USA – TEXAS Trends and Developments Contributed by: Darryl Anderson, Carlos Rainer, Geraldine Young and Eliot Turner, Norton Rose Fulbright
out of: (A) Subchapter E, Chapter 15, and Chapter 17, Business & Commerce Code” (Texas Govern - ment Code, Section 25A.004 (g)(2)). Subchapter E of Chapter 15 is the portion of the Texas Antitrust Act that governs covenants not to compete, so it appears that covenant not to compete cases may not qualify for being brought in the Business Court, but the vast majority of antitrust claims not related to non-compete agreements would qualify, so long as they meet the amount in controversy threshold. Regardless, the statutory provisions are clear that the Texas Business Court can exercise supplemental jurisdiction over antitrust claims. The Texas Business Court has supplemental jurisdic - tion “over any other claim related to a case or contro - versy within the court’s jurisdiction that forms part of the same case or controversy” – but such claims “may proceed in the business court only on the agreement of all parties to the claim and a judge of the division of the court before which the action is pending” (Texas Government Code, Section 25A.004 (f)). Thus, if all parties and the Business Court judge agree, the Texas Business Court can exercise supplemental jurisdiction over state antitrust claims alongside related claims within its jurisdiction.
Multiple antitrust cases are now pending in the Texas Business Court. For instance, in SafeLease v Stor- able Inc ., et al ., a provider of tenant insurance for self- storage facilities has sued a storage facility software provider for allegedly using its position in the facility management market to obtain monopoly power in the tenant insurance market. In its first year of operation (September 2024 to Sep - tember 2025), 185 cases were filed in the Texas Busi - ness Court. Cases filed between 1 September 2025 and 28 February 2026 numbered 141. The Business Court is establishing a body of precedent for sophis - ticated parties to reference when considering where to litigate their business disputes, including potentially antitrust claims. The ability of the Texas Business Court to hear anti - trust claims, plus the potential for increased overall business and antitrust litigation in Texas as a broader result of this new court, highlight the importance for businesses in or coming to Texas to stay up to date on Business Court developments and Texas antitrust law.
274 A NTITRUST LI T IGATI O N 2026
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