![]() ![]() Consequently, punitive damages can be an element of damages in a Sabine Pilot lawsuit. Martinez, 365 S.W.3d 655 (Tex.2012) decided the issue of whether a Sabine Pilot plaintiff could recover both tort and exemplary (punitive) damages as a result of a wrongful termination, finding that, yes, there are circumstances under which a wrongful termination plaintiff may have an actionable claim for punitive damages. Justification for the exception was rooted in public policy that promotes preventing workers from being forced by employers to decide between their jobs and facing criminal liabilities and prosecution.ĭecided in 2012 by the Texas Supreme Court, the case Safeshred, Inc. ![]() That changed in the 1985 Sabine Pilot case where the Texas Supreme Court affirmed a wrongful termination lawsuit from the Beaumont Court of Appeals to create an exception to the at-will employment doctrine, allowing an employee to bring a tort action for wrongful termination when the employee is fired because the employee refuses to commit an illegal act requested by his or her employer. In that year, the Texas Supreme Court held that, absent a contractual agreement to the contrary, an employee employed for an indefinite term could be terminated at will without cause. Texas is an employment at-will employment state and has been that way since at least 1888.
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