Justices decided the first of three cases that test cities’ immunity when officers were involved in vehicle crashes while responding to calls for service. The court dismissed a
wrongful-death case filed by the family of a Houston bicyclist killed by a cop car speeding at night without emergency lights and sirens. The court found that the officer acted in good faith while responding to a suicide in progress call.
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P.S. — A Special Lawbook Foundation Announcement, A Five-digit Law School Scholarship & A Six-digit College Scholarship
This week’s edition of P.S. features an award-winning environmental justice paper that earned a University of Houston law student a law firm-sponsored scholarship, an upcoming cluster of scholarships worth $150,000 that will be awarded to graduating high school seniors by a Dallas law firm, info on The Lawbook’s new pro bono advocacy award honoring a great pro bono legend in the state and a thank-you note from the Texas Lawbook Foundation to recent donors.
Plus: how to get a charitable deduction by donating to the Texas Lawbook Foundation if the recent tax season bummed you (and your wallet) out.
Texas Supreme Court Reverses $12M Verdict Due to Racially Biased Closing Argument
The Texas Supreme Court reversed a $12 million jury verdict on Friday because the plaintiffs’ lawyer during closing arguments injected the idea of racial and gender bias as a possible reason that the defendants wanted reduced amounts awarded to the plaintiffs, one of whom is an African American woman. The justices said the plaintiffs’ lawyer injected “inflammatory argument that was uninvited and unprovoked” in his final comments to the jury that essentially accused opposing counsel of race and gender discrimination when no evidence of either existed in the trial record.
SCOTX Clarifies What Damages Are Recoverable in ‘Wrongful Pregnancy’ Cases
Justice Rebeca Aizpuru Huddle, writing for a unanimous court, explained in a 21-page ruling that in so-called “wrongful pregnancy” cases only a narrow category of damages is available: those costs incurred during pregnancy, delivery and postpartum. But in this case, Grissel Velasco was seeking to recover a much broader category of damages — including the costs of rearing her daughter, mental anguish, and physical pain and suffering.
PURIS GC Thomas Gottsegen Gets Into the Weeds and Solves Problems
During his five years as general counsel at PURIS, Thomas Gottsegen has helped lead an acquisition of an equal-sized competitor that transformed the company in 2022 and 2023 and undertook a complicated streamlining of the organization that included eliminating corporate entities that were no longer necessary due to the merger. The Association of Corporate Counsel’s Houston Chapter and The Texas Lawbook have named Gottsegen as one of two finalists for the 2024 Houston Corporate Counsel Award for General Counsel of the Year for a Solo Legal Department.
But Gottsegen’s journey to PURIS was initiated by a Category Five hurricane that destroyed his house and caused his family to flee New Orleans. This is his story.
Q&A: Thomas Gottsegen
PURIS GC Thomas Gottsegen discusses what he seeks in outside counsel and more: Texas Lawbook: What are the factors you consider when deciding about hiring outside counsel? Thomas Gottsegen: I always
Lawyers Discuss Perceived Surge of So-Called ‘Nuclear Verdicts’
A Dallas County district judge and top civil lawyers shared their observations about what leads to large jury verdicts and discussed changes in jury attitudes during a recent CLE hosted by The Texas Lawbook.
First Reserve Litigation Team Notched Win for Entire PE Industry with TPC Victory
Erica Radcliffe and First Reserve teamed up with Vinson & Elkins in a landmark case to convince the courts that investors should not be held liable for the damages under state law. They prevailed and the Texas Supreme Court’s ruling provides a roadmap for other investors on how they can protect themselves from liability.
The Association of Corporate Counsel’s Houston Chapter and The Texas Lawbook have named Radcliffe, First Reserve and its outside counsel at Vinson & Elkins as one of three finalists for the 2024 Houston Corporate Counsel Award for Business Litigation of the Year.
Lewis Brisbois Mourns Associate Fatally Shot in Houston
Jeffrey Limmer, 46, an associate at Lewis Brisbois, died May 4 after being shot multiple times after trying to intervene in a dispute between a customer and an employee at McDonald’s. The firm has said it will establish a memorial scholarship at his alma mater, South Texas College of Law.
Financial Advisor Says Fidelity Fired Him for Reporting Securities Violations
Michael Maeker had been a registered financial advisor for 26 years when he was fired by Fidelity Investments. In a lawsuit filed in federal court Monday, Maeker alleges Fidelity fired him after he raised concerns that the company was violating securities laws by pressuring advisors to invest client funds in a way that was more beneficial to the company’s bottom line than it was to the clients’.