Texas PJC Malpractice 2022

P RODUCTS L IABILITY —T HEORIES OF R ECOVERY

PJC 71.12

PJC 71.12

Breach of Express Warranty (Tex. UCC § 2.313)

QUESTION ______ Did the power brakes fail to function normally with the engine not running , and, if so, was such failure a proximate cause of the [ injury ] [ occurrence ] in question? Answer “Yes” or “No.” Answer: _______________ COMMENT When to use. PJC 71.12 may be used to submit a claim for breach of express warranty based on the provisions of Tex. Bus. & Com. Code §2.313. Claims for per sonal injury are recoverable under the Texas Business and Commerce Code. Garcia v. Texas Instruments , 610 S.W.2d 456 (Tex. 1980). Personal injury cases may also be brought under the Deceptive Trade Practices–Consumer Protection Act, Tex. Bus. & Com. Code §§ 17.41–.63. For sample questions in a DTPA case, see the current edi tion of State Bar of Texas, Texas Pattern Jury Charges—Business, Consumer, Insur ance & Employment . Use of “injury” or “occurrence.” See PJC 71.1. Substitution of “death.” Under the Texas wrongful death statute, a defendant’s liability may be predicated only on “an injury that causes an individual’s death.” Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code §71.002(b); see also Kramer v. Lewisville Memorial Hospi tal , 858 S.W.2d 397, 404 (Tex. 1993). Therefore, in a case involving a claim for wrongful death, the word “death” may be substituted for the word “injury” in the neg ligence question. Modify if dispute about scope or status. PJC 71.12 assumes there is no fact dis pute about the existence and scope of the warranty or its status as a part of the basis of the bargain. If there is such a dispute, one or both of the following questions should be submitted first, and the above question would then follow as Question 2 or 3. QUESTION ______ Did Panther Manufacturing Company represent to Paul Payne that the power brakes of the Panther automobile would function nor mally with the engine not running ?

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