Thoma Bravo to Acquire Houston-based PROS in $1.4B Take-Private Deal
Kirkland and DLA Piper are advising on the deal, which would delist the SaaS-pricing analytics firm from the NYSE where it debuted in a $75 million 2007 IPO.
CDT Roundup: A Week of Power Plants, Energy Infrastructure and Another Crypto CapM Deal
The week that ended Sept. 20 saw 24 deals with a reported value of $11.3 billion. There were a lot of deals this week related to energy, infrastructure or AI, or some combination of the three. The largest deals of the week included, perhaps unsurprisingly, a few of the largest players: with San Antonio’s electric utility buying four natural gas plants for $1.4 billion and Blackstone buying a huge natural gas plant in southwest Pennsylvania for $1 billion, give or take a few million or so. That and more in this edition of CDT Roundup.
Dallas Firm Secures $83M Jury Verdict for Woman’s Mesothelioma Death
A Boston jury found a Massachusetts woman's mesothelioma death was caused by American Art Clay Company’s asbestos-laden products. This is the second multimillion-dollar verdict in three weeks for Dallas-based litigation boutique Iola, Gross & Forbes-King.
American Airlines Hit with $9.6M Verdict in Stroke Victim’s Suit
Dallas law firm Burns Charest represented a man who was left profoundly disabled after suffering a stroke just before boarding and another stroke while flying over the Atlantic Ocean. Fort Worth-based American Airlines had argued they bore no responsibility for his injuries because he declined to deplane before the flight departed for Madrid.
A Half-Open Door — HB 40’s MDL Implications
Although much has been said of HB 40’s newly effective changes to the Texas Business Courts’ jurisdiction, many may have overlooked HB 40’s revision to Section 74.162 of the Texas Government Code, which weaves the Business Court into the Texas framework for multidistrict litigation. At first blush, this amendment appears to open the door for the business courts to hear a wide array of consolidated MDL proceedings. But practitioners should remain mindful of two significant roadblocks that prevent parties from funneling MDL proceedings to the business courts.
Sarah T. Hughes Scholarship Returns With New Focus on Hardship, Drops ‘Diversity’
The Dallas Bar Foundation has resumed its long-running Sarah T. Hughes Scholarship after pausing it earlier this year but has removed “diversity” from its title and eliminated explicit references to race and minority status from the scholarship’s description and application. Formerly titled the Sarah T. Hughes Diversity Scholarship, the stated purpose was to support minority law students and promote diversity in the North Texas legal community. The revised version now focuses on applicants who have demonstrated resilience and overcome hardship, emphasizing broader examples of underrepresentation such as being first-generation college students or balancing school with work or military service.
Trustee for Bankrupt Financial Startup Sues Winston & Strawn
The trustee of a bankrupt financial services startup aimed at conservative customers that Winston & Strawn represented is suing the law firm and one of its partners for alleged malpractice. The trustee for GloriFi, seeking more than $1.7 billion in damages, claims Winston & Strawn schemed with the company’s founder, putting his interests over those of the business.
Winston & Strawn said it “will vigorously defend against these meritless claims, including the fanciful, billion-dollar lost value claim for a company that never opened its doors for business.”
David Jones Wants GWG Bondholders’ RICO Suit Tossed
The former jurist who resigned his position in the Southern District of Texas in the wake of reporting about his previously secret romantic relationship with a bankruptcy lawyer told the court he is entitled to complete immunity from the lawsuit brought by aggrieved GWG bondholders. “There can be no genuine dispute that Jones is entitled to absolute immunity from civil lawsuits arising from his role as a judicial mediator in the GWG bankruptcy cases under applicable law,” the motion to dismiss reads. (File photo by Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images)
News Organizations Petition Judge to Unseal Paxton Divorce Court Records
Court records and court hearings in the divorce case of Angela Paxton v. Ken Paxton should be open and available to the public, according to a motion filed late Tuesday by The Texas Lawbook and a half-dozen other news media companies, including The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post and the Houston Chronicle. In a 14-page plea intervention, the news organizations jointly ask Collin County District Court Judge Ray Wheless to reverse his earlier decision to seal the court records in the case, which pits Angela Paxton, a Texas state senator, against her husband of 38 years, Ken Paxton, who is the state’s attorney general and the highest-ranking regulator of businesses in Texas.
Hearing in Merit Street Media Case Premiered Tuesday
Northern District Bankruptcy Judge Scott Everett heard from counsel representing Dr. Phil’s Merit Street Media and Trinity Broadcasting Network Tuesday, who argued about whether the celebrity television psychologist acted in bad faith by filing for bankruptcy. The hearing on the motion to dismiss and partial summary judgment is expected to last through Thursday, and Dr. Phil is on the list of potential witnesses who will testify. (File photo by Andy Kropa/Invision/AP)