Hartline Barger Wins Summary Judgment in Houston Nightclub Shooting Case

Hartline Barger was successful on a summary judgment while defending a commercial landlord in a premises liability case brought by a security guard who was shot while providing security on the landlord’s property.

The case arose from a July 2018 shooting at a Houston nightclub. The plaintiff was working as a security guard for the club when he was shot in the lower abdomen by an unknown person. The security guard filed suit against the landlord in August 2019, seeking over $1 million in damages.

Hartline Barger responded with a summary judgment motion, arguing that under Texas law, a landlord is not liable for injuries suffered by invitees of its tenants, and that none of the narrow exceptions to the general no-duty rule, such as injury sustained in an area still under the landlord’s control, applied.

On May 28, 2020, Harris County District Judge Donna Roth granted the motion for summary judgment and dismissed the man’s claims entirely with prejudice.

CAUSE/CASE NO: 2019-61872

Judge: Donna Roth