§ 105.001.Definitions

Three definitions, and each shapes the chapter’s reach.

"Fees and other expenses" covers the reasonable expenses of witnesses incurred in preparing to testify or in attending or testifying; a reasonable fee for the professional services of an expert witness; and the reasonable costs of a study, analysis, engineering report, test, or other project the court finds to be necessary for the preparation of the party’s case.

The third item is the expansive one. Defending against an agency’s technical claim can require engineering work, testing or modelling that costs more than the lawyers, and this makes it recoverable.

The court must find the project necessary, which is the control on it.

Note that attorney’s fees are not in this definition. They are added separately by the operative section, which speaks of fees, expenses, and reasonable attorney’s fees — so the two categories are distinct.

"Party" means an individual, partnership, corporation, association, or public or private organization other than a state agency.

The exclusion prevents the chapter operating between agencies, so one state body cannot recover against another under it.

"State agency" is defined by three cumulative requirements: in the executive branch, created by the constitution or a statute, and having statewide jurisdiction.

All three must hold, and the third is the narrowest. A regional or local body created by statute is outside the chapter, as are the legislative and judicial branches.