Opinion ID: 1394023
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Death Penalty Sanctions

Text: This Court defines death-penalty discovery sanctions as sanctions that terminate a party's right to present the merits of its claims. See Chrysler Corp. v. Blackmon, 841 S.W.2d 844, 845 (Tex.1992). Such sanctions include striking a party's pleadings, dismissing its action, or rendering a default judgment against a party for abusing the discovery process. See, e.g., TransAmerican Natural Gas Corp. v. Powell, 811 S.W.2d 913, 917-18 (Tex.1991). A death-penalty sanction adjudicates a party's claims without regard to their merits and is based on the party's conduct during discovery. TransAmerican, 811 S.W.2d at 918. In other words, a sanction order is a death-penalty sanction only if it precludes a party from adjudicating the merits of his or her claims because of the party's discovery abuses. TransAmerican, 811 S.W.2d at 918.