§ 103.153.Employees Not Liable After Payment of Compensation
Title 5. Governmental Liability · Chapter 103. Compensation to Persons Wrongfully Imprisoned · Subchapter D. Payments and Limitations · Last amended 2001 · Last verified August 29, 2026
Full Text of § 103.153
Plain-English Summary
The chapter offers a fixed sum without proof of fault. This section names the price.
Taking the compensation closes the courthouse on the same subject matter. A person who receives payment may not bring any action against a governmental unit or an employee of one over that subject.
The bar is written broadly. It reaches any action involving the same subject matter, and names the arrest, the conviction and the length of confinement as examples rather than limits.
It covers employees as well as units, so the claim cannot be repackaged as a personal suit against the officers who made the case.
Two terms come from the Tort Claims Act. "Employee" and "governmental unit" carry the meanings assigned by Section 101.001.
The trade is the design of the chapter. A civil suit over a wrongful conviction is long, expensive and often lost to immunity, and this chapter pays a certain sum without a trial. The bar is what the state receives in return.
The choice belongs to the claimant. The bar attaches on receiving compensation, so a person who believes a lawsuit is worth more can decline to apply.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does a claimant give up by taking compensation?
Any action against a governmental unit or its employees involving the same subject matter, including the arrest, conviction and length of confinement.
Can the claimant still sue the individual officers?
No. The bar covers employees of a governmental unit as well as the unit itself.
When does the bar attach?
On receiving compensation under this chapter.
Amendment History
- Added by Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 1488, Sec. 1, eff. June 15, 2001.