5th Circuit Reverses Dismissal of Blogging Lawyer’s First Amendment Case
Lubbock lawyer John E. Gibson will get his day in court to argue for the domain name texasworkerscomplaw.com.
State Business Tax Withstands Latest Constitutional Challenge
The Texas Supreme Court Friday rejected another high-profile challenge to the state’s main business tax, ruling that the levy is applied in an equal and uniform manner. Food and drink giant Nestle USA Inc. argued for a refund of $8.68 million it paid to the state and an injunction against future collections.
$29 Million Wind Energy Contract Dispute Reaches Texas Supreme Court
Industry says legal battle could harm state’s renewable energy credit market; TXU says those claims are overblown. Nina Cortell of Haynes and Boone argues for FPL Energy, while James Ho of Gibson Dunn represents Luminant Energy.
Edith Jones Resigns as 5th Circuit Chief Judge
Chief Judge Jones is stepping away from the leadership role for “various family reasons,” but she will stay on the court as a judge. Her resignation means that Judge Carl Stewart, a 1994 Clinton appointee, will become the first African-American to serve as chief judge of the Fifth Circuit. The timing of Judge Jones' announcement is not without controversy on the court.
Class Actions Evolve in the Fifth Circuit
The federal appeals court signals the potential future of federal class litigation in the Fifth Circuit after Dukes, writes David Coale.
Fifth Circuit: Texas Open Meetings Act is Constitutional
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruled unanimously Tuesday that the open meetings law does not violate the free speech rights of government leaders and does not criminalize all private speech of those officials. James Ho, a partner at Gibson Dunn in Dallas representing Belo and other news media organizations, says the court decision is “a complete and total victory for those who believe in open government.”
Churchill Downs Seeks Injunction Against Texas Online Betting Crackdown
Churchill Downs, the most famous Thoroughbred racetrack and home of the Kentucky Derby, sued the Texas Racing Commission in an attempt to stop the racing commission's enforcement of a law that makes it illegal for Texans to bet unless they are in-person at a racetrack.
Court Hears ‘Common-Sense’ Arguments on Business Tax Fairness
A plain reading of the Texas Constitution’s requirement that taxes be “equal and uniform” should sound the death knell for the state’s revised franchise tax, a lawyer for food and beverage giant Nestle USA told the Texas Supreme Court. Not so fast, said the state’s lawyer. The Texas Legislature has authority to pick winners and losers by distinguishing among classifications of businesses.
Third-party Allegations Scrutinized in Libel Case Heard by Texas Supreme Court
Justices ponder whether Austin TV reporter's focus on neurosurgeon's disciplinary case, malpractice suits led to defamatory broadcast.
Texas Supreme Court Weighs Protections for Whistleblowers who Report Internally
A demoted Parkland Memorial surgeon urged the justices to protect government employees who report wrongdoing through internal channels.
Did Greg Abbott Just Save the Voting Rights Act?
The Texas Attorney General claims in court that the federal Voting Rights Act of 1965 is outdated, unnecessary and an unconstitutional encroachment on the sovereignty of the state, but his legal efforts may have just assured the law's survival. Election law experts say that the VRA rose from near death – or at least irrelevance – last week when a federal court ruled that Texas legislators committed intentional racial discrimination when they drew new voting districts in 2011. "It is amazing that Texas officials intended to kill the Voting Rights Act, but because of the evidence of intentional discrimination, they may have just resurrected it," says University of Michigan law professor Ellen Katz, a nationally recognized election law expert.
Texas Justices Reverse $46 Million Award in Defective U-Haul Truck Case
The Texas Supreme Court threw out a $46 million award to a man who was crushed by a rolling U-Haul truck, finding that evidence of safety problems in Canadian trucks was improperly admitted in a Dallas County trial. The justices said there is enough evidence for a re-trial on negligence and actual damages, but rendered a take-nothing judgment on the jury’s gross negligence findings and punitive damages. The six-person jury’s initial award of $84 million in the case was the fifth largest verdict in the nation in 2008, according to Dunn & Bradstreet. V&E's Tom Leatherbury represents U-Haul.