Terms Used In Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code 90.051

  • Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
  • Person: includes corporation, organization, government or governmental subdivision or agency, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, association, and any other legal entity. See Texas Government Code 311.005
  • Settlement: Parties to a lawsuit resolve their difference without having a trial. Settlements often involve the payment of compensation by one party in satisfaction of the other party's claims.
  • Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.

In this subchapter:
(1) “Asbestos or silica trust” means a claims facility, a claims agent, a qualified settlement fund, or any other entity that:
(A) is created under 11 U.S.C. § 524(g) or another applicable law for the benefit of creditors of a bankrupt person;
(B) is formed for the purpose of compensating claimants for asbestos- or silica-related injuries; and
(C) is in existence on the date trial in an action asserting an asbestos- or silica-related injury is set to commence.
(2) “Trust claim” means any filing with or claim against an asbestos or silica trust seeking recovery of compensation or damages for or arising from the asbestos- or silica-related injury of an exposed person.
(3) “Trust claim material” means documentation filed as part of or in connection with a trust claim, including:
(A) documentation that a claimant submits or provides to an asbestos or silica trust for the purpose of demonstrating asbestos or silica exposure, the existence of an asbestos- or silica-related injury, or the validity of a trust claim; and
(B) claim forms and other materials that an asbestos or silica trust requires a claimant to submit.