Texas Resident’s Out-of-State Vacations Do Not Toll the Statute of Limitations
June 11, 2013In this car accident case, the defendant moved for summary judgment on the ground that the suit was barred by the two-year statute of limitations. In response, the plaintiff argued that, under CPRC 16.063, the out-of-state trips she took over the past two years tolled the statute of limitations for the time period she was outside of Texas. On appeal, the Court rejected the plaintiff’s argument, finding that section 16.063 was intended to apply to “Texas creditors faced with individuals who enter Texas, contract a debt, depart, and then default on the debt.” Here, the plaintiff remained a Texas resident for the entire two-year statue of limitations, and, during that period, would have had no difficulty in serving the defendant with process.
A dissenting opinion argued that the majority’s reading of the section 16.063 “has rendered the statute meaningless and effectively repealed the statute.”
