Legal Definitions - plea of privilege

A plea of privilege is a formal legal document filed by a defendant in a civil lawsuit. It asserts that the lawsuit has been filed in the wrong court or geographic location (known as "venue") and that the defendant has a legal right or "privilege" to have the case heard in a different, specific court or county. If the court agrees with the plea, the case must be transferred to the proper venue.

Here are some examples illustrating a plea of privilege:

• Example 1: Individual Residence

  Imagine a situation where Maria lives in Austin, Travis County, Texas. She is sued by a former client, David, in Dallas County, Texas, for an alleged breach of contract that occurred entirely in Travis County. Maria can file a plea of privilege, asserting her legal right to be sued in Travis County, which is her county of residence and where the events giving rise to the lawsuit took place. She is essentially arguing that Dallas County is an improper venue for the case.

• Example 2: Corporate Principal Office

  Consider "Global Logistics Corp.," a company whose principal place of business and all major operations are located in Houston, Harris County, Texas. A customer from El Paso County sues Global Logistics Corp. in El Paso County for a service dispute, even though the contract was signed and all services were rendered from Houston. Global Logistics Corp. can file a plea of privilege, arguing that under Texas law, a corporation should generally be sued in the county of its principal office. They are asserting their privilege to have the case heard in Harris County.

• Example 3: Real Estate Dispute

  Suppose there's a disagreement over the boundary lines of a piece of land situated in Galveston County, Texas. One of the property owners files a lawsuit concerning this land in Fort Bend County, Texas. The defendant in the Fort Bend County lawsuit can file a plea of privilege. Specific laws often dictate that lawsuits directly involving real property must be filed in the county where the property is located. The defendant has a "privilege" to have the case heard in Galveston County, where the land is actually situated.