In three orders issued Wednesday and Thursday, Harris County District Judge Rabeea Collier sanctioned Transocean and its former legal team for “egregious” conduct in the multidistrict litigation. The judge declined to disqualify the company’s new legal team, AZA, from continuing its representation of the drilling company.
In W&T’s Fight with Insurers over $250M Collateral Demands, Jurisdiction, V&E’s Representation Questioned
Recent developments in the dispute stemming from new Federal Bureau of Ocean Management bond rules targeting offshore energy companies include a question of whether the case belongs in federal court and if Vinson & Elkins should be allowed to represent two insurers after previously representing W&T for nearly a decade.
Litigation Roundup: Omni Gets New Trial in $25M Sex Discrimination Suit
In this edition of Litigation Roundup, Whataburger hires Holland & Knight to defend a patent infringement lawsuit in East Texas, and DLA Piper turns to a team from Vinson & Elkins to defend it in a legal malpractice lawsuit in Harris County over its alleged employment of a “fake lawyer.”
Major Shipping Companies Accused of RICO Violations in New Suit
A lawsuit filed in federal court in Dallas Thursday by a family-owned logistics company accuses some of its biggest competitors of “illicitly” building a multibillion-dollar business by “systematically defrauding consumers and small business owners” in violation of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act.
Divided Fifth Circuit Strikes Down SEC’s Approval of Nasdaq Diversity Rules
Judge Andrew S. Oldham and the majority focused their decision on a requirement in the Securities Exchange Act dictating that the SEC must first find that any proposed regulation “is related to the purposes of the Exchange Act” before approving it. Judge Stephen A. Higginson focused his dissent on the “limited reviewing role” Congress carved out for the SEC as it relates to its ability to approve rules proposed by “self-regulatory organizations” like Nasdaq.
Litigation Roundup: New Braunfels’ Short-Term Rental Ban Upheld
In this edition of Litigation Roundup, we have the details on a $60.6 million Tarrant County jury award, Oncor beats back a $10 million jury award on appeal in Dallas and the Department of Justice accuses an Austin man who founded a beverage company of swindling investors.
Law Professors Talk Possible Jackson Walker Defenses in Bankruptcy Fee Litigation
Two law professors recently shared their thoughts in interviews with The Texas Lawbook on what defenses Jackson Walker is likely to raise in litigation where the U.S. Trustee is attempting to claw back millions in fees awarded to the firm in cases where David Jones served as a mediator or judge. Jones resigned his bench last year after a secret romantic relationship with a former Jackson Walker bankruptcy professor came to light.
Specific Jurisdiction Contours Central in SCOTX Oral Arguments Over Plane Crash Litigation
The state’s high court heard oral arguments Wednesday morning in the lawsuit brought by Sheema Shaik against BRP-Rotax GmbH that asks it to determine whether Texas courts have specific jurisdiction over a foreign manufacturer based on an allegedly defective engine.
Texas Supreme Court Hears Ex-SMU Law Prof’s Case
Cheryl Butler, a former Southern Methodist University law professor, sued the university and several former colleagues in 2016, bringing claims for defamation, fraud and conspiracy to defame. She appealed to the Fifth Circuit in January 2023, the same month U.S. District Judge Ada Brown dismissed her case with prejudice after agreeing that the Texas Commission on Human Rights Act preempted the claims. The Texas Supreme Court heard oral arguments Tuesday in the case that will determine whether Butler will be allowed to proceed with a defamation claim against her former coworkers, who she alleges played a role in her being denied tenure in 2016.
Litigation Roundup: Buc-ee’s Goes to Court, Again, in TM Spat
In this edition of Litigation Roundup, we detail the outside lawyers Texas has hired to bring suit against some of the largest private equity firms in the world alleging they conspired to depress the market for coal and a Beaumont personal injury lawyer gets sanctioned for using Claude to write a brief that included made-up cases and quotes.