Free Speech, Due Process and Trial by Jury
At the end of this week, jurors serving on federal trials will get IOUs. All civil trials are being put hold. Payments to court-appointed lawyers will be halted. The federal government shutdown combined with the “sequestration” funding cuts have had a devastating impact on its efforts to provide access to justice.
During the past 25 years as a legal journalist, I’ve heard some outrageous excuses and extraordinary efforts of folks trying to avoid jury service.
The family of Rosa Esparza, who died July 19 when she fell while riding the Texas Giant rollercoaster at Six Flags Over Texas, sued the amusement ride theme park Tuesday for wrongful death and negligence. The lawsuit accuses Dallas-based Six Flags of knowing “for decades the real risks and extreme dangers” posed by some of their rides but not doing anything to make them safer.
The TUTSA applies to acts of trade secret misappropriation occurring on or after Sept. 1, 2013, and is found in the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code, Chapter 134A.
The Dallas oilman claims the New Jersey-based conglomerate sold him two defective engines for his corporate Learjet – defects he says that could have led to disastrous results and lives lost. Honeywell says it doesn’t owe Hunt a dime.
Brown joins the Fifth Court of Appeals in Dallas as the newest justice.
Summit Alliance claims its CFO caused the company significant financial loss, but he has his own unrest with the company as well.
This ruling forbids the AQHA from excluding cloned horses and their offspring from breed registry.
The state agency is being accused of retaliating against a former employee after he reported unlawful actions of his supervisor.
More than 100 large merchants, including more than three dozen prominent Texas-based businesses, filed an anti-trust suit against Visa and MasterCard Tuesday, alleging they have been forced to pay excessive fees amounting to hundreds millions of dollars. The Texas plaintiffs include TXU Energy Retail, La Quinta Inns, Pier 1 Imports, RadioShack, ClubCorp, Reliant Energy, The Men’s Wearhouse, Valero Energy and Travelocity.com.
Two former African American employees are accusing the Dallas personal injury firm of three counts of unlawful employment practices.
Pete Marketos won Texas' biggest damages verdict in the state so far this year, but he now faces an appellate court system that has been unfriendly to jury awards for plaintiffs. Legal experts believe the case, which pits a South Texas car dealership against Mercedes-Benz, could make new law regardnig how much is too much under the state constitution when it comes to punitive damages. The litigation could become a showcase demonstrating how power and decision-making in civil disputes has dramatically shifted during the past decade from trial courts and juries to appellate court judges.
© Copyright 2026 The Texas Lawbook
The content on this website is protected under federal Copyright laws. Any use without the consent of The Texas Lawbook is prohibited.
