Rule 809.These Rules Shall Not Govern, When

Last verified June 28, 2026

In one sentenceRule 809 is the companion savings provision for the rules themselves: nothing in the trespass-to-try-title rules alters or takes away rights that arose before the common law, which are decided under the law in force when they accrued.

Full Text of Rule 809

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Nothing in these rules relating to trespass to try title shall be so construed as to alter, impair or take away the rights of parties, as arising under the laws in force before the introduction of the common law, but the same shall be decided by the principles of the law under which the same accrued, or by which the same were regulated or in any manner affected.

End

Plain-English Summary

Rule 809 mirrors Rule 808 on the rules side. The trespass-to-try-title rules do not alter, impair, or take away rights that arose under the law in force before the common law came in. Those rights stand on the principles of the law under which they accrued, untouched by this procedure.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do the trespass-to-try-title rules affect rights that predate the common law?

No. Such rights are preserved and decided under the law that governed when they accrued (Rule 809).

How does Rule 809 differ from Rule 808?

Rule 808 protects those rights from the Property Code's trespass-to-try-title chapter; Rule 809 protects them from these procedural rules themselves.

What law governs a pre-common-law right under Rule 809?

The law in force when the right accrued or was regulated. Rule 809 decides the right by those older principles, not by the rules governing trespass to try title.

Source & verification. Rule text and the official Notes and Comments are reproduced verbatim from the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure (Tex. R. Civ. P. 809), published by the Texas Judicial Branch (txcourts.gov). Promulgated by the Supreme Court of Texas. The plain-English summary is original and draws on official sources. Last verified June 28, 2026. · Official source

Also known as: trespass to try title rules savings clauserules savings clause pre-common-law rightscompanion to rule 808rights unaffected by these rulesTRCP 809