Court Opinions

State Laws

US Code

US Constitution

Texas Family Code - Section 51.116. Right To Reemployment

Legal Research Home > Texas Lawyer > Family Code > Texas Family Code - Section 51.116. Right To Reemployment

§ 51.116. RIGHT TO REEMPLOYMENT.  (a) An employer may not 
terminate the employment of a permanent employee because the 
employee is required under Section 51.115 to attend a hearing.
	(b)  An employee whose employment is terminated in violation 
of this section is entitled to return to the same employment that 
the employee held when notified of the hearing if the employee, as 
soon as practical after the hearing, gives the employer actual 
notice that the employee intends to return.
	(c)  A person who is injured because of a violation of this 
section is entitled to reinstatement to the person's former 
position and to damages, but the damages may not exceed an amount 
equal to six months' compensation at the rate at which the person 
was compensated when required to attend the hearing.
	(d)  The injured person is also entitled to reasonable 
attorney's fees in an amount approved by the court.
	(e)  It is a defense to an action brought under this section 
that the employer's circumstances changed while the employee 
attended the hearing so that reemployment was impossible or 
unreasonable.  To establish a defense under this subsection, an 
employer must prove that the termination of employment was because 
of circumstances other than the employee's attendance at the 
hearing.

Added by Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 262, § 10, eff. Jan. 1, 1996.           

Last modified: August 11, 2007