A Dallas County jury early this morning delivered a stunning $4 billion punitive damage verdict in favor of the heirs of long-time IT expert, Max D. Hopper, against J.P. Morgan Chase. The jury award is believed to be the largest awards ever handed down in a probate case in Texas. Max Hopper was a pioneer and icon in the use of information technology and worked at American Airlines for nearly 24 years. The Texas Lawbook has complete details.
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Kelly Cope Named Hover Energy GC
Dallas-based renewable energy company Hover Energy has hired Reliance Holdings USA general counsel Kelly Cope to lead its corporate in-house legal department.
Blockchain and Smart Contracts
Businesses and entrepreneurs thrive on North Texas’ culture of innovation, and it’s important for businesses and their lawyers to understand the opportunities and risks that come with change. Blockchain and smart contracts are emerging technologies that have the potential to disrupt industries.
Corp. Deal Tracker Weekly Roundup: 80 Texas Lawyers Worked on $4.88B in M&A Deals & Security Offerings
Eight M&A and private equity transactions with a total combined deal value of more than $4 billion. The three securities offerings – one IPO and two debt offerings – raised about $770 million. Last week showed that the energy sector remains a vibrant deal market.
South TX Jury Awards $100M to Matrix Petroleum in Eagle Ford Dispute
A jury in La Salle County has awarded $100 million to Houston-based Matrix Petroleum after finding that Repsol-owned Talisman Energy committed accounting fraud and breached an agreement the two companies had to drill wells in the Eagle Ford Shale.
Erin Nealy Cox Nominated to be NDTX U.S. Attorney
The Trump Administration has nominated cybersecurity expert and former prosecutor Erin Nealy Cox to be the next U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas.
SEC Suspends Public Trading of Addison Firm over Hurricane Harvey Relief Efforts
The SEC has suspended the trading of securities of Addison-based Grupo Resilient International in an apparent concern over the accuracy of some of the company’s press releases. The federal agency states that it has “questions regarding the adequacy and accuracy of statements” Grupo officials made in a Sept. 7 press release regarding the company’s efforts to help disaster recovery efforts in South Texas related to Hurricane Harvey.
Texas Lawbook Surpasses 9,000 Subscribers & 2,000 Corporate In-House Counsel
I am pleased to announced that The Texas Lawbook officially surpassed 9,000 paid subscribers in August – more than 2,000 of them are corporate in-house counsel and general counsel. The 25 largest law firms in Texas and more than 35 corporate in-house legal departments have subscriptions for all their lawyers. In addition, tens-of-thousands of more business leaders read Texas Lawbook articles that are republished in the Dallas Business Journal and Houston Chronicle. This article is an update on recent developments at The Texas Lawbook and plans for the months ahead.
Taking the Fifth in Civil Trade Secret Litigation: Win the Battle but Lose the War?
Oliver North and Mark McGwire are notable examples of people who asserted their Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination by refusing to answer questions. Now, trade secret litigation between Google’s self-driving car division and Uber has a new twist. Anthony Levandowski is asserting the Fifth to avoid producing 14,000 trade secret documents he allegedly stole from Waymo.
Is this a trend and is it strategically smart? Or will it backfire by providing plaintiffs with an evidentiary hammer when the case is decided by the judge or jury. History is not on Uber’s side.
Winston Scores Touchdown & Field Goal in Ezekiel Elliott & IP Cases in Same Courtroom – Updated
Tom Melsheimer was in his second week of trial defending Tech Pharmacy in a $350 million patent dispute against Plano-based AlixaRx when he suddenly switched from defense to offense in U.S. Judge Amos Mazzant’s courtroom to represent Ezekiel Elliott in his case against the NFL. The Winston legal team won complete victory against the NFL and a split decision in the IP trial.