Tex. Gov't Code § 571.176 · Subchapter F. ENFORCEMENT
CIVIL PENALTY FOR FRIVOLOUS OR BAD-FAITH COMPLAINT.
Text — Current through the 89th 2nd Called Legislative Session, 2025
(a) The commission may impose a civil penalty of not more than $10,000 for the filing of a frivolous or bad-faith complaint. In this subsection, "frivolous complaint" means a complaint that is groundless and brought in bad faith or is groundless and brought for the purpose of harassment.
(b) In addition to other penalties, a person who files a frivolous complaint is civilly liable to the respondent in an amount equal to the greater of $10,000 or the amount of actual damages incurred by the respondent, including court costs and attorney fees.
(c) A person may file a sworn complaint with the commission, in accordance with Section 571.122, alleging that a complaint relating to that person filed with the commission is frivolous or brought in bad faith. A complaint may be filed under this subsection without regard to whether the complaint alleged to be frivolous or brought in bad faith is pending before the commission or has been resolved. The commission shall act on a complaint made under this subsection as provided by Subchapter E.
Notes and commentary — not statutory text
History
Added by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 268, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1993.
Amended by:
Acts 2005, 79th Leg., Ch. 1141 (H.B. 2826), Sec. 1, eff. June 18, 2005.
Source of truth
- Edition
- Current through the 89th 2nd Called Legislative Session, 2025
- Official file
- https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/GV/htm/GV.571.htm
- Text hash
- sha256 d44107a16b7138c93c66334f8ea9d320f6c18e2f162e8f397d98139229a2c97e
- Composed by
- compose_tx.py 2026-10-05: the Legislative Council's chapter files read in document order; verify_tx.py's independent reading (lxml DOM walk) agrees character for character
This section cites
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Procedural information only. Not legal advice and not a substitute for the advice of an attorney. Confirm the current text with the official publisher before relying on it.