Sadie Weldon v. The Lilith Fund for Reproductive Equity

Summary

The Supreme Court of Texas holds that the Texas Citizens Participation Act applies to the Lilith Fund’s declaratory and injunctive action because the action was based on or in response to Sadie Weldon’s Rule 202 petition. The Court rejects the court of appeals’ approach of considering the legality or merits of the protected activity at the TCPA’s first step. It reverses and remands for consideration of the TCPA’s second and third steps.

Holdings

1. The TCPA applies because the Fund's legal action was based on or in response to Weldon's exercise of the right to petition through her Rule 202 petition.
2. The merits of the plaintiff's claims and whether the defendant's conduct was lawful are generally not relevant at the first TCPA step; those matters are addressed at the second and third steps.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the Fund's declaratory and injunctive action was based on or in response to Weldon's Rule 202 petition, which constituted an exercise of the right to petition under the TCPA.
2. Whether the court of appeals improperly considered the merits or lawfulness of the parties' conduct at the first step of the TCPA analysis.

Disposition

reversed_and_remanded