§ 15.089.Transient Person

The justice court counterpart to the transient person rule earlier in the chapter, and it adds the precinct.

A suit against a transient person may be brought in any county and precinct in which the transient person is found.

The district court version says "any county in which he may be found". This one says county and precinct, which is the whole reason a separate provision exists — the earlier rule would leave a justice court plaintiff knowing the county but not the court.

A transient person is someone with no fixed residence, as distinct from a nonresident, who has one elsewhere, or a defendant whose residence is merely unknown. The subchapter handles those separately.

"Is found" ties venue to presence, so it can exist in several precincts at once and the plaintiff chooses. It also means venue can arise in a precinct the defendant reached yesterday and will leave tomorrow.

The pleading requirement applies. Filing outside the defendant's county or precinct of residence — and by definition a transient person has none — requires the pleading to show affirmatively that the suit comes within an exception of this subchapter.

Practically, the section exists so that a claim against someone living without a settled address is not unenforceable for want of a court. It is a small provision that keeps a category of defendant inside the system.