Texas House bill on lawsuits shelved after critics label it harmful to free speech

Sign up for The Brief, The Texas Tribune’s daily newsletter that keeps readers up to speed on the most essential Texas news.

---

A bill that critics say would have eroded free speech protections will not move forward in the Texas Legislature this session.

House Bill 2988 by Rep. Mano DeAyala would have removed the automatic award of attorneys fees to defendants if they prevail in what are known as SLAPP lawsuits — which opponents said would have limited free speech protections to those who can afford to independently pay for a lawyer. His office confirmed to the Tribune that the bill was tabled, which means even sponsors do not expect any more action on it before this legislative session ends in three weeks.

DeAyala said in an interview with the Tribune that while the bill is not moving forward, he thinks the conversation might prompt steps to address what he sees as problems with the current law.

“It is being abused, misused,” DeAyala said of the process that exists now. “We can keep the good … and slow down — maybe not completely stop — but slow down and reduce this abuse considerably.”

In SLAPP lawsuits — or Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation — people or companies sue citizens claiming defamation or libel, often drowning the defendants in legal fees in an effort to intimidate them into silence. In 2011, lawmakers passed the Texas Citizens Participation Act to deter those lawsuits by requiring those who file them to pay the defendant’s attorneys fees if they lose the case.

DeAyala, in his bill, proposed amending the law to leave to a judge the decision about who those fees go to — arguing that not having to pay them was prompting defendants to file meritless motions to dismiss and needlessly delaying the process.

But a broad swath of opponents urged lawmakers to vote no at a House judiciary committee hearing in April, saying the change would render the law essentially useless.

Laura Prather, who heads the Protect Free Speech Coalition which opposes the bill, described the legislation as “a full-frontal assault on the protections under the law.”

“If you're rich, you can afford to speak freely,” Prather said in April of the bill’s impact. “If you're not, you can't.”

The Protect Free Speech Coalition consists of what lawmakers at the April hearing described as a mix of strange bedfellows: anti-abortion and Second Amendment advocates, good government groups, and national and local media outlets. The coalition formed in 2019 to combat prior efforts to narrow the law. (The Texas Tribune is a member of that coalition.)

Gabe Rottman, vice president of policy for the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, which opposed the bill, said it was “very good news” that the measure was not moving forward. Requiring attorneys fees makes it easier to find legal representation because there is a guaranteed payment for the lawyers if their clients win, he said.

The 2011 Citizens Participation Act “is a crucial protection for ordinary Texans and the free flow of information, and it’s crucial for the law to work that people are able to find lawyers,” he said in an interview. “To change the fees provision in this way would make it much more difficult.”

DeAyala’s move to roll back some of the act’s provisions was part of a broader effort supported by the business-backed advocacy group Texans for Lawsuit Reform to reduce people’s ability to file what the group sees as frivolous lawsuits.

In 2019, House Bill 2730 by Rep. Jeff Leach was signed into law, which narrowed the definition of “public concern” — a factor that protects people from getting sued for statements they make.

In 2023, an ultimately unsuccessful effort by Sen. Bryan Hughes would have allowed those who file lawsuits against critics to continue collecting evidence during an appeals process.

Disclosure: Texans for Lawsuit Reform has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune's journalism. Find a complete list of them here.

---

First round of TribFest speakers announced! Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Maureen Dowd; U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-San Antonio; Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker; U.S. Sen. Adam Schiff, D-California; and U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Dallas are taking the stage Nov. 13–15 in Austin. Get your tickets today!