Free Speech, Due Process and Trial by Jury
Judge Andrea Bouressa granted the defense's motion for directed verdict Wednesday afternoon and dismissed the jury on the second day of trial. This is the first jury trial for the newly established court to reach a conclusion.
The first jury trial for the Texas Business Court in Dallas began Tuesday in a case involving an oral agreement between two businessmen. This is the second jury trial for the Lone Star State’s newest court.
In this edition of Litigation Roundup, a team from King & Spalding notches an early win for Vistra in a dispute with the city of Sulphur Springs over the use of land that formerly housed a lignite mine, a healthcare executive faces prison after pleading guilty to fraud, and a $51 million win secured by Dean Omar Branham Shirley against Avon in a mesothelioma case is upheld on appeal in California.
Texas-based companies are the targets of significantly more contract and personal injury disputes, but they are also twice as likely to sue other businesses than their national counterparts, according to a new survey of corporate legal departments by global law firm Norton Rose Fulbright.
Winter Storm Uri brought single-digit temperatures and freezing precipitation to Texas in February 2021. Power lines snapped. Natural gas and power generators went silent. Pipelines froze. At least 246 people died. Thousands and thousands more suffered serious medical injuries. In all, 31,600 Texans and businesses sued energy companies for gross negligence. But five years later, not a single case has made it to trial.
A lawsuit that began nearly seven years ago ended Thursday after jurors determined Apple did not infringe five wireless technology patents held by Optis Wireless Technology. Optis had been seeking between $400 million and $600 million in damages, according to court documents. Judge Gilstrap also entered a sua sponte order Thursday finding that Optis and its affiliated entities that were also plaintiffs in the case are “judicially estopped from asserting that they are entitled to recover pre-suit damages” from Apple.
A team of Porter Hedges attorneys secured over a $57 million jury verdict for their client, Shintech Incorporated, earlier this week. The manufacturing company accused Olin Corporation of breaching its contract by refusing to provide the agreed-upon amount of vinyl chloride monomer.
In this edition of Asked & Answered, Mo Lovett Law’s founder discusses opening a new office in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and growing her law firm a year into opening. She also talked about mentorship and the state of the profession.
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