Free Speech, Due Process and Trial by Jury
Dealmaking may have slowed slightly for the upcoming holiday, but don't let the pace lull you into thinking energy company consolidation is over. In Texas, recent M&A has focused on exploration and production, but in her weekly roundup The Lawbook's Claire Poole cautions: don’t forget about oilfield services companies.
Houston-based MLP Natural Resource Partners recently got a $25 million payday thanks to their lawyers at Schiffer Hicks Johnson. The payment is tied to a $190 million settlement the firm obtained in a payment dispute tied to a couple coal mines owned by Foresight Energy. Details here.
A Collin County grand jury has indicted the owners and operators of North Forty Development and Texas Cash Cow Investments for securities fraud and money laundering.
Two segments of the mergers and acquisitions game that don’t get a lot of press are the middle market and venture capital. In her weekly roundup of transactions by Texas lawyers, The Lawbook's Claire Poole shares evidence that both categories are alive and well.
There are three ways to defend an oil company involved in litigation, according to EDGE Litigation Consulting's Dan Jacks and Mark Sobus: the good, the bad and the downright ugly. But even if it’s ugly, it's best to start any defense with the reality of what jurors really think about your client going in.
If you were ever wondering what it takes to get hired on big cases for BP, Exxon or Chevron, look no further. A trio of lawyers from the major oil companies dished during a conference last week on qualities they’re looking for – or not looking for – in their outside law firms. Natalie Posgate was at the panel discussion and has the details.
In 2016, Gulf War Era veterans began to outnumber those of the Vietnam Era, putting Texas on an arc to become home for more veterans than any other state. On this Veterans Day, here are two lawyers who are part of that trend. And one of them officially becomes a lawyer today.
The unprecedented election last week of 20 Democratic candidates to the state courts of appeals in Austin, Dallas and Houston will have an almost immediate and substantive impact on civil litigation and issues such as enforcement of arbitration clauses, excessive use of Anti-SLAPP laws and deference to juries in large-dollar plaintiff’s verdicts.
Bill Nelson, a partner and co-chair of Haynes and Boone's capital markets and securities practice in Houston, is joining Shearman & Sterling's recently opened Houston office, sources confirmed. Nelson's departure would leave a gaping hole in Haynes and Boone's corporate practice in Houston. The Lawbook's Claire Poole has the story.
Anadarko Petroleum Corp. announced Thursday that it agreed to sell almost all of its remaining midstream assets to affiliate Western Gas Partners for $4.015 billion, and three Texas law firms were involved. Claire Poole has the names and details.
© Copyright 2026 The Texas Lawbook
The content on this website is protected under federal Copyright laws. Any use without the consent of The Texas Lawbook is prohibited.
