In Billings v. Atkinson (1973), the Texas Supreme Court defined the right of privacy as a constitutional right of “an individual to be left alone, to live a life of seclusion, to be free from unwarranted publicity” and “to be free from . . . the wrongful intrusion into one’s private activities in such manner as to outrage or cause mental suffering, shame or humiliation to a person of ordinary sensibilities.”
Despite the court’s general recognition of the importance of privacy, there is no specific statute relating to a private employee’s privacy in Texas. In fact, there are few privacy rights afforded Texas employees, especially when they have received notice from their employer that there should be no expectation of privacy. However, counsel should still be cognizant of when employee privacy claims are actionable and how to succeed in such cases.
