San Antonio City Attorney Andrew Segovia Aims to be ‘Client-Driven’

When Andy Segovia was voted to be San Antonio's chief legal officer in 2016, Councilman Joe Krier told him he was about to "take up the business of professional cat herding." The Lawbook interviewed Segovia, a former in-house lawyer for GM, about how it's going, the current Texas legislative session and his establishment of the city's department of diversity, equity and inclusion. Photo credit: John Davenport /San Antonio Express-News

March 22, 2023 Nushin Huq

Austin Startup Battles Toy Giant Hasbro Over Water Guns

In late August 2021, several top executives for toy giant Hasbro flew from the company’s headquarters in Rhode Island to Austin to attend a backyard party that erupted into a water-gun battle. The weapons involved would become one of the hottest new toys to hit the market since the Super Soaker. The good times, however, didn't last. A year later, the backyard fun had become a full-fledged David-versus-Goliath legal battle.

March 21, 2023 Loren Steffy

Litigation Roundup: ‘Well Past Time for [Fifth Circuit] to be Dragged Screaming into the 21st Century’

In this edition of Litigation Roundup, a Fifth Circuit judge urges the court to join the 21st Century, a Houston college sues a business partner in a recruiting spat and a one-time candidate for president of Mexico goes to prison.

March 20, 2023 Michelle Casady

Updated – Texas Court Rules PUC Price-Setting During Winter Storm Uri Unlawful

The Texas Public Utility Commission emergency rules in February 2021 that increased electric rates to $9,000 per megawatt-hour in response to the demand for power because of Winter Storm Uri were “invalid” and must be reexamined, a Texas appeals court ruled Friday. The Austin Court of Appeals ruled that PUC board members issued two unlawful rules — an “operation of executive fiat” — that allowed ERCOT to increase the emergency price of electricity 650 percent for five days. The decision, according to legal experts, could be a multibillion-dollar victory for some retail power companies.

March 17, 2023 Mark Curriden

The Evolving Landscape of Business Email Compromise Litigation — A Focus on Texas

Business email compromises remain one of the most prevalent internet-related crimes, with businesses and individuals suffering massive financial losses. This article examines how Texas law handles disputes between companies that have been defrauded by a third-party and the interaction of the contract law.

March 16, 2023 Victoria Oguntoye, Jacob Durst & Aurora Temple Barnes

Austin City Attorney Anne Morgan Doing Legal Work ‘That Makes the World a Little Bit Better’

Anne Morgan and the 60 lawyers in her office are analyzing about 2,000 pieces of proposed legislation being considered by lawmakers in the Texas Capitol. All this while handling the legal matters that come with one of the nation’s fastest growing cities. This is the first in a series of articles about the attorneys leading Texas’s major metros.

March 16, 2023 Nushin Huq

Midland Jury Rejects FLSA Overtime Claim Against Oilfield Services Co.

A trial team from Munsch Hardt successfully fended off the claims levied against client Flowco Production Solutions. Instead of raising the highly compensated employee exemption commonly seen in cases involving oilfield services, they told the jury these plaintiffs were exempt from overtime under the administrative employee exemption.

March 14, 2023 Michelle Casady

Litigation Roundup: OAG Gets Deadline in Whistleblower Suit, Omni Hit with $25M Verdict in Sex Discrimination Suit

In this edition of Litigation Roundup, a Dallas lawyer secures a $29 million jury verdict in a talc case and the Texas attorney general gets a deadline to respond to a request from whistleblowers to reinstate their case pending before the Texas Supreme Court.

March 13, 2023 Michelle Casady