This summer, Bradley Toben will return to the faculty, where he first began teaching law courses in 1983, following his tenure as the longest-serving dean of any American Bar Association-accredited law school in the country.
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P.S. — Nonprofit Spotlight: Genesis Women’s Shelter
For this week’s edition of P.S., Natalie Posgate talked with Genesis Women’s Shelter to discuss the nonprofit’s upcoming annual luncheon featuring Nicole Kidman, the expanded legal services available to domestic violence victims in Genesis’ brand new facility and how lawyers can help the organization carry out its mission to empower women and children affected by domestic abuse. Firms mentioned include Munck Wilson Mandala, Stinson and Cowles & Thompson.
Just Energy Seeks to Join Litigation Against PUC Over Winter Storm Uri Pricing
Retail electric provider Just Energy has asked the Austin Court of Appeals to allow it to join a lawsuit brought by a half-dozen other Texas power suppliers challenging the legality of Texas Public Utility Commission orders increasing the price of electricity during Winter Storm Uri in 2021 by 650 percent.
Pioneer Natural Resources Beats $9M Winter Storm Uri Contract Breach Claim
A Dallas federal judge granted summary judgment on Wednesday to Dallas-based Pioneer Natural Resources which had been sued by a California energy trader for breach of contract for failing to supply natural gas during Winter Storm Uri in February 2021.
Not Just Any Decision: The Ongoing Power Struggle Between Bankruptcy Courts and State Regulators
The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals’ decision in ERCOT v. Just Energy Texas, L.P. is notable in its own right for addressing critical issues regarding who has authority to regulate a state’s electric utilities. But the case is even more interesting when considered in the broader mosaic of recent decisions by courts dealing with how and when state regulatory power may be circumscribed by federal bankruptcy courts.
Winter Storm Uri Litigation Heating Up at Two Year Mark
The massive legal battle pitting thousands of Texas residents and small business owners against hundreds of energy companies, such as NRG Power, Calpine, Oncor Electric and ExxonMobil, over damages incurred during Winter Storm Uri two years ago is finally heating up. This week’s two-year anniversary of the crippling winter storm also means that the statute of limitations for most Uri-related lawsuits takes effect this week.
Lawyers representing more than 1,500 Texans and businesses have filed more than 80 new wrongful death, personal injury and property damage lawsuits against more than 360 energy companies and ERCOT since last Thursday. Dozens more lawsuits are expected to be filed in Texas courts Wednesday and Thursday.
The Texas Lawbook wrongly reported earlier that CPS Energy had filed for Chapter 11.
Avaya Hires Kirkland, Jackson Walker to Lead Bankruptcy Restructuring in Houston
Cloud communications company Avaya Holdings and a dozen of its affiliated businesses filed for bankruptcy Tuesday in the Southern District of Texas seeking to shave billions of dollars of debt from its balance sheet.
‘Call Your First Witness’ – Fifth Circuit to Lawyers in Final Stanford Ponzi Scheme Trial
A three-judge panel of a federal appellate court has rejected a last-ditch effort by three banks to postpone an upcoming trial in which victims in the R. Allen Stanford Ponzi scheme are seeking billions of dollars in damages. The four most powerful words from the lips of a United States district judge are simply, ‘Call your first witness,’ and the veteran presiding judge will so state in a few short days,” the Fifth Circuit stated in the three-page decision.
Former Texas Software CEO Named in Civil, Criminal SEC Actions
Christopher Kirchner, 35, was named in a criminal complaint filed Tuesday for allegedly misappropriating $20 million from the supply-chain management software startup he founded. Additionally, Kirchner has been accused by the SEC in a $67 million offering fraud scheme.
CDT Roundup: 16 Deals, 12 Firms, 137 Lawyers, $12.1B
Are IPOs on their way back? If the first few weeks of 2023 are any indication, the answer depends on your point of reference: Maybe. Or sort of. Or hope so. After a lackluster 2022 when markets were pestered by war, inflation and defensiveness, a new study by Fidelity Investments suggests a modest rebound may be on the horizon. The CDT Roundup looks at the stats, as well as the cast of lawyers and firms behind 16 deals reported last week.