Top 10 Texas Legal News for 2024
Judge-shopping claims, a surrogacy scam, and the opening of the Texas business courts were among the Androvett Legal Media team's top five legal stories in Texas for 2024. But they didn't top the list.
Lawyers, Guns and Money: An occasional series on movies, TV and other stories about lawyers and the law — Juror #2 (2024, Dir. Clint Eastwood)
A man is picked for jury duty. He seems like a solid enough fellow, maybe a little melancholy, and more handsome than most, because he’s played by Nicholas Hoult, whose eyes are an almost impossibly bright shade of blue. He shows up the first day of the trial and a look of panic plays out across his face. It seems he might have done something in his past that could have direct bearing on whether or not the defendant is found guilty. If he comes forward, he might end up behind bars himself.
Lawyers, Guns and Money: An occasional series on movies, TV and other stories about lawyers and the law — Liar Liar (1997, Dir. Tom Shadyac)
Liar Liar, the 1997 Jim Carrey comedy about a dishonest man whose son makes a birthday wish condemning his dad to tell the truth for 24 hours, could have been about a doctor. Or a sanitation worker. Or a restaurateur. But what fun would any of that be? No, Carrey’s Fletcher Reede had to be a lawyer, because in the public imagination lawyers lie — constantly, for a living, without shame.
Lawyers, Guns and Money: An occasional series on movies, TV and other stories about lawyers and the law — 12 Angry Men (1957, Dir. Sidney Lumet)
One is an unrepentant racist. Another is filled with rage for his grown son. There’s the guy who has Yankees tickets burning a hole in his pocket. There’s an ad man, a stockbroker, a proud immigrant and a blue collar working man. And there’s the stoic architect — the one who actually wants to hear everyone out, who takes his responsibility as a juror with the seriousness appropriate when a defendant’s life is at stake. Sixty-seven years after its release, 12 Angry Men remains an explosive drama of small-scale democracy, bottled up in a jury room where individual prejudices and passions gradually coalesce into a collective voice.
Lawyers, Guns and Money: An occasional series on movies, TV and other stories about lawyers and the law — Young Mr. Lincoln (1939, Dir. John Ford)
A tall, folksy man in a stovepipe hat rides into town on a mule, looking to get his law practice off the ground. He quickly ingratiates himself to the community, making fast friends and even judging a pie contest at the county fair (where he also wins a rail-splitting contest, naturally). Like a good lawyer, or perhaps just a hungry lawyer, he weighs his pie duties carefully, going back and forth between the peach and the apple, steadily gobbling down both. He’s a man of the people, and soon he’ll become a rather impromptu defense attorney in a murder trial.
Bloomberg Law: Waco Judge Albright Moving to Austin
U.S. District Court Judge Alan Albright, one of the most popular jurists for handling patent infringement disputes in the U.S., is moving his chambers from Waco to Austin, Bloomberg Law reported late Wednesday. The judges of the Western District of Texas have approved Judge Albright’s request to move his primary chambers to Austin in 2025, according to Bloomberg Law. The transfer must be approved by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit’s Judicial Council.
Six Important Lessons from My First Year as a Full-time Mediator
Some of the lessons surprised me, and they may surprise other new mediators — as well as attorneys who are new to mediation.
Sidley Leads Independence Drilling’s Bankruptcy Restructuring in SDTX
Houston-based Independence Contract Drilling and its affiliated company, Sidewinder Drilling, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection late Monday in the Southern District of Texas. ICD leaders chose Sidley Austin as its lead legal advisor. Latham & Watkins is counsel for the noteholders. Piper Sandler is the investment bank advising ICD.
Judge Cuts $2.17M Jury Award in SkyWest Airlines Sexual-Harassment Case to $300K, as Prescribed by Law
In accordance with federal damages caps, U.S. District Judge Sidney A. Fitzwater on Thursday reduced a jury's $2.17 million verdict against SkyWest Airlines to $300,000.
Evil Robots and Data Privacy
This article contemplates an artificial intelligence hypothetical given to a dozen Silicon Valley attorneys at an annual meeting of in-house lawyers and general counsel. The takeaway: as AI expands, it will increasingly become necessary for attorneys and their clients to understand exactly what tools are available to them to improve their models and avoid an increasing number of ethical and legal pitfalls.
Coterra Acquires Permian Assets for $3.95 Billion
Gibson Dunn advised Coterra and Kirkland advised two Denver-based sellers, Franklin Mountain Energy and Avant Natural Resources, on two separate deals involving as many as 550 net well locations and 125 miles of pipeline in New Mexico.
East Texas Jury Clears Nokia In Patent Case
A federal jury in Marshall deliberated about an hour and a half Wednesday before returning its verdict for Nokia. Correct Transmission had sought to prove Nokia infringed on three of its patents and should pay about $35 million.