The Houston oil producer filed for bankruptcy protection Thursday amid collapsing finances and an SEC investigation into possible fraud. Latham & Watkins and Porter Hedges are serving as the debtors’ co-counsel.
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Convicted Forest Park Doctors Suspended by State
Four physicians convicted earlier this year in the Forest Park Medical Center bribery and kickback trial have been suspended by the Texas Medical Board. The suspensions are not final, but they are mandatory while the convictions are being appealed. Bruce Tomaso has the details.
Stars Align in Texas for the Gig Economy
The explosive growth in the short-term, by-the-job labor market has forced courts and regulators to wrestle with the status of participating workers: Are they employees or independent contractors? Mark Shoffner and Thomas Case of Bell Nunnally argue that recent rulings by state and federal agencies make Texas a welcoming place for the gig economy.
Birmingham Firm Expands to Dallas
Maynard Cooper & Gale, the second largest firm in Birmingham, is opening an office in Dallas. The move is part of an aggressive expansion by the firm which recently opened in Los Angeles. From the Birmingham Business Journal.
Pursley Trial Outtakes: A Court on the Clock; Brio de Janeiro; Closing Arguments
It’s not every trial that features a lawyer involved in a multi-million dollar tax fraud, a mysterious Brazilian who claims NOT to have owned a company whose millions were available to him and a juror who shoots the bird in the courtroom just before deliberations begin. Such was the tax fraud trial of Jack Stephen Pursley, however, and Natalie Posgate was there for all of it. We asked her to empty her notebook, and here’s what she gave us.
Cryptocurrencies, Vulnerable Investors Are Hot Topics for Securities Regulators
AUSTIN – State securities regulation has always been something of a whack-a-mole endeavor, but today’s moles have gotten quite clever. As older Texans become more comfortable with smartphones and online interactions, scammers use websites like Craigslist and Facebook to troll for victims, Joseph Rotunda, director of enforcement for the Texas State Securities Board, told The Texas Lawbook in an exclusive interview.
DBJ: Former Solera CEO Suing Over Stock Options Worth More than $100M
Tony Aquila said in a statement that Solera has breached a separation deal and refuses to honor its obligations to pay the company’s founder for his vested stock options worth in excess of $100 million.
Chron: Texas AG to Lead Multi-State Antitrust Investigation into Google
The investigation will look into whether the company, which “dominates all aspects of advertising on the internet and searching on the internet,” has acted in ways that restricted competition or consumer access, Texas AG Ken Paxton said at a press conference outside the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday.
CDT Roundup: 17 Deals, 15 Firms, 98 Lawyers, $3.5B
The public markets are shrinking while private equity is expanding, with investors putting 14% of their assets in private markets, a number that’s expected to balloon to 20% over the next 10 years. Private equity deals are increasingly showing up on the Corporate Deal Tracker, making up half of last week’s activity after the Labor Day holiday. Claire Poole reports on the trend.
Ruff Family Seeks Criminal Inquiry against Lawyer, Bank over Millions in Trust Fund
A Texas judge has initiated a “court of inquiry” to handle allegations of criminal misconduct made by the children of deceased Dallas banker Arthur Ruff against Texas lawyers and bankers involved in their family’s multimillion-dollar trust. The judicial led probe comes as Ruff’s widow seeks to enforce a $66 million judgment against her own son. The web of lawsuits shows just how nasty family disputes over cash and control can get.