Osler McCarthy has long been top of mind here at The Texas Lawbook. His sage summaries of cases while working alongside the Texas Supreme Court helped cull newsworthy wheat from legal chaff. And now on this, his first day as Managing Editor of The Texas Lawbook, Osler explains what this has done to his plans for retirement, and why he needs your help.
Winter Storm Uri Lawsuits, Two Texas Appeals Courts Wrestle Over ERCOT’s Sovereign Immunity
Scores of wrongful death, personal injury and property damage cases are pending against ERCOT since last February’s crippling winter storm. None of those cases can move forward until the appellate courts decide whether ERCOT is a state governmental agency protected from litigation under the doctrine of sovereign immunity.
Two Texas courts of appeals — the Fourth Court in San Antonio and the Fifth Court in Dallas — recently heard oral arguments from lawyers on both sides of the issue. The Texas Lawbook has the details.
Evan Young’s Journey to Texas Supreme Court
Sworn in Nov. 10 as the next justice of the Supreme Court of Texas, Evan Young hit the ground running. He is immersed in reading briefs to sit for an oral argument soon after Thanksgiving. “It wasn’t so long ago that I was the one who had to prepare for oral argument on the other side of the bench,” Young said in an exclusive Texas Lawbook interview.
Texas Lawbook correspondent Tony Mauro interviewed Young about leaving a $1 million-plus paying partnership at Baker Botts to become a justice and his plans to run for re-election.
Osler McCarthy Joins Texas Lawbook Team
For the past two decades, Osler McCarthy has been a trusted voice of appellate law in Texas – informing lawyers, judges, members of the news media and the public on the cases being decided by the nine justices who sit on the Supreme Court of Texas. This week, Osler – educated as a lawyer and trained as a journalist – joins The Texas Lawbook fulltime as managing editor and head of the publication’s appellate law coverage.
Fifth Circuit: ‘It is Not a Crime to be a Journalist’
The movie Diehard 2 is officially a cited source in a Fifth Circuit opinion. Circuit Judge James Ho pointed to the character airport security Captain Lorenzo in emphasizing that all police officers know that reporters asking questions of law enforcement is protected by the First Amendment. The appeals court cite came in a victory for Laredo crime reporter Priscilla “La Gordiloca” Villarreal, who sued local police for arresting her in 2017 for simply doing her job.
Evan Young Appointed to Texas Supreme Court
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced Monday that he is appointing Baker Botts partner Evan Young to the Texas Supreme Court. An appellate partner who lives in Austin, Young, who is 45 and grew up in San Antonio, replaces former Justice Eva Guzman, who resigned in June to be a candidate for Texas attorney general.