Is there a civil cause of action in Texas for intercepting a conversation?

Yes. A party to a conversation may bring a civil action under Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code Ann. § 123.002(a)(1) against someone who intercepts or attempts to intercept it. The critical distinction is consent, not merely whether the person making the recording participated: Chapter 123 defines an interception as an aural acquisition through an interception device without the consent of any party to the communication.[2][3]

What the claim requires

A person who was not part of a conversation may therefore face a Chapter 123 claim for secretly recording it if no participant consented and the recording satisfies the statute’s definition of “interception.” A nonparticipant’s recording is not necessarily actionable if one participant consented. The statute also permits a party to sue someone who uses or divulges information the person knows or reasonably should know was obtained by interception.[2][3]

If the plaintiff establishes the claim, available relief includes an injunction, $10,000 in statutory damages for each occurrence, actual damages in excess of $10,000, punitive damages, and reasonable attorney’s fees and costs.[1] The number of “occurrences” and whether a particular recording constitutes an aural acquisition through an interception device would require the specific facts.