Free Speech, Due Process and Trial by Jury
For the week ended June 13, the CDT Roundup reported on ten deals with a disclosed value of $11 billion.
A year ago at this time, the Roundup reported on nine deals with a combined disclosed value of $478 million.
By far the largest deal of the week was a massive venture involving PE, a sovereign fund, a power provider and a major chipmaker. That and more in this edition of CDT Roundup.
The crisis in the Strait of Hormuz may be creating a profound sense of uncertainty among consumers at the gas pump, but the bankers who will be lending billions for oil and gas production are sanguine about the prospects of oil and gas prices returning to normal by the end of the year. In the latest survey of energy lenders conducted by Haynes Boone, energy lenders are expecting oil prices to subside by the end of the year, with long-term projections reaching pre-conflict levels by 2028.
In its recent decision in K&K Inez Properties v. Kolle, Texas Supreme Court clarifies the required showing for a “responsible third party” designation. This article examines the holding and its implications for practitioners.
Martha Hardwick Hofmeister was a freshly minted lawyer and new to Dallas when she joined the Dallas Bar Association because, she recalled, “I thought that’s what you were supposed to do when you’re a lawyer.”
She joined the association’s entertainment committee and had to miss a meeting. She got a letter shortly thereafter appointing her director of a new project, a show without a lot of structure, that would raise funds for the newly established Sarah T. Hughes Diversity Scholarship.
Four decades later, Hofmeister is still the director of that production. Bar None, a lawyer-written and lawyer-performed musical comedy, has raised more than $2.5 million for full-ride law school scholarships. Over the years, the cast and crew have cultivated a Bar None family that has celebrated cast members who marry and have children and have rallied together in the hard times, including the loss of teammates.
Rachel Morgan is succeeding Rudy Rodriguez as the chief legal officer at the Coppell-based public company. Rodriguez is teaming up with former Dell legal executive Janet Bawcom starting July 1 to provide fractional GC services. (Photo credit: Patrick Kleineberg/Texas Lawbook)
Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher confirmed in a news release on Thursday afternoon that the firm is the lead counsel to SpaceX on its initial public offering set to price Friday and revealed the lawyers involved across the entire transaction. (Photo credit: Sharon Ferranti/Texas Lawbook)
A Dallas influencer who has cultivated an image for her 400,000 followers of a body-positive, health-conscious, family-friendly mother of three alleges an intimate apparel company “disempowered and humiliated” her by posting an AI-generated deepfake image appearing to show her partially nude body on Instagram. Tranchin’s lawyer, Brett Rosenthal of Reese Marketos, told The Texas Lawbook that EBY had not only disclaimed responsibility for the post, but at one point also threatened his client with a breach of contract claim after she declined to provide additional content to the company.
Following a weeklong trial, the 12-member jury awarded no damages Thursday morning after deliberating for nearly four and a half hours. A group of 13 investors had sued a Houston lawyer claiming he breached his fiduciary duty when he sold a property that formerly housed an LA Fitness for $8.5 million instead of a higher value.
Jerry Jones’ neighbor, reality TV show actor and Dallas developer Bill Hutchinson, has been sued by three anonymous plaintiffs claiming he sexually assaulted them. The women also sued Virgin Hotel Dallas, of which he used to be a minority owner, alleging it was negligent and aware of his behavior toward young women but failed to act. Counsel gave opening statements Thursday morning.
Dilen Kumar has joined Akin in Dallas as a corporate partner. He will focus his practice on private equity transactions, mergers and acquisitions, investment strategies and corporate governance matters.
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