Free Speech, Due Process and Trial by Jury
In this edition of Litigation Roundup, Texas reaches a tentative settlement with Colorado and New Mexico in a nearly decade-old lawsuit over use of the Lower Rio Grande River’s resources, two major tobacco companies say Texas owes them about $8.6 million in taxes paid under protest, and another trial between VLSI and Intel kicks off.
In opening statements in state court in Dallas, lawyers for the family of Gabriel Vela say EnLink Midstream cut corners in its rush to expand the plant. Defense lawyers say Vela’s actions led to his death.
A team from Alavi Anaipakos successfully represented oil field products manufacturer G&H in a post-grant review challenge before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board. The ruling could impact nearly a dozen patent infringement lawsuits pending against other manufacturers.
The lawsuit alleges that District Attorney Greg Willis “treats many female employees as objects that, without their consent, must gratify his sexual impulses and personal vanity.”
In this week’s edition of Litigation Roundup, juries in Dallas and Tarrant County doled out damages to individuals permanently injured in separate botched surgeries, FedEx is slammed with nine-digit damages in a racial discrimination and retaliation case and the entire Fifth Circuit votes to rehear a lawsuit over a citizen-journalist’s arrest in Laredo.
About 75 lawyers attended in-person or online a CLE that delved into enforcement priorities at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s Fort Worth Regional Office, what impact recent Fifth Circuit decisions could have on SEC actions, and how to navigate clients through uncertain times during an increase in rulemaking initiatives.
A federal jury in Detroit listened to 15 days of testimony and arguments and then deliberated nearly 10 hours before ruling Wednesday that Ford Motor Co. misused Versata’s trade secrets and the carmaker to pay Austin-based Versata Software $105 million in damages. The nine-digit verdict is the largest courtroom victory for Houston-based Mitby Pacholder Johnson, a three-partner litigation boutique formed earlier this year. The Texas Lawbook has the inside story.
Dallas District Judge Tonya Parker announced Monday that she intends to seek election to an upcoming opening on the Fifth Court of Appeals in Dallas.
Judge Parker, a widely respected trial judge who consistently ranks among the top three judges for judicial temperament and legal knowledge by Dallas Bar Association members, sent an email to supporters stating that she has been “seriously considering a run for court of appeals” for some time.
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