State Court Motion for Summary Judgment

[STYLE OF THE CASE]

[Insert Caption pursuant to Tex. R. Civ. P. 79]
______________________________________________________________________________

CAUSE NO. ☐

[PLAINTIFF],
Plaintiff,

v.

[DEFENDANT],
Defendant.
______________________________________________________________________________

IN THE [___th] JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT
[COUNTY] COUNTY, TEXAS
______________________________________________________________________________

DEFENDANT’S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT
______________________________________________________________________________

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Notice of Hearing ……………………………………………………………… 1
2. Introduction ……………………………………………………………………… 2
3. Statement of Undisputed Material Facts ………………………………… 3
4. Summary-Judgment Standard ……………………………………………… 4

5. Argument & Authorities ……………………………………………………… 5
   5.1 Traditional Grounds (Rule 166a(c)) ………………………………… 5
   5.2 No-Evidence Grounds (Rule 166a(i)) ……………………………… 7

6. Prayer ……………………………………………………………………………… 9

7. Certificate of Conference …………………………………………………… 10
8. Certificate of Service ………………………………………………………… 11
9. Appendix Index ………………………………………………………………… 12
10. Proposed Order (Exhibit A) ………………………………………………… 13

1. NOTICE OF HEARING

PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that on [HEARING DATE] at [TIME] a.m./p.m., Defendant will present the foregoing Motion for Summary Judgment to the Honorable [JUDGE’S NAME], presiding in the [___th] Judicial District Court of [County] County, Texas, located at [Courthouse Address].

2. INTRODUCTION

1. Plaintiff asserts the following causes of action: [LIST CAUSES OF ACTION].
2. As shown below and in the accompanying Appendix, there is no genuine issue of material fact, and Defendant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law on each claim.
3. Accordingly, the Court should grant this Motion, dismiss Plaintiff’s claims with prejudice, and award Defendant its taxable costs.

3. STATEMENT OF UNDISPUTED MATERIAL FACTS

The following facts are undisputed for purposes of this Motion and are supported by the cited summary-judgment evidence contained in Defendant’s Appendix:

* Record citations reference sequentially-numbered appendix pages in compliance with Tex. R. Civ. P. 166a(d).

4. SUMMARY-JUDGMENT STANDARD

4.1 Traditional Summary Judgment. Under Tex. R. Civ. P. 166a(c), the movant must show that no genuine issue of material fact exists and that the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.

4.2 No-Evidence Summary Judgment. After adequate discovery, a party may move for a no-evidence summary judgment on the grounds that there is no evidence of one or more essential elements of a claim. Tex. R. Civ. P. 166a(i).

4.3 Burdens of Proof.
• Traditional motion: Defendant bears the initial burden; if met, the burden shifts to Plaintiff to raise a fact issue.
• No-evidence motion: The burden begins with Plaintiff to produce more than a scintilla of evidence on each challenged element.

5. ARGUMENT & AUTHORITIES

5.1 Traditional Grounds (Rule 166a(c))

A. Claim 1 – [e.g., Breach of Contract]

1. Element at Issue: [INSERT ELEMENT]
2. Application: [APPLY UNDISPUTED FACTS TO ELEMENT]
3. Legal Basis: Tex. R. Civ. P. 166a(c).

B. Claim 2 – [e.g., Negligence]

1. Element at Issue: [INSERT ELEMENT]
2. Application: …

5.2 No-Evidence Grounds (Rule 166a(i))

Subject to Rule 166a(i), and after adequate time for discovery, Plaintiff cannot produce evidence on the following essential elements:

Therefore, Plaintiff’s claims fail as a matter of law.

6. PRAYER

WHEREFORE, Defendant respectfully requests that the Court:

1. Grant this Motion for Summary Judgment;
2. Render judgment that Plaintiff take nothing on all claims;
3. Tax court costs against Plaintiff; and
4. Award Defendant such other and further relief to which it is justly entitled.

7. CERTIFICATE OF CONFERENCE

Pursuant to [LOCAL RULE] of the [County] County District Courts, I certify that on [DATE], counsel for Defendant conferred with counsel for Plaintiff regarding the relief sought herein. Plaintiff [IS/IS NOT] opposed to the Motion.

[ATTORNEY NAME]
[Bar No.]

8. CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I certify that a true and correct copy of the foregoing Motion for Summary Judgment and Appendix was served on [DATE] on all counsel of record in accordance with Tex. R. Civ. P. 21a via [E-SERVICE / EMAIL / FAX / HAND DELIVERY].

[ATTORNEY NAME]

9. APPENDIX INDEX

10. PROPOSED ORDER (EXHIBIT A)

CAUSE NO... [___]

[PLAINTIFF]                                    §     IN THE ___ JUDICIAL  
     v.                                         §     DISTRICT COURT OF  
[DEFENDANT]                                    §     [COUNTY] COUNTY, TEXAS  

                               ORDER GRANTING
                      MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT

On this day, the Court considered Defendant’s Motion for Summary Judgment.  
After considering the Motion, the response, the summary-judgment evidence, and the arguments of counsel, the Court is of the opinion that the Motion should be GRANTED.

IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that Plaintiff take nothing on all claims asserted in this action, that costs are taxed against Plaintiff, and that all relief not expressly granted is denied.

SIGNED on ____________________, 20___.

______________________________________  
JUDGE PRESIDING

PAGE-LIMIT / WORD-COUNT COMPLIANCE

E-FILING TECHNICAL TIPS

ATTORNEY SIGNATURE BLOCK

Respectfully submitted,

[LAW FIRM NAME]
[Street Address]
[City, State ZIP]
Telephone: (☐) [___-____]
Facsimile: (☐) [___-____]
E-mail: [___]

By: ______________________________
[ATTORNEY NAME]
State Bar No. [___]

ATTORNEYS FOR DEFENDANT

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