The main issue in the case involves whether the state proved scienter — that Dr. Richard Malouf knew he was in violation of the law when he filed forms for reimbursement 1,842 times representing he had performed certain services that were actually performed by trainees at his All Smiles Dental Clinic — which is required for the judgment to stand. After Texas was granted the early win by Travis County District Judge Catherine Mauzy, Malouf appealed and a three-justice panel affirmed the holding in October 2022. He took his fight to the Texas Supreme Court in January 2023, and in November the court agreed to hear the case.
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What to Know About Wearables for the New Texas Privacy Act
As people head back to the gym to meet their New Year resolutions, more wearable devices are used, but what are their privacy concerns?
SCOTX Takes 3 Cop Crash Suits This Term
Each term, watchers of the Texas Supreme Court are likely to see the court grant review in a handful of cases interpreting oil and gas leases, or cases requiring them to delineate what constitutes a medical malpractice claim. But this term, the court has taken an interest in something slightly different: three cases involving police crashes and the immunity that typically shields officers from related litigation.
CDT Roundup: 9 Deals, 9 Law Firms, 87 Lawyers, $8.6B
If M&A markets seemed slow, capital markets appeared dead. According to a study by PwC, a record year in 2021 has been followed by near silence. The CDT Roundup this week looks at the stats behind a precipitous drop in IPOs and some recent, long-overdue attention to SPACs by the SEC. All that and the usual roster of Texas-related transactions reported last week.
Three Lawyers, Six Texas Justices Take Center Stage in Winter Storm Uri’s Biggest Case
Six Texas Supreme Court justices peppered three lawyers with about two-dozen questions during an hour of oral argument Tuesday morning in an effort to determine whether the state’s Public Utility Commission was within its power to manually set electric rates at $9,000 per megawatt-hour during the four days of Winter Storm Uri in 2021 or if a massive, multibillion-dollar repricing needs to take place.
“The question before this court is a narrow, legal one: Does the plain text of PURA authorize the PUC to order ERCOT to restore competitive scarcity pricing signals to the electricity market and ensure the reliability of the electric grid?” Macey Reasoner Stokes, an appellate partner at Baker Botts in Houston who represents Calpine and Talen Energy, told the state’s highest court. “We submit the answer is a resounding yes.” Lawyers for Luminant disagreed. The Texas Lawbook has the details.
The Corner Office: Q&A with Brian Bullard
In this Q&A, the Polsinelli Dallas office managing partner weighs in on the challenges associated with succession planning at a law firm, what he is seeing in private equity dealmaking, and the benefits of taking a “generalist” approach as a young attorney. Plus, he shares the classic children’s book on repeat at his home.
Dealmaker Jay Hughes Leaves Willkie to Return to McGuireWoods
The M&A attorney has worked on transactions primarily in the energy sector, including representing private equity firms on deals.
Litigation Roundup: Electric Co-op Draws $100M Injury Suit; ‘Red Flags’ Doom $20.8M Recovery
In this week’s edition of Litigation Roundup, the Dallas appellate court undoes a $20.8 million award in a fight between a landlord and a grocery company after finding “red flags” during the negotiation process were ignored, a federal jury convicts a software company CEO of bilking investors out of at least $25 million and prosecutors go after a business mogul who they say hasn’t paid taxes since 1992.
New Dallas Litigation Firm IMcP Established by Former Partners at Rogge Dunn Group
Three partners from the Rogge Dunn Group decided the time was right to start their own firm this month.
‘Twas the Week Before Christmas
A lawyer walks into a courtroom, puts on a Santa hat and reads a Christmas poem to the jury. That’s no one-liner, but rather a factual account of something that happened in San Diego the week before Christmas. And I know that because I’m the lawyer who did it.
Now, of course, this whole thing was not without risk. But a favorable verdict in the trial last week proves the spirited move didn’t hurt either.