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Through Senate Bill 219, now codified in Chapter 59 of the Texas Business & Commerce Code, the Texas legislature has reallocated the risks for construction design defect liability in Texas by joining a majority of jurisdictions following the United States Supreme Court’s decision in U.S. v. Spearin, which holds that contractors who are “bound to build according to plans and specifications prepared by the owner . . . will not be responsible for the consequences of defects in the plans and specifications.”  248 U.S. 132, 136 (1918).  This is a reversal from the minority position followed in Texas since before World War I under the Lonergan doctrine, which allows parties to place the risk of loss for defective construction plans or specifications on contractors unless contractual language clearly and explicitly indicates otherwise.  While the new statute includes several exceptions and a reporting requirement for contractors, it reflects a clear limitation of liability for contractors relative to unknown construction design defects.  The statute went into effect on September 1, 2021 and, with exceptions, applies to construction contracts entered into on or after September 1, 2021 for repairs and improvements to real property.  See Tex. Bus. & Com. Code Ann. § 59.002(a). Limitations on Liability Chapter 59 of the Texas Business & Commerce Code shields contractors from liability for defects arising from construction plans, specifications, or design documents given to the contractor by third-parties with no contractual or agency-type relationship to the contractor.  Id. § 59.051(a).  Unless a contractor (or someone acting