Venue
The geographic location within a court system where a case may properly be heard. Subject matter jurisdiction determines whether a court system can hear a case; venue determines which specific court within that system. Texas venue rules: Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code Ch. 15.
Venue is the geographic location within a court system where a case may properly be heard. While subject matter jurisdiction determines whether a court system can hear a case, venue determines which specific court within that system. Texas venue rules are codified in Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code Ch. 15.
General venue rule (§ 15.002)
Absent a specific mandatory venue provision, suit may be brought in: (1) the county where all or a substantial part of the events occurred; (2) the county of the defendant's residence (for individual defendants); (3) the county of the defendant's principal office (for entity defendants); or (4) the county of the plaintiff's residence (for cases against non-resident defendants).
Mandatory venue (§§ 15.011–15.020)
Specific categories of cases must be brought in specific counties: actions involving real property in the county where the property is located (§ 15.011); breach-of-warranty claims; injuries to person or property in the county where injury occurred. For "major transactions" with consideration exceeding $1 million, parties may by contract designate any Texas county as the mandatory venue (§ 15.020).
Transfer and motion to change venue
A party may move to transfer venue under TRCP 86–87, supported by affidavits. Improper-venue motions must be filed in the defendant's first responsive pleading or are waived.
Venue selection affects forum-shopping considerations, jury composition, judicial-decision tendencies, and the convenience of parties and witnesses. The § 15.020 mandatory-venue provision for major transactions is heavily used in commercial contracts to lock down forum.