Dutko, who has tried more than 50 jury trials, visited with The Texas Lawbook about his practice, his best day as a lawyer, and emerging trends in plaintiffs’ litigation.
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Litigation Roundup: Momentum Builds for UTEP Law School
In this edition of Litigation Roundup, Motorola sees a discovery win in a European patent infringement dispute reversed by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, and a Houston appellate court ends a man’s quest to investigate potential Texas Heartbeat Act claims against a former romantic partner.
Remembering Justice Ron Chapman
I had always admired people who put their principles ahead of their own financial interests. Think Muhammad Ali, who walked away from the biggest title in sports, or Pete Seeger, whose successful musical career was put on hold by McCarthy-ism. That was Ron Chapman. Texas lost one of its great jurists this summer.
Kirkland Advises Blackstone in $3.1B Canadian LNG Deal
Blackstone has partnered with Canadian institutional investors to acquire a 49.9% non-controlling interest in Mitsubishi’s LNG Canada liquefaction business for $3.1 billion. Kirkland & Ellis and Stikeman Elliott provided outside legal counsel to Blackstone.
Agreeing to Agree: Justices Increasingly Turn to Concurrences to Invite Appeals, Advise Lawmakers
During the 2025-26 term, the Texas Supreme Court saw a sharp rise in separate concurring opinions and statements on the denial of review, with justices penning 28 concurrences at a pace more than double the rate of dissents. The writings are a way for individual justices to distinguish their judicial philosophy and perhaps gain attention for a federal bench.
Latham Adds Five Texas Partners for Project Development, Finance Teams
The ongoing battle for elite legal talent in Texas continued Monday as Latham & Watkins announced it hired five new energy and infrastructure partners away from three rival firms — Baker Botts, Sidley Austin and Orrick — to bolster its project development and finance teams.
Jurors on the Move, Contracts on Trial: October’s Texas Business Court Decisions
From UCC output contracts to the internal affairs doctrine, the Texas Business Court’s October docket provided a clear window into how the new bench is handling high-stakes corporate disputes. Notable rulings included applying Texas’ strict pre-suit demand requirements to a derivative suit against Coinbase’s directors and using the economic-loss rule to limit tort claims in commercial lease fights.
Weil’s Collapse Ran Through Texas
Weil, Gotshal & Manges was still profitable when its leaders moved to wind down the 95-year-old firm. Current and former partners say a long-running fight over growth, including how hard to invest in Texas, cost the firm talent it couldn’t replace. Now its roughly 70 Texas lawyers, who brought in roughly $118.2 million last year, are weighing offers.
CDT Roundup: Energy Deals Claim the Week
While energy deals provided bulk and value, it was Anthropic that provided the headlines for Texas lawyers with a special purpose vehicle designed to help fund $63 billion in compute from Anthropic’s major vendor.
Dueling Lawsuits Will Decide Arlington Stadium Bond Dispute
The city of Arlington is moving to protect a $270 million stadium maintenance funding deal and a lease extension for the Dallas Cowboys that would keep America’s team playing in the city through 2055. To quickly squash a taxpayer lawsuit blocking the deal, the city has invoked a statute to force an immediate trial.