City of Pearland, Petitioner v. John Alexander, as Independent Executor and Trustee of the Estate of C. H…

Summary

The Texas Supreme Court held that the trial court erred by giving a special instruction that presumed the City would use the entire ten‑acre tract for a sewage disposal plant, thereby improperly influencing the jury's determination of severance damages. The error was deemed reversible under Rule 503, so the Court reversed the lower courts' judgments and remanded for a new trial. Justice McGEE dissented, arguing that the instruction and evidentiary rulings were proper and the judgments should be affirmed.