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.
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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.
Tuesday Morning Selects Munsch Hardt to Lead Second Bankruptcy
In the world of corporate bankruptcy, Dallas-based Tuesday Morning Corp. has entered what is known as Chapter 22. For the second time in three years, the discount retailer Tuesday Morning filed for Chapter 11 protection Tuesday in the Fort Worth Division of the Northern District of Texas citing liabilities of $100 million to $500 million.
Litigation Roundup: Paxton Settles Whistleblower Suit, Houston Attorney Guilty of Obstruction
In this edition of Litigation Roundup, a federal judge finds more flaws in the No Surprises Act, a Houston attorney is found guilty of obstruction of justice and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton agrees to apologize and pay-up to settle Whistleblower suit.
Houston’s Energy-Transition Moment
Long the global energy capital, the city can help lead the world toward a carbon-neutral future. A recent report from the Houston Energy Transition Initiative identifies makes the case the city is poised to do so.
Power Companies: Winter Storm Uri Lawsuits ‘Ruinous’ to Industry if Not Dismissed
Scores of Texas electric generators and distributors — CenterPoint, Luminant and NRG, to name a few — asked a Houston appeals court Friday to dismiss more than 230 lawsuits brought against them by more than 1,500 plaintiffs stemming from Winter Storm Uri two years ago because the cases are without legal merit and “upend the state’s electricity markets.”
In two separate mandamus petitions filed with the Fourteenth Court of Appeals in Houston, lawyers for the power generators and electricity transmission and distribution utilities argue that Harris County District Judge Sylvia Matthews “clearly abused [her] discretion in allowing the cases to proceed.”