§ 148.005.No Civil Cause of Action

A one-line limit, and it settles what kind of statute this is.

This chapter does not create a civil cause of action.

Everything in the chapter takes away. The products shield, the exposure standard, and the educational institution protection each limit liability that would otherwise exist under other law — and none of them supplies a claim.

The clarification matters most for the exposure section, which reads like a cause of action. It sets out conduct elements, a causation requirement, and an expert report procedure with dismissal for failure — the architecture of a statutory claim.

It is not one. A claimant proceeds under ordinary negligence or premises liability and must additionally satisfy that section; satisfying it establishes nothing on its own.

The practical consequence is about pleading. A petition cannot allege a violation of this chapter as a claim. It pleads the underlying tort, and the chapter operates as a set of additional requirements and a heightened standard.

It also means the chapter adds no remedies. There is no statutory damages provision, no fee-shifting for a claimant, and no exemplary damages route — the fee award in the exposure section runs only to a defendant on a failed report.

The same formula appears in the neighbouring chapters — the food consumption chapter, the negligent hiring chapter, and the wellness program chapter each say the same thing, and for the same reason.