Intercontinental Group Partnership v. KB Home Lone Star L.P.

in which Chief Justice JEFFERSON, Justice HECHT, Justice GREEN, and Justice JOHNSON joined.

This breach-of-contract case poses a straightforward question: What does “prevailing party” mean? We have construed this phrase in a discretionary fee-*652award statute1 but not in a mandatory fee-award contract. Specifically, when a contract mandates attorney’s fees to a “prevailing party,” a term undefined in the contract, has a party “prevailed” if the jury finds the other side violated the contract but awards no money damages? We agree with the United States Supreme Court, which holds that to prevail, a…