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Michelle Casady

Michelle Casady is based in Houston and covers litigation and appeals — including trials, breaking news and industry trends — for The Texas Lawbook.

Michelle Casady

Michelle Casady has been a reporter in Texas since January 2009. She's covered crime at The Bryan-College Station Eagle, courts at the San Antonio Express-News and civil litigation for Law360. In July 2022, she joined The Texas Lawbook.

Her reporting has included covering arrests, trials, plea deals and settlements, executions, natural and manmade disasters, colorful characters and various oddities.

She lives in Houston with her husband Matt, a sweet dog Hurricane Harvey brought into their lives, and a confident cat who keeps everyone in line. She holds a bachelor's degree in journalism from Texas Tech University and was a 2018 fellow of the Loyola Marymount University Journalist Law School.

You can reach Michelle at michelle.casady@texaslawbook.net or (713) 614-7929.

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.

Michelle Casady

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.

Michelle Casady

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.

Michelle Casady

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.

Michelle Casady

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.”

Michelle Casady

Litigation Roundup: Hunton AK Tapped to Defend Aetna in $1.3B Suit, Waco Jury Slams California Co. With $240M Infringement Verdict

In this edition of Litigation Roundup, Texas juries find infringement in one case involving smart thermostats and another involving cloud storage, a group of doctors want a Harris County judge to confirm a $153.5 million arbitration award in a dispute with UnitedHealthcare and federal prosecutors in Houston drop a female genital mutilation case.

Michelle Casady

Fifth Circuit Revives Racial Profiling Suit Against Mesa Airlines

A three-judge panel on Friday determined that disputed fact issues should have precluded U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor from granting Mesa Airlines a summary judgment win in the lawsuit brought by Issam Abdallah and Abderraouf Alkhawaldeh. The men booked their tickets through American Airlines for a flight Mesa operated. Both frequent fliers on American Airlines, Abdallah holds gold status and Alkhawaldeh holds executive platinum status.

Michelle Casady

Dallas Rental Owners are Latest to Challenge Restrictions Aimed at Airbnb, VRBO Hosts

Owners of Dallas properties available for rent on platforms such as Airbnb and VRBO have lodged a suit seeking to stop enforcement of a city ordinance that would largely ban short-term rentals in the city. It’s the latest in a long line of lawsuits challenging the ability of cities to regulate the short-term rental market, an issue the Texas Supreme Court has yet to weigh in on.

Michelle Casady

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