Free Speech, Due Process and Trial by Jury
In his annual State of the Judiciary Address, Chief Justice Nathan Hecht said state lawmakers need to increase the money being spent on legal services for the poor and to help military veterans. He pointed out that the judiciary accounts for only one-third of one percent of the state's budget. Here is the full text of the chief justice's speech:
We have a motto in our legal department – “See It. Own It. Solve It.” This also applies to our pro bono service by helping to solve the legal problems facing those less fortunate in our communities. I believe that as members of a unique and special profession, we can and should do so much more. This article also includes a list of scores of individual lawyers and law firms that gave more than $1.1 million to Equal Access to Justice in 2014.
Jack Carnegie, a partner at Strasburger & Price, said Texas’ criminal High Court did more than affirm a wrong that needed to be righted.
The more than 12,000 children in Texas’ long-term foster care system are seeking federal judicial oversight to improve their care.
With IOLTA revenues still in the toilet, advocates of legal aid have been forced to seek funding from conservative Texas politicians who once demonized the effort as supporting a liberal agenda. But last week, the Texas Supreme Court and Texas Access to Justice leaders celebrated their success in depoliticizing the issue, which has meant that tens of thousands of low-income Texas could get necessary legal representation.
Don Liu minced no words over last week's God-awful findings by the Dallas Diversity Task Force. “There is no excuse. None,” Xerox's GC said. “The demographics of Dallas and Texas make hard for any law firm to justify these results.” Liu, who hires dozens of Texas lawyers to handle his company's legal business, recently fired a law firm because it refused to take diversity seriously. Clay Scheitzach says his boss "understands that a lot of law firms talk about being committed to diversity but their actions don’t back it up."
Their client, Manuel Velez, was sentenced to death in 2008 for allegedly murdering his girlfriend’s 11-month-old son on Oct. 31, 2005 by causing severe head injuries to the baby.
The firm is partnering with Sabre by providing IP protection in the U.S. and internationally for its signature corporate responsibility program on a pro bono basis.
Houston partner Stewart Gagnon also received the ABA Family Law Section's annual Pro Bono award.
Carrington Coleman lawyers have reached a plea agreement for a former death row inmate and pro bono client who was wrongfully convicted of murdering an infant on Halloween of 2005.
The Andrews Kurth partner wraps up a two-year appointment as national US Tennis Association chair for diversity and inclusion in a couple weeks.
Lawyers across the state are getting involved in pro bono projects to help the migrant children arriving from the border crisis, but Texas’ highest ranking judge says more of them need to step up.
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