A new antitrust lawsuit filed in Texas names more than 30 real estate companies and associations across the state that home sellers QJ Team and Five Points Holdings allege have participated in a conspiracy developed by the National Association of Realtors that saddles home sellers with costs that should be borne by buyers. The proposed class action lawsuit alleges the practice results in inflated commissions and increased home prices. Last month in a similar lawsuit, a federal jury issued a $1.78 billion verdict to the sellers of about 260,000 homes in Missouri, Kansas and Illinois.
Jury Says Berg & Androphy Owes Nothing to Ex-Associate
A jury that heard three days of testimony in a contentious lawsuit where attorney Justin Pfeiffer was seeking $32,000 in back wages from his former firm, Berg & Androphy, unanimously decided after about an hour of deliberations Monday that no employment contract agreement existed between the parties. The lawsuit pitted Pfeiffer, now a partner at Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith, against Houston trial lawyer David Berg.
Litigation Roundup: Jerry Jones Defamation Case Update, ‘Water-Saving’ Toilet Claim Draws Suit
In this edition of Litigation Roundup, a Texas software company is among those named in a lawsuit alleging a conspiracy among landlords to artificially inflate rental prices, the Fifth Circuit issues a rare precedential opinion in a venue dispute that pries a case away from U.S. District Judge Alan Albright, and that appellate court also found a new U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission disclosure rule was “arbitrary and capricious.”
Seatbelt Defect Case Nets $976M Jury Verdict
The Houston law firm of Kaster Lynch Farrar & Ball teamed up with Philadelphia firm Eisenberg, Rothweiler, Winkler, Eisenberg & Jeck to secure the massive award for client Francis “Ru” Amagasu, who was rendered quadriplegic following a rollover accident in 2017. The attorneys argued the seatbelt in Amagasu’s 1992 Mitsubishi 3000 GT, which was designed to allow four inches of slack in the event of a crash, actually caused his injuries by allowing his head to come into contact with the car’s roof, breaking his neck.
Litigation Roundup: Paxton Gets TRO to Stop Razor Wire ‘Destruction’ at Border, ITC’s Win Against Enviro Claim Affirmed in Case of First Impression
In this edition of Litigation Roundup, a jury sides with a Baylor graduate in a lawsuit over the alleged mishandling of her sexual assault complaints, a woman sexually assaulted by her masseuse has a $1.8 million punitive award wiped out on appeal, and a judge in Texas puts a nationwide halt to a new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau rule that would require lenders collect certain data from small business borrowers.
SCOTX Denies Bid to Skip Over 5th COA in Judicial District Reapportionment Challenge
Keresa Richardson has argued to the courts that the malapportionment of the 14 judicial districts in Texas is a “disease” and that the use of docket equalization measures to even the workload among the courts is a “field dressing.” Richardson is alleging both issues constitute violations of the equal protection clause of the Constitution.
Receiver’s Request for Criminal Defense Lawyer’s File Draws NACDL, TCDLA Challenge
The subpoenaed criminal defense attorney, former federal prosecutor Richard Kuniansky, told The Lawbook the request from receiver Levi Benton, a former Harris County civil district judge, was “crazy,” and said if Benton is allowed access to the entire file it would have ramifications well beyond this case. The client, Ataa Shadi, was sued in civil court by duped investors who got a $3 million default judgment against him in 2020. He was indicted on related criminal fraud charges in May.
Litigation Roundup: Ernst & Young Beats Fraud Claims, Sandy Hook Families Prevail in Alex Jones Bankruptcy
In this edition of Litigation Roundup, a massage company pays $1 million to end the sex assault claims lodged by two female customers, a lawsuit between the parent company of Ace Cash Express and a former business partner seeks as much as nine-figure damages, and American Airlines wins an appeal in a discrimination lawsuit venue fight.
Jury Says No Breach, No Bad Faith, No $30M
A Harris County jury recently heard three weeks of evidence in a breach of contract and bad faith lawsuit stemming from the $90 million sale of a business that rents pumps used in the oil and gas industry. Jurors had to answer two questions: Did GR Energy Services breach a noncompete agreement by communicating with SpaceX about the possible purchase of pumps after it sold its Flex Flow pump business? And did Odessa Pumps act in bad faith in managing Flex Flow after the purchase from GR to keep profits artificially low in order to avoid paying GR a $30 million earnout? No, and no, the jury said.
Fifth Circuit Cites SCOTUS Precedent, Axes Win for McKinney Woman Whose Home Cops Destroyed
The panel determined that because the actions of the McKinney police took to end the hostage situation and standoff were “objectively necessary,” Vicki Baker isn’t entitled to compensation on her Fifth Amendment takings claim. The Fifth Circuit said U.S. Supreme Court precedent, which has long recognized an exception to the takings clause, mandated the outcome and that, as a lower court, “it is not for us to decide that fairness and justice trump historical precedent.”