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Texas
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May 17, 2013
T. Boone Pickens Cleared To Sue Son For Tell-All Blog
A Texas state judge on Friday ruled energy magnate T. Boone Pickens can proceed with a defamation and invasion of privacy suit against his son for a tell-all family blog, denying a motion to dismiss the case under a state statute protecting free speech.
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May 17, 2013
Affiliation Dispute Threatens $2B St. Luke's Acquisition
A high-value affiliate of Houston-based St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital on Thursday asked a Texas court to nullify its collaboration agreement with the hospital, creating a possible hurdle to Catholic Health Initiatives' planned $2 billion deal to acquire the system.
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May 17, 2013
Investor Says Bain's $7B Bid For Software Co. Is Too Low
A pension fund that invests in Houston-based BMC Software Inc. on Thursday sued in Delaware Chancery court to challenge a $6.9 billion take-private deal led by Bain Capital LLC and Golden Gate Capital, saying it undervalues the company and cheats shareholders.
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May 17, 2013
Texas Joins Other Gulf States, Hits BP With Deepwater Suit
Texas became the fifth state to take BP PLC to court over the massive Deepwater Horizon oil spill, lodging an enforcement action against the company Friday demanding civil penalties and economic damages caused by the estimated 4.9 million barrels of oil released into the Gulf of Mexico.
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May 17, 2013
Hospitals' Medicaid Rate Suit Nixed By Texas High Court
The Texas Supreme Court on Friday rejected an argument by 14 hospitals that the state is required to recalculate Medicaid reimbursement rates for the 2002 through 2009 fiscal years, ruling that a 2008 decision the high court issued in the dispute afforded no such relief.
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May 17, 2013
Motorola Didn't Infringe Wireless Headset Patent, Jury Says
A Texas federal jury said Thursday that Motorola Mobility Inc. did not infringe Effingo Wireless Inc.'s patents for wireless headset assemblies and also determined that Effingo's patent claims were invalid.
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May 17, 2013
First American Charges Excess Mortgage Fees, Class Claims
First American Title Co. was hit with a proposed class action in Texas on Friday that claims it overcharged homeowners for mortgage fees even though it knew the exact amounts to be paid to counties.
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May 17, 2013
Texas High Court Clarifies Profession Defamation Limits
The Texas Supreme Court ruled Friday that a doctor alleging he was defamed by another doctor who accused him of unprofessionalism and lying was not subjected to defamation per se because the statements had no bearing on his skills or competence as a physician.
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May 17, 2013
Summit 6 Wants $2M More After $15M Samsung Patent Verdict
A technology licensing company that won a $15 million patent infringement verdict last month against Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. asked a Texas federal judge on Friday to award it $2 million more in prejudgment interest.
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May 17, 2013
Galderma Settles Pimple Drug Patent Suit With Par
Swiss skincare company Galderma SA and Par Pharmaceutical Inc. told a Texas federal court Friday they had reached a settlement over allegations that the generics maker sought to market a knockoff of Galderma's Epiduo acne treatment.
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May 17, 2013
Attys' Fees Needn't Be Bonded On Appeal: Texas High Court
The Texas Supreme Court ruled Friday that a tort reform measure does not require attorneys' fees awarded at trial to be included in the cost of an appellate bond, settling a split among the state's intermediate appeals courts.
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May 17, 2013
Toyota, Others Denied Sanctions For 'Frivolous' NPE Suit
A Texas federal judge on Wednesday denied Toyota Motor Corp. and other automakers' bid to throw out nonpracticing entity Rydex Ltd.'s patent infringement lawsuit and award attorneys' fees as punishment for filing what the carmakers describe as a "frivolous" suit.
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May 17, 2013
DOE Approves 2nd LNG Foreign Export License In Texas
Texas-based Freeport LNG Extraction LP on Friday became the second U.S. liquefied natural gas producer to receive U.S. Department of Energy approval to export domestically produced natural gas to countries outside the nation's free trade agreements, the department said.
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May 17, 2013
Jackson Walker Can Try To Ax Overbilling Claims, Judge Says
Jackson Walker LLP will get a chance in Texas court to dump a former client's claims that it grossly overbilled real estate developer Ashton Grove LC, before a related Oklahoma malpractice case is resolved, a state judge ruled Friday.
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May 17, 2013
Tuesday Morning Ex-CEO Sues, Says Ousted For Cancer
The former president and CEO of closeout retailer Tuesday Morning Corp. launched suit Thursday in Dallas County Court alleging she was wrongfully fired after she told the company about her cancer diagnosis.
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May 16, 2013
Pioneer Loses Bid To Delay Arbitration In ATP Lease Row
A Texas federal judge on Thursday declined to consider a request by Pioneer Natural Resources USA Inc. to delay arbitration of liabilities tied to bankrupt ATP Oil & Gas Corp.’s oil and gas leases while the court weighs a $691 million bid for the assets.
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May 16, 2013
Bid To Reform Broke Texas Windstorm Insurer Shot Down
A Texas lawmaker on Wednesday said a trial lawyer group has killed legislation designed to revitalize the state’s insolvent windstorm insurance pool, leaving thousands of coastal residents at risk two weeks before the start of hurricane season.
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May 16, 2013
ATF Says Cause Of Texas Fertilizer Plant Fire 'Undetermined'
Investigators at the West, Texas, fertilizer plant that caught fire in April and exploded, killing 15, said Thursday they have classified the fire’s cause as “undetermined” because they can’t rule out an intentionally set fire, a fault in one of the building’s electrical systems or a spark from a golf cart.
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May 16, 2013
NRG Unit Owed Defense In Air Pollution Suit, 5th Circ. Says
The Fifth Circuit ruled Wednesday that Illinois Union Insurance Co. has a duty to defend NRG Energy Inc.'s Louisiana unit in an underlying suit launched by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency over alleged toxic emissions in violation of the Clean Air Act.
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May 16, 2013
BBB Dodges Atty's Defamation Suit In Texas Appeals Court
A Texas appeals court on Wednesday dismissed a Dallas lawyer's claims the Better Business Bureau of Metropolitan Dallas Inc. defamed him by giving him an "F" ranking, saying the suit was barred under the state's Texas Citizens Participation Act.
Expert Analysis
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Rise Of The Machines — Predictive Coding Goes Mainstream
The pros of using predictive coding far outweigh the cons. Given the heavy pressure on law firms and in-house counsel to reduce discovery costs, as well as the Justice Department's recent stance on the subject, it appears predictive coding will continue to emerge from the obscure world of legal technology to the mainstream of legal practice, say Michael Moscato and Myles Bartley of Curtis Mallet-Prevost Colt & Mosle LLP.
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The Oil And Gas Operator's Texas Advantage
The interpretation by the Supreme Court of Texas in Reeder v. Wood County Energy LLC grants vast protection to oil and gas operators, but by doing so, it is perceived by some as muddling the differences between tort and contract law, says Michael Bolton and Kate Kalanick of Faegre Baker Daniels LLP.
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Independent Contractors Strike Out — Lessons For Employers
A lesser-known risk among companies that use independent contractor models is the threat of Title VII litigation, which two recent appellate court decisions, Allen v. Radio One and Alam v. Miller Brewing Company, addressed. These cases remind employers of the ways to minimize such litigation risks, such as adopting a policy to not rehire former employees terminated for misconduct, says Douglas Darch of Baker & McKenzie.
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Calif. Chemical Safety Rules Push Constitutional Envelope
Impatience with the pace of Toxic Substances Control Act reform at the federal level is understandable, but substituting individual state action for a perceived lack of federal action may be the classic example of a cure which is worse than the disease. Many think California’s Safer Consumer Product Regulations now prove that, says Ward Benshoof of Alston & Bird LLP.
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A Wake-Up Call For Video Game Developers
The extraordinary relief granted in the Fifth Circuit's recent decision in TimeGate Studios Inc. v. Southpeak Interactive LLC demonstrates that video game developers and publishers should seriously consider what terms and conditions they will agree to, and must do their best to ultimately comply with the language in a development agreement, says Sean Kane of Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP.
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How McBurney V. Young Will Impact State FOIAs
In McBurney v. Young, the U.S. Supreme Court has permitted the still-uncommon practice of state legislatures to restrict use of their freedom of information laws to citizens of the states. But states should not race to adopt citizens-only provisions in their freedom of information laws, say John Borger and Leita Walker of Faegre Baker Daniels LLP.
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E-Commerce Taxation Bill Might Be Unconstitutional
Recent decisions from the federal courts suggest that the constitutionality of the proposed Marketplace Fairness Act, which would permit states to require out-of-state businesses to collect and remit sales taxes on goods sold over the Internet, is open to serious debate, says Michael Abate of Dinsmore & Shohl LLP.
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Applying Absolute Priority Rule — Broad Vs. Narrow Views
Due to conflicting interpretations of Bankruptcy Code Section 1129, debtors in most jurisdictions currently lack a firm grasp on whether the court handling their cases will find that the absolute priority rule has been completely abrogated, or whether it still applies to an individual debtor's prepetition property. To further compound this uncertainly, some bankruptcy courts in the same district have ruled inconsistently on the issue, say Mikel Bistrow and Jennifer Pinder of Foley & Lardner LLP.
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5 Arbitration Assumptions That Aren't Always True
Arbitration is often thought to be preferable to litigating in court, and in some circumstances, it may be. Deciding to arbitrate, however, should be the result of a careful analysis of the benefits and disadvantages. That analysis requires examining some common perceptions, say Frank Emory and Rita Davis of Hunton & Williams LLP.
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Proposed Texas Dental Bill Indicates Greater Regulation
The dental practice management model has become an increasingly popular investment opportunity with management companies and private equity firms. While the DPM model grows in popularity, so does regulation and scrutiny around the industry, which is evidenced by recent investigations and the introduction of SB 151 in Texas, say attorneys with McGuireWoods LLP.