The appeal to the Texas Supreme Court comes about a month after the Fifth Court of Appeals in Dallas determined the ecclesiastical abstention doctrine required the dismissal of nearly all the claims Cindy Clemishire brought against Robert Morris, Gateway Church and three of its elders. Clemishire argued that ruling transformed the doctrine from “a tool of qualified restraint to a totalizing shield that leaves churches immune from judicial oversight.”
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Foley Adds Private Equity Specialist in Houston
The firm said Stephen Olson, who joins from Gibson Dunn, enhances its private capital capabilities and his appointment continues the expansion of its national energy and infrastructure practice.
KRCL Lands Four New Directors in Talent Pull
Kane Russell Coleman Logan announced 12 new hires this month – four directors, one senior attorney, and seven associates – across its Dallas, Houston and Austin offices.
Jury Awards More than $10M in Retaliation, Defamation Case
A Fort Worth jury found Trinity Valley School liable for defamation and retaliation and awarded its former human resources director more than $10 million in damages earlier this month. Carrie Skains sued her former employer in December 2024 for sex discrimination, retaliation and defamatory statements that claimed she kept information about a teacher who exposed himself to children in order to protect him.
Norton Rose Adds M&A Dealmaker in Austin
Jen Smith has joined Norton Rose Fulbright as a partner in the corporate, M&A and securities group in Austin after about five years at Latham & Watkins, where she helped that firm open its office in the Texas capital.
Litigation Roundup: X Corp. Settles Apple Antitrust Suit in Texas
In this edition of Litigation Roundup, a Houston immigration attorney is accused of defrauding her clients, X Corp. settles an antitrust lawsuit against Apple in Fort Worth and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit hands a loss to Lucid in a constitutional challenge to Texas’ ban on direct-to-consumer auto sales based on precedent they doubt.
Aging Infrastructure, New Risks: Who Bears the Legal Risk When Texas Energy Systems Fail?
Texas is a massive hub for energy systems. While current industry efforts target a rapidly growing and changing economy, it continues to rely on infrastructure that is years, and in some cases decades, old. When aging infrastructure fails, the consequences can be severe, leading to personal injuries and even death. For the legal industry, this creates a question: When aging infrastructure fails, who bears the legal responsibility?
Dallas Employment Litigation Principal Moves to Jackson Lewis from FordHarrison
Buena Vista Lyons, an employment litigation principal, has joined Jackson Lewis in Dallas from FordHarrison.
CDT Roundup: The CapM Drought is Over. Barely
Last week was another light one, all around, with a total of six deals — five of them M&A/Funding — for a total of $3.3 billion. You know the gruel is thin when the main cause for celebration is the first capital markets transaction in three weeks.
P.S. — Texas Supreme Court Makes ‘Generational Investment’ in Rural Legal Aid
Today, in observance of Sept. 11, 2001, Bank of America lawyers are hosting its global Wills for Heroes event. In Dallas, lawyers from Bradley and Haynes Boone are volunteering alongside the Bank of America attorneys at the Dallas Police Department headquarters to draft wills and estate planning documents for members of the DPD and Dallas Fire-Rescue.
Plus, the details on the historic Rural Justice Initiative.