Walmart, mass shooting victims settle; numerous lawsuits still pending

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In Brief

• Walmart settled with 63 victims of El Paso shooting.
• 29 lawsuits remain pending after Texas appeals court stay.
• Gunman sentenced to 90 consecutive life sentences federally.

Walmart reached a settlement with more than 60 people who filed civil lawsuits against the company related to the El Paso, Texas, mass shooting, but another 29 are left waiting for their chance at a settlement after an appeals court ruling, court records show.

The lawsuits filed against Walmart claim the company is liable and was negligent in the Aug. 3, 2019, massacre at a store that left 23 people dead and dozens more wounded. The lawsuits state Walmart should have foreseen and prevented the attack. Some of the lawsuits have been pending for seven years.

Walmart reached settlements with 63 people — families of those killed and those injured in the mass shooting, a motion filed on May 29 with the Texas Eighth Court of Appeals states. Mediation involving 29 other people suing Walmart has come to a halt.

The motion was filed by a group of attorneys representing 18 people suing Walmart. The attorneys state in the motion that Walmart canceled mediation hearings with their clients after the Texas Eighth Court of Appeals justices issued a stay, pausing court proceedings in the cases. The justices ordered the stay after Walmart’s attorneys appealed rulings from Judge Sergio H. Enriquez of the 448th District Court, who is presiding over the civil lawsuits.

Walmart officials, in a statement, did not address questions on whether they are working on reaching settlements with the other plaintiffs.

“We remain heartbroken following this tragic event, and our sympathies continue to go out to everyone impacted,” the statement read.

The motion claims that 11 people suing Walmart have also not gone through a mediation process with the company. No motions have been filed by the attorneys for the 11 people, appeal court records show.

No details are provided in court documents about what was agreed upon in the mediations of the 63 people who settled their lawsuits in May with the nation’s largest retailer. The motion states that more than 90 people filed lawsuits against Walmart in connection with the mass shooting.

The lawsuits were set to go to trial on July 8, before the settlements and the appeals court ruling.

Walmart victims awaiting mediation

The motion states that mediation hearings were scheduled for May 19 and May 29, but Walmart attorneys canceled the hearings.

The attorneys requested that the justices order Walmart to continue with the mediation process for their 18 clients.

Walmart filed a motion in the appeals court, arguing that Walmart did not have any fault in the shooting and the gunman “Patrick Crusius alone bears moral and legal responsibility for the unspeakable mass shooting that he committed at a Walmart store.”

“Plaintiffs now seek to shift responsibility for Crusius’s horrific crime to Walmart on the theory that Walmart should have prevented Crusius’s attack,” Walmart attorney’s motion states. “But the Walmart relators — the owners of the premises where Crusius perpetrated his crime — are not responsible as a matter of law, because Crusius’s criminal conduct was not foreseeable to Walmart. That is clearly established under existing law.”

Walmart’s motion came after Enriquez denied Walmart’s request for summary judgment, meaning to have the case thrown out.

The victims’ attorney argued that despite Walmart filing motions to have the cases dismissed, they continued to have mediation hearings with some of the plaintiffs.

“While its mandamus papers were being filed, Walmart was settling this case,” the victim’s attorneys wrote in their motion. “In the days before the stay, Walmart mediated and settled the claims of one group of plaintiffs after another.”

The justices ruled in favor of Walmart stating, “This Court may, on its own motion or on the motion of a party, refer a case to mediation. However, if any party objects and the Court finds there is a reasonable basis for objection, the Court may not refer the dispute to mediation.”

It is unclear from court documents if Walmart will continue to seek a settlement with the remaining victims or if the case will be sent back to the 448th District Court for trial.

A notice was filed in the 448th District Court on May 26 by some of the attorneys representing 14 of the 63 people who reached a settlement. The notice states that the settlement agreements are likely to be finalized within 60 days.

Civil cases remained pending as criminal cases moved first

The civil cases have been pending as the criminal case against the gunman was being handled in state and federal court.

In federal court, the gunman from Allen, Texas, pleaded guilty on Feb. 9, 2023, to 23 counts of hate crimes resulting in death, 23 counts of use of a firearm to commit murder during and in relation to a crime of violence, 22 counts of hate crimes involving an attempt to kill, and 22 counts of use of a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.

He was sentenced to 90 consecutive life sentences on July 7, 2023, for the mass shooting.

In state court, the gunman pleaded guilty on April 21, 2025, to one count of capital murder of multiple persons and 22 counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. He was sentenced that same day to life in prison on each count.