writ denied). Even constitutional challenges that were not presented in the trial court cannot be the grounds of reversal of a summary judgment on appeal. City of San Antonio v. Schautteet, 706 S.W.2d 103, 104 (Tex.1986); Amoroso, 808 S.W.2d at 122.

CONSTITUTIONAL CLAIMS

For the first time on appeal, Stewart contends the relevant sections of the Texas Administrative Code violate her U.S. and Texas constitutional rights. As these issues were not raised before the trial court in the response to the motion for summary judgment and we may not reverse on these grounds, we will not review the complaints. We overrule Stewart’s constitutional claims.

THE COMMISSION

The Commission, a state agency, moved for summary judgment on the grounds of sovereign immunity. Stewart argues that by purchasing a lottery ticket, she had a contractual relationship with the Commission. Because of the contract, the Commission made itself amenable to answer lawsuits. We disagree.

Texas courts differentiate between two distinct sovereign immunities. Missouri Pacific R.R. Co. v. Brownsville Navigation Dist, 453 S.W.2d 812, 813 (Tex.1970); Green Int’l, Inc. v. State, 877 S.W.2d 428, 432 (Tex.App.—Austin 1994, writ dism’d). First, government entities have immunity from suit without consent even though there is no question as to the liability of the sovereign. Missouri Pacific R.R., 453 S.W.2d at 813; Green Int’l, 877 S.W.2d at 432. Under this immunity, a governmental entity may not be sued unless the state has given express permission for such an action. Missouri Pacific R.R., 453 S.W.2d at 813; Green Int’l, 877 S.W.2d at 432.

The second type of immunity bars the state’s liability even when consent to sue has been given. Missouri Pacific R.R., 453 S.W.2d at 813; Green Int’l, 877 S.W.2d at 432. The state waives its liability immunity, however, when it enters into a contract with a citizen. Federal Sign v. Texas S. Univ., 951 S.W.2d 401, 408 (Tex.1997). Nevertheless, a private citizen must have legislative consent to sue the State on a breach of contract claim. Id. The act of contracting does not waive the State’s immunity from suit. Id.

In this case, the legislature has not given its permission to be sued by statute, and Stewart has not established the State expressly consented to be sued in any other manner. Thus, the Commission was entitled to summary judgment as a matter of law. We overrule Stewart’s first and second points of error.

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975 S.W.2d 732, 1998 Tex. App. LEXIS 5198, 1998 WL 536712, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/stewart-v-texas-lottery-commission-texapp-1998.