Anne Ballantyne, Mary McComb, Jon Sandige, Richard Schimpff, and Susie Willerson, Petitioners v. Champion Builders…

Summary

The Texas Supreme Court held that the individual members of the Terrell Hills Board of Adjustment are entitled to official immunity as a matter of law because they acted within the scope of their authority, performed a discretionary function, and acted in good faith. The Court rejected the appellate court's reliance on subjective evidence of bad faith and affirmed that only objective evidence is relevant to the good‑faith prong. Accordingly, the trial court's judgment non obstante veredicto granting immunity was affirmed and the Court reversed the appellate judgment, rendering judgment that Champion take nothing. Justice O’NEILL filed a concurring opinion, agreeing with the objective good‑faith standard but noting that negligence claims are inappropriate in this context.