Texas Court Awards $7,711 After Worker's Lien & Conversion

In January 2016, a vehicle owner requested a repair shop to perform work on a truck. After the repairs were completed by March 2, 2016, the owner allegedly refused to pay the full amount due and unlawfully removed the vehicle from the repair shop's property in August 2016.

The plaintiff repair shop filed a lawsuit in Texas in April 2017, asserting a statutory worker's lien on the vehicle under state law and alleging conversion. The plaintiff sought foreclosure of the lien, sale of the vehicle to satisfy the debt, economic damages, lost profits, interest, exemplary damages, and attorney's fees. The defendant vehicle owner filed a general denial, later claiming the plaintiff failed to produce evidence of damages and never had the right to possess the vehicle.

Despite difficulties in serving the defendant, the case proceeded, but the defendant failed to appear for trial. On January 8, 2019, the court entered a default judgment against the defendant, finding a violation of the worker's lien and conversion of the motor vehicle. The court awarded the plaintiff $4,319.45 in damages, $475.20 in prejudgment interest, $2,500.00 in attorney's fees, and $416.28 in court costs and service fees, plus post-judgment interest. The defendant's subsequent motion for a new trial was denied in February 2019. An appeal filed by the defendant was later dismissed in August 2019 for want of prosecution, with all costs assessed against the appellant.