Excessive Sanction

A sanction was reversed in Ariceaga-Banda v. Daftim, LLC:

We conclude the trial court’s statements in pre-trial hearings and on the day scheduled for trial demonstrate it imposed death penalty sanctions in response to appellant’s failure to pay the $1,000 sanction. As noted, a trial court may constitutionally impose death-penalty sanctions if the sanctioned conduct reasonably supports a presumption that a party’s claim is meritless.  However, as in Griggsand Khan, appellant’s failure to pay the $1,000 sanction reveals nothing about the merits of her claim. We find the reasoning in Griggs and Kahn to be apt and persuasive in this case. Consequently, we conclude the trial court’s imposition of death-penalty sanctions due to appellant’s failure to pay the $1,000 sanction was an abuse of discretion.

No. 05-22-00274-CV (Jan. 30, 2024) (mem. op.) (citations omitted).