Patent infringement litigation has mostly been on the decline across the U.S. for the past three years, but not in the Eastern District of Texas, which has re-established its courts as the preferred destination for disputes regarding patent infringement. A new report by legal analytics firm Lex Machina shows that U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap of Marshall was assigned 795 new patent lawsuits in 2024 — six times more than any other federal judge in the U.S.
V&E, Susman Godfrey Alums Launch Litigation Finance Firm
Lauren Harrison and Mani Walia have clerked for federal appellate judges, practiced at premier law firms and done pioneering work in the world of litigation funding. This week, the duo launched Signal Peak Partners, a Houston-based investment firm that customizes litigation financing, private credit solutions and monetization options for plaintiffs and their lawyers.
Gibson Dunn Partner Launches Solo Dallas Firm to ‘Reengineer Litigation Models for Businesses’
Texas legal history is replete with young hot-shot trial lawyers leaving their big corporate firms to start their own operations — from David Beck, Paul Yetter and John Zavitsanos in Houston to Mike Lynn, Pete Marketos and Clayton Bailey of Dallas. This week, John S. Adams hopes to join this elite group of highly successful trial lawyers-turned-business leaders who have their name on the front door. Friday was Adams’ last day as a partner in the Dallas office of the elite global law firm Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. Today, he launched his own law litigation boutique, the John S. Adams Law Firm, where he is the only lawyer but plans to add lawyers quickly.
U.S. Trustee and Jackson Walker to Mediate Judge Jones Fee Dispute
Jackson Walker has agreed to attempt to mediate claims brought by federal officials that the Dallas-based law firm should be forced to return millions of dollars it was paid in legal fees from 33 bankruptcy cases in which Jackson Walker lawyers failed to disclose that one of its former partners had a romantic relationship with the Houston judge who was presiding over those cases. The U.S. Bankruptcy Trustee in the Southern District of Texas and lawyers for Jackson Walker filed a joint notice Friday stating that they “intend to participate in an in-person mediation” between June 16 and July 1.
(2020 file photo of David Jones by Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via Getty)
TX Chief Justice ‘Urgent Memo’ to Legislature: Texas Judicial Pay is an ‘Embarrassment’ and Pleads for 11th Hour Pay Hike
New Texas Supreme Court Chief Justice Jimmy Blacklock sent a last-minute email on Saturday to members of the state house and senate with the subject line “Urgent Memo”, begging them to hike the compensation of judges, which currently ranks 49th in the U.S. — only West Virginia pays its judges less.
Motion: Gateway Church Lead Counsel David Middlebrook ‘Must Be Disqualified’
Lawyers for Robert Morris, the former Gateway Church pastor who had an inappropriate relationship with a teenager decades ago, asked a Fort Worth judge to remove one of the lead attorneys representing the church in litigation over disputed financial payments. In court documents filed Friday, Morris’ attorneys want the judge hearing the case to disqualify David Middlebrook, Gateway’s longtime outside general counsel, because he previously represented Morris in several matters, including giving Morris legal advice about the issues that are at the heart of the current dispute.
President Names Career Prosecutor as NDTX U.S. Attorney
President Donald Trump has named Nancy E. Larson, a career federal prosecutor, as the Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Texas.
SCOTUS Grants Stay to Highland Capital in Dispute with Ex-CEO
The U.S. Supreme Court granted an emergency stay to Highland Capital Management, halting a lower court decision that allowed former CEO James Dondero to sue parties involved in the firm’s bankruptcy. Justice Samuel Alito issued a one-page order that pauses a March ruling by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, which had permitted Dondero to pursue litigation against individuals previously deemed protected by a North Texas bankruptcy judge in relation to Highland Capital’s bankruptcy and restructuring.
Jury Orders Samsung to Pay $111.7M in Patent Dispute
An East Texas jury ruled Wednesday that Samsung Electronics violated the patented technology of rival Maxell Ltd. and awarded the plaintiff $111.7 million in damages. Japan-based Maxell sued Samsung, which is headquartered in South Korea, in 2023 alleging it willfully infringed on three patents related to its technology on smart phone and home devices, including appliances.
2025 Houston Corporate Counsel Awards Celebration
More than 225 leaders of the corporate legal profession in Houston celebrated the 2025 Houston Corporate Counsel Awards, which recognized general counsel and senior managing counsel from companies ranging from Phillips 66 and Shell to Enbridge, Baker Hughes and Transocean. The Association of Corporate Counsel’s Houston Chapter and The Texas Lawbook hosted 20 corporate in-house counsel who had been nominated for awards in 14 categories, from Rookie of the Year and Lifetime Achievement to M&A Transaction and Business Litigation of the Year.