HBA-TBM H.B. 3331 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 3331 By: Williams Civil Practices 4/23/2001 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Under current law, a defendant in a civil action is allowed to join as codefendants certain third parties who may be responsible for the plaintiff's injury. In order to join such responsible third parties, the defendant has to show that the plaintiff could have sued those parties in the case. However, current law specifically excludes from joinder potentially responsible parties beyond the court's jurisdiction, parties in bankruptcy, or against whom the plaintiff's claim was barred the exclusive remedy provision of the workers' compensation law. This has had a detrimental effect on Texas employers and premises owners who have been sued for exposure to asbestos because many asbestos manufacturers are bankrupt. Under current law, many asbestos manufacturers cannot be held proportionately liable as a responsible third party in a civil action and the employer or premise owner may be held as the party primarily at fault. House Bill 3331 creates a new category of responsible third parties that includes persons or parties that were previously exempted by law from being held proportionately liable in a civil action. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. ANALYSIS House Bill 3331 amends the Civil Practice and Remedies Code to require the trier of fact of a civil action to determine the percentage of responsibility of each responsible third party subject to joinder and each responsible third party not subject to joinder who has been added to the persons against whom responsibility for harm is to be determined (responsible parties) (Sec. 33.003). The bill authorizes under specified conditions a defendant to seek to add to the responsible parties any responsible third party subject to joinder (Sec. 33.004). The bill also authorizes a defendant on timely motion to seek to add any responsible party not subject to joinder. A person not subject to joinder is required to be added to the responsible parties as a responsible third party not subject to joinder if an affidavit or other documentation appropriate to support a motion for summary judgment indicates that the person is or may be liable to the plaintiff for all or a part of the damages claimed against the named defendant or defendants (Sec. 33.005). The bill removes provisions regarding the joint and several liability of each liable defendant (Sec. 33.013). The bill removes the definition of "toxic tort" (Sec. 33.011). EFFECTIVE DATE The Act takes effect on the 91st day after adjournment.