The Texas Lawbook

Free Speech, Due Process and Trial by Jury

Commercial Litigation

Jury Awards $37.9M to Residents Affected by Houston Watson Grinding Explosion, Case Continues for Others

Five victims of the Houston Watson Grinding 2020 fatal explosion saw some relief from a Harris County jury earlier this month. Their attorneys discussed the details of the case with The Texas Lawbook and the five-year journey it has taken to obtain the $37.9 million verdict. Another trial in the case is expected at the end of this month. (2020 file photo by Godofredo A. Vásquez/Houston Chronicle via The Associated Press)

Alexa Shrake

Family of Arlington Firefighter Who Died at Cancun Resort Gets $31.27M Verdict

The widow of an Arlington firefighter who died while celebrating his 10th wedding anniversary at the all-inclusive Royalton Chic resort in Cancun, Mexico, was awarded $31.27 million by a jury this week that found the hotel liable for negligence. Elijah Snow, 35, died in July 2021 and his widow, Jamie, filed suit in June 2022, naming as defendants RCM Hotel, its parent company Blue Diamond Hotels and Resorts and a travel agency that was later dropped from the suit.

Michelle Casady

Texas Lawbook Expands Civil Litigation Coverage, Adds Reporter from The Indiana Lawyer

A former reporter with The Indiana Lawyer in Indianapolis, Alexa Shrake joins The Lawbook team as the publication expands its efforts to cover complex commercial litigation and the trial lawyer community in Texas. “Alexa was hired after a nationwide search that yielded more than 200 applicants,” said Texas Lawbook senior litigation reporter and editor Michelle Casady, who leads a team of five journalists who cover litigation full- or part-time. “She was clearly the best reporter for the job."

Mark Curriden

Big Data, Big Impact: Texas Trial Lawyers Talk ‘JuryBall’ 

Imagine knowing what a jury is going to do — whether they will find liability, how they will apportion it and how much they will award in damages — before voir dire even begins. “The last five trials I’ve gone to I’ve been armed with the answer to those questions before the trial even starts,” Brent Walker of Brent Walker Law told The Texas Lawbook in a recent interview. “It’s sort of like playing poker and knowing what the cards are going to be.”

Michelle Casady

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