Settlement
$600K
Condemnation proceedings, Buda, Texas.
2026
Home · Practice areas · Hays County
Hays County land is changing hands. Some of it by force.
Buda, Kyle and the I-35 corridor south of Austin are growing as fast as anywhere in Texas, and growth means new roads, new pipelines and disputes over land. We represent owners and businesses in Hays County condemnation, real estate and contract cases from our Round Rock office.
What we handle
- Condemnation and eminent domain, for landowners
- Easements for roads, pipelines and utilities
- Boundary, access and title disputes
- Failed land sales and earnest money
- Construction and contractor disputes
- Business contract disputes
How we approach it
In a Texas condemnation, the government or utility must make an offer before it sues; special commissioners then hear evidence and set an award, and either side can object and take the case to trial. The first offer is rarely the last word. Our most recent condemnation matter, in Buda, settled for $600,000.
Hays County civil cases are heard in San Marcos, the county seat. Appeals go to the Third Court of Appeals in Austin, and a Hays County business that files bankruptcy does so in the Austin Division of the Western District of Texas. See real estate disputes and construction and real estate.
The court’s rules on AI
Texas state courts. No statewide rule on AI is in force. In June 2026 the Supreme Court of Texas preliminarily approved a new Rule 13 under which signing a filing certifies that the signer verified it, including that its citations, quotations and holdings are not fabricated; no final order had issued. The Business Court’s Local Rule 10(c) permits AI but makes the filer independently responsible for every filing. The courts of appeals have no AI rules but sanction fabricated authority under their inherent power, as the Dallas court did in 2025, and Ethics Opinion 705 advises verifying every output, protecting confidences and supervising its use.
Checked against each court’s own rules and orders on 5 November 2026 for John Henry’s talk “AI in Modern Litigation” at the Eastern District of Texas Bankruptcy Bench Bar Conference. Rules change; the full reference, with every order cited, is on the AI in litigation page.
Related results
Commercial collection
Judgment
Judgment for our client against an environmental services company. Hays County Court at Law.
2016–17
Past results depend on the facts of each case and do not predict a similar outcome. Confidential matters are described without their terms.
Questions people ask
The state or a utility wants an easement across my land in Hays County. Do I have to take its offer?
No. The owner is entitled to adequate compensation, and the amount can be contested before special commissioners and, after an objection, at trial.
Where is a Hays County civil case heard?
In the courts in San Marcos, the county seat, or a justice court for claims up to $20,000.
Which court hears appeals from Hays County?
The Third Court of Appeals, in Austin.