PJC General Negligence 2022

PJC 7.6

T HEFT L IABILITY

plaintiff in a better position than he would have been in had the defendant not appro priated the plaintiff’s property. The following are examples of damages that have been recovered. Lost income from appropriated business contacts and files. The plaintiff can recover the income lost from clients who had their tax returns prepared by a former coworker who unlawfully appropriated the plaintiff’s customer files and customer lists and solicited their business. See Schmader v. Butschek , No. 05-15-00278-CV, 2016 WL 4119474, at *3 (Tex. App.—Dallas July 29, 2016, no pet.). Lost rental income. The plaintiff can recover the cost of purchasing the appropri ated property as well as the lost rental value. Southwest Grain Co. v. Pilgrim’s Pride S.A. de C.V. , No. 13-07-00557-CV, 2010 WL 2638483, at *5 (Tex. App.—Corpus Christi–Edinburg June 28, 2010, no pet.). Mental anguish damages. In Beaumont v. Basham , 205 S.W.3d 608, 620 (Tex. App.—Waco 2006, pet. denied), the court recognized that the plaintiff could recover mental anguish damages under the Act where the party committing theft acted with malice.

106