© 2015 The Texas Lawbook.
By Natalie Posgate
(Sept. 19) – The workweek for lawyers at Brewer, Attorneys & Counselors ended with good news: one of their major pro bono Voting Rights Act cases is close to settling.
The lawsuit, filed on April 24 against Carrollton-Farmers Branch Independent School District, challenged the school district’s at-large voting system, alleging it allowed white voters to vote as a bloc to deny political opportunity for CFBISD’s Latino community.
The Carrollton-Farmers Branch school board on Thursday voted to authorize their lawyers to move forward with a proposed settlement agreement to address the lawsuit’s claims.
Brewer firm spokesman Travis Carter said following the vote Thursday night, the settlement is now expected “to happen very shortly.”
Highlights of the terms for the proposed settlement are:
• The school board will replace its existing at-large electoral system with a cumulative voting system. In a cumulative voting system, voters receive as many votes as there are seats in an election, and voters may distribute those votes as they wish. For example, they may use all their votes on one candidate or award a vote to multiple candidates.
• The school district will conduct voter registration efforts and offer accessible voting opportunities in the Latino community – making it easier for a broader section of the community to participate in the electoral process.
• One member of the school board will resign, and plaintiff Guillermo Ramos will be appointed to serve in that place until an election in May 2016. Ramos attended schools in CFBISD and graduated from the district’s Newman Smith High School. Once appointed, he will become the only Latino on the school board.
• The school district agreed to pay $60,000 in attorney’s fees.
In a statement, Bill Brewer, the lead lawyer for Ramos said he hopes the settlement’s proposed changes to the electoral system will create great opportunities for the Latino community, including students.
“It is a credit to Mr. Ramos that the district has embraced these changes – and shown confidence in him representing the interests of the Latino community,” Brewer said. “He will give that community a new voice in the affairs of the district.”
CFBISD’s lead lawyer, Meredith Prykryl Walker of Walsh Gallegos Treviño Russo & Kyle in Irving, could not be immediately reached for comment.
This is the second voting rights-related settlement for the Brewer Storefront, the firm’s public service affiliate, to reach this year.
Its first win occurred in July against the City of Grand Prairie. At a July 14 city council meeting, the members agreed to redraw the city’s voting districts to give Grand Prairie Hispanics a fairer shot at being elected in Districts 3 and 5 in order to settle their lawsuit against the Storefront, which was filed on March 4.
Both of these Voting Rights Act lawsuits follow a history of successes the Brewer Storefront has had in this area. The Texas Lawbook tells the full story here.
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