In the litigation initiated by self-described government watchdog group American Oversight, the Texas Supreme Court is being asked to determine whether trial courts have jurisdiction to order the governor and attorney general to release information under the Public Information Act. American Oversight turned to the courts to get access to communications surrounding two events: the January 6, 2021, insurrection at the Capitol and the 2022 mass shooting at Robb Elementary in Uvalde.
Tenaris Wants Negligence Verdict in Flooding Case Undone
The Texas Supreme Court on Wednesday morning was told there isn’t enough evidence that the construction of a pipe manufacturing plant in rural Matagorda County was the cause of flooding that damaged several neighboring homes during Hurricane Harvey.
Litigation Roundup: DOL’s ESG Investing Rule Survives Post-Loper Bright
In this edition of Litigation Roundup, the Texas Supreme Court answers two certified questions from the Fifth Circuit, and a plaintiff who saw her $222 million jury award canceled abandons her appeal.
CPS Energy Hit with $109.5M Verdict in Residential Explosion Trial
A cap on damages agreed to by CPS Energy and Robert and Virginia Rymers in advance of trial means the utility will only owe $60 million. The Rymerses suffered burns, and lost two pet dogs as well as all possessions inside their rental home as a result of the blast.
Litigation Roundup: Another OAG Alum Heads to Washington
In this edition of Litigation Roundup, Beck Redden and Dykema Gossett go head-to-head in a jury trial in Harris County, a group of Dallas residents get an appellate win in the fight over restrictions on short-term rentals and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit undoes a victory for the Austin American-Statesman in a lawsuit over an anonymous advertisement.
Buc-ee’s v. Everybody: A Look at the Convenience Store Giant’s Trademark Litigation History
What do a monkey, two chickens, a duck, an alligator and a dog have in common with a beaver? Quite a bit if you ask Buc-ee’s, the popular convenience store and gas station that has earned a reputation for aggressively defending its trademarks in federal court.
Litigation Roundup: Defamation Case Against Houston Boutique Firm Gets Tossed
In this edition of Litigation Roundup, we have details on the outcome of a discrimination lawsuit brought by a Black attorney in Houston who alleges he was kicked out of a bar at the Post Oak Hotel for wearing a “[Mark] Lanier 6.0 Trial Academy Master Class” hat, Whirlpool gets a $25 million trademark infringement win in the Eastern District of Texas, and the Texas Supreme Court passes on hearing a case involving the Judicial Branch Certification Commission’s regulation of licensed court reporters.
Transocean Injury Plaintiffs Ask Justices to Remove AZA as Defense Counsel
Plaintiffs firm Arnold & Itkin has appealed a Harris County trial judge’s decision that allowed the law firm Ahmad Zavitsanos & Mensing to stay on as defense counsel to Transocean in multidistrict litigation stemming from offshore workers’ injuries, arguing the ruling was “in error” and “an abuse of discretion.”
Judge Recommends Ending Disciplinary Action Against Jackson Walker
U.S. District Judge Lee Rosenthal is recommending closing a proceeding that was initiated to determine whether Jackson Walker should face any disciplinary action for its failure to disclose a romantic relationship between its former bankruptcy partner and a sitting bankruptcy judge. The order came about four months after the case was randomly assigned to her court.
Jackson Walker, U.S. Trustee Move to Strike Each Other’s Experts in Bankruptcy Fee Case
On Thursday, the U.S. Trustee and Jackson Walker filed dueling motions to strike, with the law firm arguing the expert opinions of Richard J. Davis and Jonathan C. Lipson — a retired partner at Weil, Gotshal & Manges who now is in private practice, and a tenured bankruptcy law professor at Temple University-Beasley School of Law, respectively — and the U.S. Trustee arguing the same about an expert opinion from Renee Jefferson, who is the Larry Doherty Chair in Legal Ethics at the University of Houston Law Center.