BUSINESS AND COMMERCE CODE CHAPTER 17. DECEPTIVE TRADE PRACTICES. (2) "proprietary mark" includes word, name, symbol, device, and any combination of them in any form or arrangement, used by a person to identify his tangible personal property and distinguish it from the tangible personal property of another.
In order to sue under the DTPA, several elements must be met. The elements of a DTPA action include that the plaintiff must be a consumer, the defendant must have committed one of the proscribed acts under the DTPA, and the defendant's actions must have been the producing cause of the plaintiff's harm.
The Texas Public Information Act assures that government entities give citizens access to information about the business government officials are conducting on their behalf—information that enables the people of Texas to observe how their government works and to hold their public officials accountable.
The Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act (the “DTPA”) is a powerful statute that provides consumers of goods or services (including real estate) with relief for certain acts by the Sellers of such goods or real property, such as a residential home.
The DTPA provides that "false, misleading, or deceptive acts or practices in the conduct of any trade or commerce are hereby declared unlawful." The DTPA prohibits certain acts or practices "in the conduct of any trade or commerce." This is a very broad provision.
Explanation: The most likely action to be a violation of the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices-Consumer Protection Act would be misleading advertising. This act prohibits false, misleading, or deceptive acts or practices in connection with the sale of goods or services.
To seek relief under the Texas DTPA, you must qualify as a consumer. A consumer may be an individual, partnership, corporation, LLC or even a state agency. The Texas Business and Commerce Code Section 17.46 has a laundry list of 25 prohibited acts that are considered false, misleading, or deceptive acts or practices.
A breach of the warranty can be asserted in an action for violations of the DTPA, but it also can be asserted in a common-law action. A corollary to La Sara's pronouncement that warranty claims must be established independently of the DTPA is that defenses to these warranties also will be brought into the DTPA.