Here are a few recent tidbits that deserve Grits readers' attention:
Dallas constables' ongoing fiasco At the Dallas News, Ed Timms and
Kevin Krause have the story of a deputy constable with a checkered
past accused of committing several felony crimes, including
"unauthorized use of two motor vehicles, tampering with government
records and coercing two women into performing sexual acts instead of
arresting them on outstanding warrants." (UPDATE 2/8: See a followup
story.) Meanwhile his blustering boss Jaime Posted on Monday, February 8, 2010 at 10:53 pm

In 1993, Texas set the current threshold for felony theft at $1,500
for a state jail felony - below that, theft receives misdemeanor
charges that don't involve state prison time. The jump to the next
offense category is quite significant - someone must steal more than
$20,000 to be charged with a third degree felony. However, adjusting
for inflation, $1,500 in 1993 amounts to $2,208 in 2008 dollars.
Indeed, "if you were to buy exactly the same products in 2008 and
1993, they would cost you $1500 and Posted on Monday, February 8, 2010 at 10:53 pm

I said from the get-go that the search warrant used to get on the YFZ
Ranch property in Eldorado back in 2008 was overbroad, based on lies,
and that evidence derived from the Great Eldorado Polygamist Roundup
should be suppressed in criminal court. Now an Arizona judge has
concluded the same thing after prosecutors there tried agreed not to
introduce evidence against polygamist "prophet" Warren Jeffs
discovered as a result of information seized during the raid. In
Arizona, at least, such evidence will be Posted on Monday, February 8, 2010 at 10:53 pm

The trip was one that Guadalupe Alberto had made many times before,
just a few miles through her neighborhood to the small grocery store
her family had owned for years. It was a Saturday afternoon, April
2008, and Mrs. Alberto, a 77-year-old former autoworker, was driving
her 2005 Toyota Camry. Within blocks of her home, witnesses told
police, the car accelerated out of control, jumped a curb and flew
through the air before crashing into a tree. Mrs. Alberto was killed
instantly. Read the rest of the NY Posted on Sunday, February 7, 2010 at 8:19 am

A Cincinnati couple has filed a lawsuit against Toyota charging fraud
and negligence over a safety issue involving gas pedals that has
caused a massive auto recall. The lawsuit, filed in Hamilton County
Common Pleas Court, seeks class-action status on behalf of all Ohio
residents who have bought or leased vehicles Toyota-manufactured
vehicles subject to the recall. Attorney Chesley, who filed the
lawsuit on behalf of Hugh and Pamela Cox, said Wednesday that the
class could involve thousands of Ohio Posted on Sunday, February 7, 2010 at 8:19 am

Faced with an unprecedented recall of millions of vehicles and rivals
swooping in on its customers, the public relations machine at Toyota
Motor Corp -- one of the most savvy brand-creators in Asia -- is
floundering. Toyota has consistently played down recurring complaints
of unintended acceleration, breaking what PR experts said is the
cardinal rule in crisis management: assume the worst. Read full
article here. Through November, the company continued to blame loose
floor mats for the problem. That has Posted on Sunday, February 7, 2010 at 8:19 am

Two ex- JPMorgan Chase & Co. bankers that the Securities and
Exchange Commission is suing over their alleged involvement in certain
swap transactions are asking the U.S. District Court for the Northern
District of Alabama to throw out most of the securities fraud charges
that the regulator agency has filed against them. According to the
SEC, Douglas MacFaddin and Charles LeCroy paid close friends of county
commissions and broker-dealers over $8 million in undisclosed payments
to make sure that JPMorgan Posted on Monday, February 8, 2010 at 10:00 pm

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has had to bring in
hundreds of additional arbitrators to deal with the approximately 400
securities fraud claims that investors have filed against Regions
Financial Corp., the investment banking unit of Morgan Keegan &
Co. Investors are seeking to recover $35 million after three of its
mutual funds dropped in value by up to 82% when the housing market
fell apart. The Region Financial Corp mutual funds contained
subprime-related securities, including Posted on Monday, February 8, 2010 at 10:00 pm

According to the US Securities and Exchange Commission, the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act's safe harbor as it applies to
certain forward-looking statements isn't triggered by cautionary
remarks made by defendants over the impact of "potential deterioration
in the high-yield sector" if, per the plaintiffs' claim, the
defendants knew the deterioration was taking place. The SEC made its
comments in an amicus curiae brief to the U.S. Court of Appeals for
the Second Circuit. The case is Slayton v. Posted on Saturday, February 6, 2010 at 12:23 pm

It has already been a busy year on the speaking front, even with a
busy trial schedule as local counsel in federal court here in Marshall
and Tyler - we picked a jury in a patent case which resulted in a
defense JMOL last month and picked another jury last Monday for a
trial starting on the 17th - both Marshall cases in Judge Ward's
court. Thankfully two other February patent cases - one before Judge
Ward and one before Judge Davis - have been moved to April (with the
one previously before Judge Ward Posted on Tuesday, February 9, 2010 at 7:15 am

After two defense wins earlier in the month January ended a little
brighter for patent plaintiffs, with a Texarkana jury in Judge David
Folsom's court returning a verdict of infringement in Ion v. Sercel,
5:06cv236. The jury found yes on literal and doctrine of equivalents,
no on obviousness and best mode defenses, and set damages at
$25,155,645 in lost profits damages (but none on reasonable royalty). Posted on Thursday, February 4, 2010 at 7:12 am

Today a Marshall jury in Judge Everingham's court in Function Media v.
Google, 2:07cv279, found that defendant Google's AdSense products did
not infringe the nine asserted claims of Function Media's two patents.
The jury further found that Google had shown by clear and convincing
evidence that all of the asserted claims of both patents were invalid
as both obvious and as anticipated. That's a good start to the year
for patent defendants in the Eastern District - a JMOL at the close of
the plaintiff's case Posted on Friday, January 29, 2010 at 12:50 am

This montage of old photos set to the lyrics of Billy Joel's We Didn't
Start the Fire has been around a while, but I still enjoy seeing it.
I'm old enough to remember all these pictures! Thanks to my friend
Adam Doner for reminding me of it. Posted on Sunday, February 7, 2010 at 12:07 pm

Poor Toyota. The company finally comes up with a proposed solution to
the sticking throttle problem, and now they have a brake problem with
the hugely popular Prius model. Here are excerpts from an article in
the New York Times about the Prius problems: No sooner had Toyota
dealerships begun to repair accelerator pedals on millions of recalled
vehicles than the carmaker said it was considering yet another major
recall, this time for problems with the brakes on its Prius hybrid.
Safety regulators in Posted on Sunday, February 7, 2010 at 12:07 pm

Here are more details about Toyota's proposed solution to the sticking
throttle problem, courtesy of the American Association for Justice
news release: The Chicago Tribune (2/2, Bensinger, Channick) reports,
"Hoping to put the brakes on a public relations disaster, Toyota Motor
Corp. revealed plans Monday to fix a sticking gas pedal that halted
sales and production for eight models and prompted a massive recall."
ABC World News (2/1, story 4, 2:00, Sawyer) reported, "The automaker
said by the week's end its Posted on Friday, February 5, 2010 at 1:26 am

Via On Point News, we learned that Halliburton/KBR has recently filed
a petition for certiorari with the U.S. Supreme Court on the case
Jones v. Halliburton, 583 F.3d 228 (5th Cir. 2009). The issue is
whether the arbitration provision in an employment contract includes
the tort claim of sexual assault. The petition presents this question:
Respondent Jamie Leigh Jones filed a complaint in federal district
court against her employer, seeking redress of injuries she allegedly
sustained from a sexual assault by Posted on Monday, February 8, 2010 at 8:49 pm

The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit held that an
arbitration clause is enforceable notwithstanding that the parties had
terminated their services contract. In Hall-Williams v. Law Office of
Paul C. Miniclier, PLC, No. 09-30113 (5th Cir. Jan. 13, 2010), Carolyn
Hall-Williams (Hall-Williams) is a former client of the Law Office of
Paul C. Miniclier (Miniclier). In September 2006, Hall Williams hired
Miniclier to represent her in an insurance dispute with Allstate
Insurance Company Posted on Saturday, February 6, 2010 at 11:12 am

We thought that you might be interested to listen to the Podcast
entitled "How To Work With E-Mediation and Special Masters in
E-Discovery Cases" by Peter S. Vogel, trial partner at Gardere Wynne
Sewell LLP and contributor of this blog and Allison O'Neal Skinner
from the Alabama-based law firm Sirote & Permutt. The ESIBytes™
Podcast of about 40 minutes is available here. (no PowerPoints, but
free!) Peter and Allison will also host the TexasBarCLE Webcast "When
to Use eMediation or Special Masters in Posted on Saturday, February 6, 2010 at 11:12 am

Texas lawyers have never been stingy when it comes to helping in times
of need. When Hurricane Ike devastated the Texas Coast in 2008, Texas
lawyers came out in droves to help their fellow Texans. Last month's
earthquake in Haiti is no exception. Thousands of Texas attorneys have
made monetary donations, as well as donated much-needed necessities,
to relief efforts in Haiti. Still, access to safe drinking water in
Haiti is a problem. Annette Raguette, an Austin public member of the
State Bar Board, and her Posted on Friday, February 5, 2010 at 6:03 am

Do you know of a journalist deserving of recognition for excellence in
legal reporting? The State Bar of Texas Public Affairs Committee is
now accepting entries for the 2010 Texas Gavel Awards to recognize
journalistic excellence that helps foster public understanding of the
legal system, including investigative reporting that leads to
improvements in the justice system. The entry deadline is April 1.
Awards will be presented August 13 at the Freedom of Information
Foundation of Texas annual conference in Posted on Tuesday, February 2, 2010 at 11:25 am

State Bar of Texas President Roland Johnson and President-elect Terry
Tottenham visited the San Antonio Bar Association (SABA) luncheon
today. SABA lawyers are actively involved in mentoring young lawyers,
providing legal services to the poor, and helping local military
personnel. In addition to a CLE presentation by United States Circuit
Judge Edward C. Prado, two special awards were given during today's
luncheon. Every year, the San Antonio Bar President recognizes one bar
member who has gone above and Posted on Saturday, January 30, 2010 at 8:34 am

Fort Myers' NBC 2 reports on the ongoing plight facing Chinese drywall
and the reemerging efforts to push for federal assistance in handling
the matter. Submitting hand-written petitions to the governor,
families are hoping the governor is able to help handle the situation
and fill up the gaps that still exist. With a town hall meeting on
Saturday at the Lee Commission Chambers in Fort Myers, Florida, many
people are still pushing for answers to the problems facing those who
unfortunately have Chinese Posted on Saturday, January 30, 2010 at 3:54 am

A positive note for New Orleans residents with Chinese drywall hoping
to develop and rebuild in the wake of the toxic wallboard installed in
their homes: local officials continue to reduce the financial burden
of recovery. Local officials in Jefferson Parish are doing just this,
per New Orleans' WVUE: Jefferson Parish is waiving fees for
inspections and permits property owners need related to problems with
defective Chinese drywall. Permits are still needed for the
replacement of drywall, but the permits Posted on Saturday, January 30, 2010 at 3:54 am

A heads-up to those who have left their Chinese drywall riddled homes
behind because of growing health concerns: make sure security is used.
Areas around the country have been facing burglaries in homes left
vacant by homeowners after they discovered the faulty wallboard was
installed in their homes. The Fort Myers News-Press reports Lee
Ferguson told Cape Coral police Wednesday that he had to move out of
his house on Northeast Juanita Place because of problems with Chinese
drywall. He said when he returned Posted on Saturday, January 23, 2010 at 10:13 pm

I understand that the Houston DWI DIVERT program is a novel concept
for Harris County, Texas. I further recognize that with a new program
tweaks will be made to make improvements. However, it seems that the
Harris County District Attorney's Office (HCDAO) is continually making
changes to this program. This causes confusion to all the parties
involved. Whether you are misdemeanor judge, a misdemeanor prosecutor,
a DWI attorney, or an accused changing the rules weekly leaves
everyone uncertain as to how to Posted on Sunday, February 7, 2010 at 5:31 pm

Houston has a lot of great qualities but public transportation
wouldn't make the top ten list of good things about Houston. If you
plan on going anywhere in Houston you are probably going to have to
drive. It seems recently that we have had an uptick of clients who
have hired us after having been arrested for DWI on Washington Avenue.
If you've even had one drink, I wouldn't suggest going near Washington
Avenue if you are driving. Either choose a designated driver or call a
cab. Another alternative would be Posted on Sunday, February 7, 2010 at 5:31 pm

Today is Super Bowl Sunday. The Indianapolis Colts and Peyton Manning
take on Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints. The day has become an
American holiday except no one gets the day off on Monday. I'd like to
propose the movement to make the day after the Super Bowl an official
holiday. Everyone really enjoys themselves on Sunday and needs a day
of recovery. Lets be honest, their isn't a whole lot of workforce
production the day after the Super Bowl. Who would really be opposed
to making it a holiday? Posted on Sunday, February 7, 2010 at 5:31 pm

CBP Chief of Staff Marco Lopez, other CBP officials and
representatives from more than a dozen border organizations dedicated
to immigrant rights, environmental protection and business promotion
gathered Thursday and today in a small, working meeting at St Paul's
Cathedral in San Diego. The parties to the meeting wish to release the
following statement. "Today in San Diego, representatives from U.S.
Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the Department of Homeland
Security Office for Civil Rights and Civil Posted on Friday, February 5, 2010 at 6:43 am

At the San Antonio Bar Association luncheon on Jan. 28, St. Mary's
University School of Law student Kimbell Ward was presented with the
AT&T Excellence in Pro Bono Award. Ward is the first recipient of
the award given by AT&T, a staunch supporter of pro bono efforts
in San Antonio. Through the establishment of this award, AT&T will
offer a St. Mary's law student a scholarship in exchange for five
hours of work a week for the Community Justice Program. To read the
entire article, click here. Posted on Friday, February 5, 2010 at 6:43 am

A report on hunger today set off some sparring between lawyers for
poor Texans trying to get food stamps and the embattled state agency
that's trying to fix a years-old mess in its eligibility-determination
unit. The issue: Whether the state Health and Human Services
Commission promised last fall to work off a backlog of more than
42,000 unprocessed food stamp applications by this month. To read the
entire blog entry, click here. Posted on Friday, February 5, 2010 at 6:43 am

Residents of Dallas, Fort Worth, Arlington, Grand Praire, Weatherford,
or any other town in Texas should be interested in a question posed by
an attorney the other day on a web-site, to other attorneys who
sub-scribed to the site. It was a question dealing with uninsured and
underinsured (UM) automobile coverage. In the situation, a potential
client had come into the attorneys office. The potential new client
had been involved in an accident where the other person did not have
enough insurance coverage to Posted on Monday, February 8, 2010 at 4:30 am

It does not matter whether you live in little ole Weatherford, Texas,
or some of the bigger communities like Dallas, Fort Worth, Arlington,
or Grand Prairie. Health insurance is a concern of everybody. A recent
lawsuit in Colorado illustrates the anger that can be taken out
against an insurance company that does one of its insureds wrong. The
article is in the Denver Post. The title of the article is "Canceled
Insurance Leads To $37 Million Verdict For Woman." A jury in the city
and county of Boulder Posted on Monday, February 8, 2010 at 4:30 am

The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit recently
decided a case wherein the insured argued that he had an excess
insurance policy. The court decided that his policy was not an excess
insurance policy. The case is styled "Danny Kirk, v. Universal
Underwriters of Texas Insurance Co." In this case, Universal
Underwriters of Texas Insurance Co. ("UUT"), issued to Olympic
International Trucks, Inc. d/b/a Olympic Ideal Lease ("Olympic") an
insurance policy. Kirk, who was injured by a Posted on Friday, February 5, 2010 at 6:11 pm

Just 'cause it's fun I don't know. Sometimes, it's just fun to watch. Posted on Wednesday, January 20, 2010 at 2:45 pm

"Got a little fight in ya! I like that." This is one of my favorite
lines from one of my favorite movies (The Dark Knight) by the Joker.
Maybe it's just my sick sense of humor. What does that have to do with
Republicans and Democrats? Glad you asked. Of the local seats up for
election in 2010, Republicans fielded 82 candidates while the
Democrats managed a mere 20. Monday was the last day to file as a
candidate in Texas for the races which have a primary in March. What
that means for Tarrant County, is we Posted on Wednesday, January 6, 2010 at 8:12 am

No, this has nothing to do with law or elections or anything like
that. This is being written because this blog receives an average of
1400 hits per week, and with any luck, someone somewhere will pick it
up and send it to Mr. Ilitch. Dear Mr. Ilitch, I know being the owner
of a professional sports team in Detroit in this economy can't be that
easy. (Well actually, I don't know that for sure, but I'm just
guessing.) And before I go any further, I have to commend you for your
persistence in trying to field a Posted on Tuesday, December 8, 2009 at 6:30 am

Albertsons, LLC, a national grocery chain, will pay $8.9 million and
furnish other relief to settle three employment discrimination
lawsuits filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Oppor tunity Commission
(EEOC), the agency announced today. The EEOC had charged Albertsons
with race, color, and national origin discrimination and retaliation
at its Aurora, Colo., distribution center. The monetary relief will be
distributed among 168 former and current employees. All three of the
EEOC's... Posted on Friday, January 22, 2010 at 6:07 am

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear the appeal in Rent-A-Car,
West, Inc. v. Jackson. The question before the Court will be whether
the district court is in all cases required to determine claims that
an arbitration agreement subject to the Federal Arbitration Act
("FAA") is unconscionable, even when the parties to the contract have
clearly and unmistakably assigned this "gateway" issue to the
arbitrator for decision. The pendulum in the U.S. Congress has... Posted on Friday, January 22, 2010 at 6:07 am

Yet another example of an employee believing that his statements
published for the world to see online are somehow anonymous or not
subject to his employer's scrutiny. The Huffington Post this week has
the story of a school employee lost his job after he posted a one-word
vulgarity in the comments section of an online article at the St.
Louis Post-Dispatch. The school employee posted an anonymous, one-word
comment that referred, in vulgar terms, to a woman's anatomy on a... Posted on Wednesday, December 23, 2009 at 1:25 am

Thursday a 23 year old man from Pinehurst was convicted in a
Montgomery County Court of manslaughter over the deaths of 5 people in
a 2009 car accident. Officers indicated that the man reached speeds as
high as 117 miles per hour on Highway 249 north of Houston. The
vehicle driven by the defendant slammed into vans which lead to the 5
deaths. The man was also convicted of aggravated assault for injuries
to a survivor. Posted on Tuesday, February 9, 2010 at 9:59 am

Sadly, a Conroe team lost his life Friday in a one car accident. The
teen was a passenger in a vehicle in which the driver lost control and
crashed through a fence and a board smashed through the windshield
killing the young man. Fortunately, the driver survived the crash
which totaled the car. Texas Department of Public Safety is
investigating the accident and preliminary reports are that excessive
speed may have played a role. To speak with a Texas personal injury
attorney call the Baumgartner Law firm Posted on Tuesday, February 9, 2010 at 9:59 am

A truck driver hauling logs died in a crash after running off the
road. The 49-year-old man lost control going around a curve and went
down an embankment. The logs shifted forward during the truck accident
breaching the cab of the truck At the Baumgartner Law Firm we have
represented truck drivers against their own companies over issues of
the condition of the truck and loading. We are routinely referred
cases from defense lawyers that we have opposed in accident cases. If
you would like a consultation with Posted on Tuesday, February 9, 2010 at 9:59 am

Maybe your client is guilty. Maybe it will be easy for the State to
prove that your client is guilty. That is, if they can get their
witnesses to show up. There are all sorts of reasons that defense
lawyers set cases for hearings and trials, not the least of which is
that they expect(well… hope?) that a judge will suppress some or all
of the evidence, or that a jury will find their client not guilty.
Occasionally a client will even volunteer this as the solution to
their problems, "What are the chances that Posted on Thursday, February 4, 2010 at 8:08 pm

From an out of state commenter: I received a summons today to appear
in court next week. The papers did not even include what the
appearance would be for. I have been on the SCRAM bracelet for two
months now. This is the second time that I have been notified of
violation of the bracelet. The first was just a failure to download. I
just received a prerecorded phone call for that violation, "no biggy."
Today when I called the court house to find out why I had to appear, I
was informed it was a violation from Posted on Saturday, January 23, 2010 at 8:19 am

Just in from a marketer via email, with the title line "Thousands of
DUI Defendents are Coming!": Because we are the #1 Google ranked
DUI/DWI website, thousands of DUI/DWI defendents[sic - I couldn't
bring myself to misspell it in the title of my post though] will come
to our site next week looking for an attorney. Will you get your
share? Just one case will pay for your Membership many times over.
Please respond to this email now or call (123) 456-7890. I haven't
linked to the "nationwide network of DUI Posted on Wednesday, January 6, 2010 at 10:22 am

Friday 39-year-old Billy Ray Massie, of Grand Prairie, and 28-year-old
Keith Anthony Brown, of Arlington, died in a tragic car accident. The
crash occurred in the 800 block of Great Southwest Parkway. According
to police, Massie was driving the car, a 1995 Chevrolet Camaro. He was
traveling northbound on Great Southwest Parkway at high speeds when he
lost control of the car and crashed into a tree. Both men were
pronounced dead at the scene. These are the second and third traffic
fatalities in Grand Prairie Posted on Tuesday, February 2, 2010 at 9:57 pm

On Saturday, two vehicles collided head-on, killing one man and
sending a woman to the hospital. Angel Reyna of Fort Worth, TX was
pronounced dead at the scene. The car crash occurred in the 800 block
of Longhorn Road near Lottie Lane in Saginaw, TX. The two vehicles
were traveling in opposite directions on Longhorn Road when the wreck
occurred, according to police. The cause of the accident is still
under investigation. The woman in the accident was taken to the
hospital with non-life threatening injuries. Posted on Tuesday, February 2, 2010 at 9:57 pm

In October and November 2008 I blogged here and here about a Euless,
TX mom who drove drunk and crashed her SUV injuring eight teenagers,
including two of her own children. Brenda Rogers was sentenced Friday
and taken into custody for the drunk driving car accident that send
eight teenagers aged 14 and 15, including her twin daughters. Rogers
pled guilty to charges of driving while intoxicated with a child,
endangering a child, and injury to a child. She is now serving a
two-year sentence and will have to Posted on Saturday, January 30, 2010 at 7:30 pm

Note: Fridays are opinion-release days at the Texas Supreme Court.
Opinions were issued only on two Fridays in January 2010, however.
January 15, 2010 Opinions of the Texas Supreme Court WHICH COURT HAS
JURISDICTION OVER TRUST-RELATED LITIGATION, REMOVAL OF TRUSTEE?Carroll
v. Carroll, No. 08-0644 (Tex. Jan. 22, 2010)(per curiam)(proceedings
concerning trust, trustee removal, suit for accounting by trustee
belong in district court, not county court; absence of jurisdiction
rendered judgment void)In this Posted on Tuesday, February 2, 2010 at 9:18 am

DEC. 18, OPINIONS ISSUED BY THE TEXAS SUPREME COURT UNILATERAL
CONTRACT CAN BECOME VALID AND ENFORCEABLE: ACCEPTANCE BY PERFORMANCE
Vanegas v. American Energy Servcies, No. 07-0520 (Tex. Dec. 18, 2009)
(Green) (contract formation and validity, enforceability)(illusory
promise at the time it was made, promise became enforceable upon
performance) ED VANEGAS, JIMMY D. HALMAN, SAM ARMSTRONG, ALEX
CARBAJAL, ROGER FARRINGTON, CURTIS HUFF, AND TITO BETANCUR v. AMERICAN
ENERGY SERVICES, NIEWOEHNER PARTNERSHIP, Posted on Wednesday, January 6, 2010 at 6:51 pm

ANOTHER CLASS-ACTION UNDONE BY THE TEXAS SUPREME COURT Exxon Mobil
Corp. v. Gill, No. 07-0404 (Tex. Nov. 20, 2009)(per curiam)(class
action suits)(trial court's class certification order in suit brought
by gas station dealers over pricing and rebates is vacated and the
case is remanded to that court for further proceedings) EXXON MOBIL
CORPORATION v. DAN GILL, ET AL.; from Nueces County; 13th district (13
06 00048 CV, ___ SW3d ___, 04 12 07) Pursuant to Texas Rule of
Appellate Procedure 59.1, after granting Posted on Wednesday, December 16, 2009 at 4:00 pm

One of my first jobs was waiting on tables. I envied the female
waitresses because they often scored better tips simply because they
were attractive. The women knew that. They generally accepted that
fact and used it. But, what if the employer told the waitresses, as
some do to put on more makeup and look more feminine? Would that be
discrimination? The argument would be that if stereotyping by gender
itself is a form of discrimination. In one recent case, a female clerk
at a hotel was fired because she Posted on Tuesday, February 9, 2010 at 1:42 am

English only rules always bring controversy, even at a bookstore in
New Haven, Connecticut, very near Yale university. The EEOC generally
frowns on such rules, but allows them for "business necessity." In
this case, the book store is essentially claiming the customers are
uncomfortable with employees speaking Spanish. Does the comfort of
customers count as a business necessity? Maybe, according to Workplace
Prof. It depends on whether there is evidence of discriminatory
motivations. That means an employer Posted on Thursday, February 4, 2010 at 1:22 am

You gotta love these stories, sometimes. An employee goes back to her
home country, the Phillipines with her husband for seven weeks. They
visit family, friends. The husband is disabled. They visit a
miraculous Catholic church, known for its healing abilities. The wife
pushes her husband's wheel chair, comforts him, provides psychological
counseling, helps with the luggage. Visiting family and friends
consume perhaps 40% of their time. She is gone seven weeks and claims
FMLA leave when she returns to the Posted on Thursday, February 4, 2010 at 1:22 am

Continuing on, here are rules #7 and 6 from our friendly neighborhood
prosecutor. #7 The Prosecutor Didn't Do It Here's an example, you've
got a DWI case you're handling where the client's parents have hired
you to represent their 17 year old son. It was a dumb mistake and
they're seeking your help to plead for mercy from the prosecution.
During the PNC, you bring to the prosecutor's attention that she, too,
was once a young, dumb teenager. The questions follow: "Don't you
remember what it was like to be Posted on Monday, February 8, 2010 at 9:52 pm

Today we will begin a series that a prosecutor friend of mine was kind
enough to provide. From the outset, please understand that these rules
are simply her ideas on the subject and are not intended to apply
globally, but, if you ask me, they probably should. Let's begin with
#10: When a defendant on TV or in a movie settles his criminal case,
we hear that he accepted a "plea bargain." However, most jurisdictions
don't use the term "bargain." Rather, as practitioners of criminal
law, we use "negotiation." Posted on Saturday, February 6, 2010 at 12:12 pm

More from our Texas prosecutor friend. Picking up where we left off
yesterday, here are rules 9 and 8 for defense counsel to remember when
negotiating a criminal case with a Texas prosecutor. #9 Make Sure to
Relay the Plea Offer to Your Client. One of two things will happen
when you get your first setting for a plea negotiation conference
(PNC): (1) either the prosecutor will relay the offer to you ahead of
time or (2) she will have it ready when you show up at the PNC. (There
might be third option where Posted on Saturday, February 6, 2010 at 12:12 pm

At the North American International Auto Show several weeks ago,
Toyota ironically displayed a lemon/lime colored sub-compact concept
hybrid vehicle. I hope that the color of this vehicle is not a
foreshadow that the model will become a new strand of lemon cars.
Photo by Daniel Acker / Bloomberg The vehicle is said to be a smaller
version of Toyota's best selling hybrid vehicle, the Prius. It is
measured to be approximately 22 inches shorter than the current Prius.
Toyota executives stated that they plan to Posted on Friday, January 29, 2010 at 1:22 pm

With the substantial increase in fuel costs, the momentum of demand
for hybrid and electric cars will also exponentially increase.
Inevitably, my Texas Lemon Law Office have received at least one call
from a potential client per month regarding a problematic or broken
lemon hybrid vehicle. While surfing the internet for technical service
bulletins (TSBs) this morning, I stumbled upon a website that contains
a list of car problems that owners of the Toyota Prius recently
experienced. The problems range Posted on Friday, January 29, 2010 at 1:22 pm

Previous AT&T chief executive officer (CEO) Ed Whitacre is
officially General Motor's (GM's) current and hopefully permanent CEO.
Whitacre served as GM's pro tem CEO -- after GM's board of directors
fired Fritz Henderson about 2 months ago on December 1, 2009. Mr.
Whitacre comes from a heavy manufacturing experience. He is known by
his former colleagues to lead with a "heavy hand." I hope this
announcement will equate to the production of less faulty and
defective lemon General Motor vehicles. Whitacre Posted on Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 10:02 am

Recently, we had a trial set in which the prosecutors filed some
pretrial motions. While not uncommon for the prosecutors to file such
motions, one of the items they requested I found quite interesting.
The prosecutors filed a "Motion in Limine." A Motion in Limine is the
attorney asking the judge to make the opposing attorney ask permission
in advance of doing something. Some common requests are for an
attorney to request the opposing attorney to ask permission during
trial in advance of offering expert Posted on Thursday, February 4, 2010 at 11:16 am

Coming Soon! A 10 Question and Answer session with the candidates for
Collin County District Attorney. This Q&A is a collaborative
effort between myself and the Collin County Observer (CCO). In the
next couple of days, we will be sending out 10 questions to the
candidates for DA. I think it will be helpful to see where the
candidates stand on several of these issues. Because I am a criminal
defense attorney who practices in the county, I have tailored some of
the questions to reflect important issues to Posted on Thursday, February 4, 2010 at 11:16 am

found out recently that there will be a contested race for Republican
Primary for the 296th District Court. The court currently held by John
Roach Jr., will be contested by McKinney attorney Keith Gore. Right
now, the court only hears civil cases because John Roach Jr.'s father,
John Roach is the District Attorney. John Roach Sr. will be stepping
down, meaning the court will now hear civil and criminal cases once
again. Below are bios on the candidates. As they put up campaign
websites and I gain Posted on Friday, January 22, 2010 at 8:52 pm

On Friday the Texas Forensic Commission held their first meeting under
new chairman John Bradley. The fact that it was held in Harlingen
should have told you everything you need to know. He wanted to make it
as inconvenient as possible for people to attend - and it didn't take
long to find out why. Thanks to the Innocence Project the meeting was
streamed live over the internet. For those able to stay awake they
were able to witness a primer on how to abuse power and hijack a
government commission for your Posted on Monday, February 1, 2010 at 11:55 pm

Mark Bennett has gone on the warpath against the practice of
ghostblogging. His criticism of the "social media" is nothing new - he
even started a blog devoted to it at Social Media Tyro. I must admit
-until last week I ddn't even know there was such a thing as
ghostblogging. I was quite surprised - for a number of reasons. Since
it seems to be a fairly common practice, I wanted to make sure
everyone (all 4-5 of you) know that I write this myself. I probably
don't need to say anything - you probably already Posted on Monday, February 1, 2010 at 11:55 pm

Last year the Supreme Court decided Melendez-Diaz v. Massachussetts,
which held the State had to use a live witness to admit lab reports.
The prosecutors immediately starting screaming about how much of a
burden that was going to be - they were actually going to have to
bring in witnesses to testify. There was some evidence that the
decision was having an impact on the trial of criminal cases. So when
the Supreme Court decided to hear Briscoe v. Virgina, most assumed the
court wanted to back off the Posted on Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 3:06 pm

I'm getting hints from all sorts of different places that there may be
some rather large reviews coming Houston way some time soon. I'd love
to hear any info anyone has on that front. Also, I think the hundred
or so attorneys that were toiling away over at EQD the last couple of
weeks have been slowly draining away from that project. Posted on Friday, February 5, 2010 at 10:15 am

I've been quiet a while, but the market hasn't. I didn't really notice
a Winter break in projects, but it seems they're picking up. Providus
has a project coming up. Hudson has a couple of projects that started
recently or will start on Monday in Dallas. Special Counsel is looking
for people. Donovan Watkins is putting 130 lawyers in 2 shifts up at
the Clay Road review center for Anadarko. Only thing is that most of
the rates I've seen on all of these except Providus are sub $30. Posted on Thursday, January 21, 2010 at 4:54 am

While it does seem like a happy thing that someone is looking around
to fill a few seats in a review in Dallas, and even better that the
review is slated to last through next March, the prospect is somewhat
dimmed by the prospect of being locked into a pay rate of $26 until
then. Posted on Saturday, December 19, 2009 at 11:00 am

A codicil is a legal document that amends your existing Will without
revoking the Will in its entirety. Codicils can be used to an existing
will provision, a new will provision, or delete an existing will
provision. Usually, if the changes someone wants to make to their will
are relatively minor (for example, changing executors), a codicil is a
quick, inexpensive way to amend the Will without re-drafting the
entire document. If you need a Texas Wills, Trust & Estate
Planning attorney, contact Peterson Posted on Thursday, January 21, 2010 at 4:22 pm

In Texas, appointing a guardian for one's children is normally done in
one of two ways: in a person's Will or in a separate Appointment of
Guardian document. While I typically include that information in a
will, I prefer to also appoint guardians using a separate instrument.
The reason that I prefer this approach is that a will does not become
authoritative until the time of your death. On the other hand, the
Appointment of Guardian is active upon death or incapacity/disability
(if you are longer able to Posted on Thursday, January 21, 2010 at 4:22 pm

As of January 1, 2010, the Federal estate tax has been repealed -- but
only for one year. As part of the 2001 tax act, Congress increased the
amount persons could give away tax-free at death (the "Exemption
Amount"),. This amount increased each year over a 10 year period. The
Exemption Amount reached $3,500,000 in 2009 and ultimately became
unlimited this year. In other words, the Exemption Amount in 2010 is
equal to the value of your entire estate. However, tax law changes
were limited to a 10 year Posted on Thursday, January 21, 2010 at 4:22 pm

As a Texas oil and gas and real estate attorney, I have observed first
hand how devasting this financial downturn has been for a number of my
clients. Unfortunately, when our economy goes south, many people
struggle to pay their bills, simply because there is not enough money
to go around. With unpaid bills come debt collectors. My guest blog
today is written by Sergei Lemberg, a consumer attorney who
specializes in fair debt law. I learned recently that Sergei had been
involved with the Chrysler bankruptcy Posted on Thursday, February 4, 2010 at 10:01 pm

Texas oil and gas attorneys and mineral owners may see more leasing
activity in 2010 in the Eagle Ford Shale, a field in southern Texas
that oil and gas companies have known about for some time, but that is
just now being explored. The field is named after the city of Eagle
Ford, Texas, hometown of Bonnie Parker of "Bonnie and Clyde"
notoriety. (The city of Eagle Ford was incorporated into the City of
Dallas in 1956). Several oil and gas operators, beginning with
Petrohawk Energy Corporation, and including Posted on Friday, October 30, 2009 at 3:44 pm

As a Texas oil and gas attorney, I have observed that it has been a
slow year so far for leasing and drilling activity. But some experts
are predicting a change on the horizon for 2010. An article this
morning by Jamaal O'Neal in the Longview-Journal.com quotes Professor
Ken Morgan, Texas Christian University geology professor and director
of the TCU Energy Institute, as saying that higher oil and gas prices
may be ahead for 2010. The article quotes research by Baker Hughes
that natural gas, which was Posted on Monday, October 5, 2009 at 11:31 am

Freshman Marcus Davis of the University of Texas Longhorns, has been
suspended indefinitely from the football team following his DWI
arrest. Davis was stopped by Pearland Police Department after he was
seen driving on a flat tire. Davis was arrested after suspicion of
drunk driving and later released after posting bond. Davis was a
defensive back for the Longhorns, before being suspended by Head
Football Coach Mack Brown pending completion of the legal process. Posted on Tuesday, December 22, 2009 at 10:26 am

Over an eight hour period on the Friday night of the Labor Day
weekend, the Austin Police Department (APD) arrested 27 motorists for
driving while intoxicated. The anti-drunk driving initiative included
implementation of a 'no refusal' policy where a warrant is secured for
a blood sample if a driver suspected of intoxication refuses to submit
to a breath test. The crackdown in Austin utilized 14 officers that
are part of the APD DWI Enforcement Team. The special patrols, as well
as any other officers on Posted on Thursday, September 10, 2009 at 12:22 pm

APD can now secure a blood draw in some cases of DWI without first
getting a warrant as of September 1, 2009. During the past session of
the Texas State Legislature an obscure bill was passed and signed by
Gov. Perry that authorizes law enforcement to draw blood in certain
cases of suspected drunk driving in Texas. Previously, a warrant was
required before a blood sample could be taken. Under the new Texas DWI
law, however, the blood sample can be demanded of motorists suspected
of driving while intoxicated Posted on Tuesday, September 8, 2009 at 12:17 pm

Defending an Intoxication Assault case requires a skillful DWI
attorney and an experienced accident reconstructionist working hard to
fight for your freedom. Intoxication Assault is found in section 49.07
of the Texas Penal Code and is a third degree felony. (2-10 years in
prison). In order for the Government to convict a person of
intoxicated assault, it must prove: 1.) the Defendant was intoxicated;
2.) the Defendant caused seriously bodily injury to someone 3.)
because of the intoxication The first prong Posted on Thursday, January 21, 2010 at 4:53 pm

If you have questions about the Harris County DWI Divert Program, we
certainly have answers. The Divert Program is designed for first-time
offenders. Individuals who are charged with Driving while Intoxicated
and have no prior convictions may be eligible for this program. The
Divert Program is a form of probation, lasting from a period of 1 year
to 2 years. If the participants in the Divert Program succesfully
complete the program, then the Harris County District Attorney's
Office agrees to dismiss the Posted on Saturday, January 9, 2010 at 4:43 pm

If you are arrested for Driving while Intoxicated in Harris County,
Texas and are interested in the District Attorney's Office DIVERT
Program, the following will happen: 1. The District Attorney's Office
will evaluate your case. This means that if the District Attorney's
Office finds that you are legally entitled to be in this country and
that you have no prior convictions, you may be eligible for the DIVERT
Program. 2. If the District Attorney's Office states that you may be
eligible for the DIVERT Posted on Saturday, January 9, 2010 at 4:43 pm

When will contractors learn? There was a horrible accident in Dallas
this morning when two workers fell from the roof... Posted on Thursday, December 3, 2009 at 7:24 am

There have been a number of auto accident/safe driving stories over
the last few weeks, but I just haven't had time to write on them.
Instead of ignoring them, I thought I'd put up a brief post touching
on each story. Austin is moving forward with a plan to ban text
messaging while driving. The city council has agreed to the ban, and
city staff is now charged with coming up with a statute. As you may
know, text messaging while driving is one of our most popular topics
with the following posts: * In Study of Posted on Wednesday, December 23, 2009 at 1:22 pm

One of the byproducts of the national healthcare debate has been an
increasing awareness that medical costs are high, at least in part,
because of unnecessary surgeries, tests, and other procedures that
have been ordered to simply line the pockets of the providers.
Recently, our office has received inquiries relating to unnecessary
procedures, including unnecessary back surgery, and even more
frightening, unnecessary heart surgery. For this reason, we advise all
of our clients and friends to make sure to Posted on Wednesday, December 23, 2009 at 1:22 pm

Frisco, Plano, Dallas DWI/DUI Lawyer Collin County DWI Criminal
Defense Lawyer Dallas County DWI Criminal Defense Attorney Hello, my
name is Troy Burleson and I am a criminal defense attorney who
specializes in defending citizens accused of DWI, DUI and other drunk
driving offenses. If you have recently been arrested and charged with
drunk driving, you probably have many questions and concerns. I built
this web site to help answer questions from people like you about DWI
laws, the criminal process and other Posted on Tuesday, March 10, 2009 at 11:21 am

I need to make a correction to my post this morning. I inadvertently
contributed a quote to the wrong Austin DWI Lawyer. I contributed a
quote in an Austin American Statesman article to Austin Attorney Jamie
Balagia. However, the quote was made by highly regarded Austin DWI
Lawyer Jamie Spencer. Mr. Spencer has written extensively on his DWI
blog and criminal law blog about a variety of subjects from the HGN
Test to a famous federal prisoner's thoughts on American Justice.
Sorry, Mr. Spencer. The mistake Posted on Monday, February 2, 2009 at 3:23 pm

"To take or not to take an alcohol test?" That is the question that
every person who is suspected of drunk driving must ask. When faced
with such a potentially life-altering decision, perhaps its best to
get some guidance from our elected officials. According to a report in
the Austin American Statesman, the rate of refusal for elected
officials in Texas, when accused of drunk driving, is 100%. Among the
general public, the rate of refusal is about 50%. Why would 100% of
our elected officials, who are Posted on Monday, February 2, 2009 at 9:09 am

New Year's Resolutions. Like the rest of the country did you
personally resolve to get fit, lose weight, drink less, manage your
debt better or get organized? What about your business life? In a
slight departure from our usual monthly banter, Tilting the Scales
offers 6 business resolutions (we resolved to come up with 10 but,
like our other personal resolutions, fell short) to promote the
productive life of your business in these tumultuous times, and to
suggest ways that you can start the year on a Posted on Sunday, January 31, 2010 at 2:25 am

Sal Minella is president and registered agent of Mother Clucking Tasty
Chicken, a large poultry processor in East Texas. One afternoon, while
flying the coop for a much needed vacation to the Canary Islands, Sal
is met by a process server who presents him with a lawsuit. Sal
quickly skims the allegations of the lawsuit - yet another food
poisoning victim - and hurriedly tosses the papers on his secretary's
desk, fully intending to respond to the meritless claims when he gets
back. When Sal returns to the Posted on Tuesday, December 22, 2009 at 2:31 pm

Hogeye County Sheriff Zukie Bonnett helped upright a Slyme-Yu Haulers
sludge truck yesterday. It overturned in front of the local elementary
school and several tons of waste solids from the Yellow River
wastewater treatment plant spilled onto the children's playground. The
spill was caught on video and is now on TheyTube, an internet video
site. Sheriff Bonnett reports that he contacted officials from the
Hogeye County Health Department to investigate. He believes there is a
possibility that the sludge Posted on Tuesday, December 22, 2009 at 2:31 pm

Last week the US Supreme Court issued a very important, although
brief, opinion. It was the case of Briscoe v. Virginia, __U.S. __ (No.
07-11191, 1/25/10). Last year the Supreme Court ruled in Melendez-Diaz
v. Massachusetts, 557 U.S. ___ (2009) that the all too common practice
of just submitting lab reports into evidence with no testimony from
the analyst was a violation of the Confrontation Clause of the U.S.
Constitution. For the non-attorney readers the confrontation clause is
part of the 6th Amendment Posted on Friday, February 5, 2010 at 6:53 pm

Aside from adjusting to writing 2010 or 10 on forms, letters and
checks, the new decade brings a new look to Not Guilty. I like the new
look because it is easy to read and clean. Many bloggers try to out do
each other by adding more and more eye candy on their blogs. As with
many things we are likely to learn in this time of economic hardship,
less is more. People read blogs or web sites for their content not
their look. With that in mind my goal is to not let the look get in
the way of the content. I hope Posted on Saturday, January 9, 2010 at 4:38 pm

Many lawyers ask me and other attorneys who blog much more regularly,
why blog? What is the point? My answer is not compelling but it has
changed. When I first started my motives were mixed. I wanted to gripe
and write about things in the law that interest me or issues that I
have developed strong opinions. I must say that I also thought that
the ability to generate business might exist as well. The first thing
I found out was that there are two types of law blogs. There are
professorial type blogs on the Posted on Monday, January 4, 2010 at 3:21 am

The Congressional Budget Office posted the changes for TRICARE as
proposed by Congress in the Health Care plan of 2009-10. At the same
time politicians scream the country needs Health Care, the same
politicians are silently taking away health care benefits earned by
retired military men and women. Men and women who accepted the call to
defend this country, often at much lower wages than they could earn in
the civilian world, because they made choices. These choices involved
love for their country and other Posted on Saturday, January 23, 2010 at 11:35 pm

B cell leukemias, Parkinson's disease, and ischemic heart disease are
now presumptive diseases / illnesses for veterans exposed to Agent
Orange. On October 13, 2009, the Department of Veterans Affairs in a
news release announced the VA is extending VA benefits to Vietnam
veterans who were exposed to the herbicide Agent Orange. The October
13, 2009, VA news release states an "estimated 2.6 million" veterans
were exposed to the herbicide commonly referred to as Agent Orange.
Secretary Shinseki declared Posted on Tuesday, October 20, 2009 at 9:13 am

The.mighty.B 52 Posted on Saturday, September 26, 2009 at 4:38 pm

The Texas Bar Exam results for the July 2009 exam were posted today.
This year, Texas Tech School of Law had the highest percentage of
students who passed the Bar Exam on their first attempt. Over 94% of
the Texas Tech law grads who sat for the exam for the first time this
July passed the exam. This brings the four-year average to 89.6% for
Texas Tech. Overall, the average passage rate for first-time July
examinees from Texas schools was 92% for the year, and 90% over the
last four years. This year the Posted on Thursday, November 5, 2009 at 2:09 pm

A good letter of recommendation is one that shows the reader that the
recommender knows you personally, is familiar with your work, and
lists specific reasons why you are a suitable candidate for the
position or award for which you are applying. As the requester of a
letter of recommendation, your job is to make the letter-writing
process as effortless as possible. The following ten tips will help
ensure you receive the best possible letter of recommendation: Be sure
to select someone knows you well and is Posted on Tuesday, October 13, 2009 at 5:38 am

The Dean Search Committee at Texas Tech School of Law announced this
week that it is inviting three candidates to on-campus interviews with
the faculty, students, and members of the local bar association.
Professor Brian Shannon (Texas Tech School of Law; Contracts, Law
& Psychiatry, Property, and Criminal Law) will be the first
on-campus interviewee. Professor Shannon has been a favorite among
students and alumni alike, who believe that Professor Shannon's
experience as Associate Dean, his connections Posted on Friday, October 2, 2009 at 5:04 am

The issues of same-sex marriage and termination of such marriages may
be dealt with in Texas sooner that this commentator expected.
Thursday, October 1, 2009, Dallas Judge Tena Callahan ruled that the
state's ban on same-sex marriage violates the equal protection clause
of the Constitution. Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott filed a
petition in intervention, which was denied by the judge. Abbott's
office indicated the State would seek an appeal of Judge Callahan's
decision. For more information, see today's Posted on Friday, October 2, 2009 at 1:47 pm

In many states, a new and quickly growing area of family mediation is
marital mediation. Marital mediation is a process of assisted
negotiation designed to preserve a marriage in ways not attempted by
family therapy. The process uses family mediation skills to help
couples negotiate new terms for their marriage. Marital mediation is
not couples therapy or marriage counseling. There is no diagnosis,
assessment or treatment of an illness or disability in the hopes of
solving marital problems or achieving a Posted on Tuesday, June 23, 2009 at 2:54 pm

My colleague, Dick Price, wrote a fantastic piece about "mean"
lawyers. I find Dick's insights helpful and valid whether one is in
the midst of family law case or general civil litigation. Dick's words
of wisdom follow: Over the years, a number of prospective clients have
asked about how mean a lawyer I can be. I used to tell them that I
could be as mean as I needed to be. Now, I prefer to discuss some
other, related issues. 1. What is the client's overall objective in
getting (or getting through) the Posted on Friday, June 19, 2009 at 2:58 pm

Kimberly Dawn Trenor, mother of the child who was once known as Baby
Grace, was convicted of Capital Murder in Galveston, Texas. The
Galveston County District Attorney's Office elected not to seek the
death penalty so Trenor will receive an automatic life sentence. There
is no question this woman's conduct was beyond disgusting. Even a cat
will protect its kittens. Allowing some dude you met off the Internet
to hurt your child, and to engage in the conduct yourself places a
person far past the boundaries of Posted on Tuesday, February 3, 2009 at 7:13 pm

January 23, 2009, I attended the swearing in of newly elected Judge
Shawna Reagin. Judge Reagin was a criminal defense attorney in Harris
County who was well known for working hard and writing successful
appeals. She was also the Editor of a local publication called The
Defender. The Defender is a local publication that deals with issues
at the criminal courthouse and other criminal justice related issues.
I am blogging about this topic because it was so refreshing. The
audience contained prosecutors, Posted on Tuesday, February 3, 2009 at 6:53 pm

Former Judge Pat Lykos was sworn in yesterday as the new District
Attorney in Harris County, Texas. According to DA Lykos, "It's going
to be an open-file policy, so the defense attorney will be aware of
all the evidence," Lykos said. I hope I am just reading in between the
lines too much. That is not what Lykos said during her campaign.
Copies of offense reports is what she promised while she was running.
All of the candidates made this promise. The defense attorney does not
need to "be aware of all the Posted on Saturday, January 3, 2009 at 6:00 am

On thing can be said for Augusta Roman, she certainly fought her legal
case until the bitter end. In a Harris County, Texas divorce, she
wanted to be awarded frozen embryos she had created with her husband
when they were still together. Augusta wanted to implant the embryos
and become pregnant even though her now ex-husband, Randy protested
and said that [...] Posted on Tuesday, May 13, 2008 at 9:07 am

Many couples, because of age or by choice do not have children- at
least the two legged type. For many couples, their beloved pets are
considered their "children". This is why when divorce comes along,
parties can feel just as much anxiety, concern and apprehension as
they would in a divorce proceeding involving a child. However, [...] Posted on Thursday, May 8, 2008 at 11:37 am

The ex-wife in the highly publicized Texas Frozen Embryo Custody case
of Roman v. Roman was "devastated" upon hearing the news that the U.S.
Supreme Court denied her the right to legal custody of several frozen
embryos she had created with her ex-husband prior to their divorce.
Augusta Roman, 46, has said that the embryos are her last chance [...] Posted on Monday, April 14, 2008 at 6:09 pm

This is the last post for the Texas Estate Planning and Probate Law
blog. I did my best to try and keep it up, but just found it too
difficult to update on a regular basis. In addition, I am leaving the
practice of law as of the end of December to join Merrill Lynch in
their Family Office working with their high net worth clients. It is
an exciting opportunity for me and I look forward to this challenge.
Although I will not be posting here in the future, I will leave the
site up for awhile so that you might Posted on Monday, November 21, 2005 at 9:36 am

The Hurricane Katrina Emergency Tax Relief Act (KETRA) allows
unlimited gifts to charity up to a donor's total income until the end
of 2005. This provision also permits unlimited IRA withdrawals and
gifts to charity. Under Sec. 301(b)(1)(A), a "qualified contribution
shall be allowed only to the extent that the aggregate of such
contributions does not exceed the excess of the taxpayer's
contribution base (as defined in subparagraph (F) of section 170(b)(1)
of such Code) over the amount of all other Posted on Tuesday, November 1, 2005 at 8:05 am

Sometime shortly, the Senate is expected to vote on the fate of the
estate tax. The House has already voted to repeal the tax; however,
several Senators have found it difficult to vote for total repeal. One
Senator, Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), who has voted to repeal the estate tax in
the past, recently noted, "The deficit picture is different today and
the choices are pretty darn hard." The budget deficit has been
dramatically increased in the past year, with two major hurricanes
costing hundreds of billions in Posted on Sunday, October 2, 2005 at 11:38 am

Below is a basic summary of issues that bear on a non-Brazilian
company's intended participation in the Brazilian market as a
prospective supplier to Petróleo Brasieiro S.A. ("Petrobras")
including the following: i. pertinent proceedings and requirements for
registration as a Petrobras supplier; and ii. the establishment of a
foreign company in Brazil, either by means of a branch or a
subsidiary. I. Brief Overview A. Petrobras Vendor Requirements
Non-Brazilian companies ("NBC"s) are not required to register Posted on Wednesday, February 3, 2010 at 8:07 am

Pace International Law Review will host a symposium entitled
"Comparative Constitutional Law: National Security Across the Globe"
in conjunction with the Blaine Sloan Lecture on International Law:
"After Gitmo: Obama Grapples with Preventive Detention." Scott Horton
of Harper's Magazine is the keynote speaker. The symposium will be
held on November 13, 2009. It is a day long discussion on the legal
issues faced by various nations which must balance constitutional and
civil rights with national security Posted on Tuesday, December 22, 2009 at 2:47 pm

The biggest gap in world trade includes the U.S. trade deficit and the
Chinese trade surplus. This gap is driven, in part, by what some claim
is China's pegging of the Yuan at an artificially low rate against the
U.S. dollar in an effort to boost exports. But exports are slowing,
and, in a dramatic departure from previous policy China has indicated
it may allow yuan appreciation against the dollar. The Yuan recently
strengthened by nearly 20 percent against the Dollar (between July
2005 and July 2008) until Posted on Tuesday, December 22, 2009 at 2:47 pm

For years now, the employer and government buyers of healthcare
services have been looking to produce industry wide efficiencies
through electronic health records ("EHRs") and the electronic exchange
of information among healthcare organizations. Rising health care
costs and an aging population have fueled this interest. Additionally,
payers have been experimenting with pay for performance options, which
tie provider compensation to support for quality measures. Keeping
track of and reporting upon these Posted on Friday, January 22, 2010 at 9:28 pm

On Monday, President Obama spoke to a group of skeptical physicians at
the annual conference of the American Medical Association
(“AMA”) in Chicago to make the case for health care
reform, not only for the nation but for the physicians’ own
bottom line. The President spoke to the group just days after the
AMA had signaled its opposition to his proposal for a public health
insurance plan to compete with private insurers as part of a menu of
options. While the President acknowledged the cost of such Posted on Tuesday, June 16, 2009 at 1:27 pm

The debate over health care reform continues to grow, and it appears
that the government plan provision will be the point of greatest
contention. Part of the problem seems to be that President Obama
hasn't spelled out what he wants in a public plan, despite his strong
support for the idea. His health secretary, Kathleen Sebelius, said
last week that Americans need a new government-sponsored insurance
plan to guarantee choice and competition - especially in rural areas.
The government already has a public Posted on Tuesday, June 2, 2009 at 1:26 pm

A little known but potentially very helpful facet of Chapter 411 of
the Texas Government Code is its provisions regarding access by the
Texas Real Estate Commission and Texas Department of Insurance to
criminal records that are subject to an Order of Non-Disclosure.
Simply put, the Texas Department of Public Safety- the state agency
which serves as the central repository of criminal records in Texas-
is prohibited from providing criminal history information subject to
an Order of Non-Disclosure to either Posted on Friday, September 4, 2009 at 9:48 pm

Recently the Austin American Statesman interviewed me in detail
regarding my representation of numerous dentists before the Texas
State Board of Dental Examiners (TSBDE) for whom I had been the
attorney of record. During the interview I also spoke to the reporter
about several cases that were still in the investigative stage and as
such she would not have known anything about the case or that I was
the attorney representing the dentist in front of the TSBDE as the
investigation(s) are confidential pursuant Posted on Tuesday, August 25, 2009 at 7:19 pm

The Texas Administrative Procedure Act requires that an agency do the
following to effetively promulgate and adopt an agency rule : The
administrative agency must give at least 30 days' notice of its
intention to adopt the proposed rule before that rule goes into force.
Such notice must be submitted to the Texas Secretary of State for
publication in the Texas Register. Notice begins only on publication.
A proposed rule is automatically withdrawn six months after
publication in the Texas Register if it is Posted on Wednesday, August 12, 2009 at 11:02 pm

Every month, I get emails from various contractors wanting to lien a
residential or commercial property. The problem is that not all work
performed at a residence or building or on a property entitles the
person to a mechanic's lien pursuant to the Texas Property Code To
meet the definition, the work performed must be considered to be a
fixture or financial benefit to increase the value of real property.
For example, dental equipment, dish satellites, lawn mowing, property
security, etc. would not increase Posted on Saturday, February 6, 2010 at 12:32 am

Friday Links: Be careful cashing that check - Good advice for
contractors in Texas also. Lets hope this comes true - Hopefully they
want a custom home to help get the custom home builders building
again. Texas House Committee on Judiciary & Civil Jurisprudence
Meeting - Potentially a little biased, but something to watch out for.
The big builder news in Texas - Luckily no one was hurt or killed in
the collapse and the rain didn't start till a week later…here comes
the litigation. Posted on Sunday, January 31, 2010 at 4:53 am

While most of you know that I primarily practice in the Construction
Law arena, I am also very passionate about the necessity of Estate
Planning / Wills. This year has been an eventful year in many
respects. One of the most unusual surrounds one of my probate cases.
This isn't an ordinary probate case but involves 65 heirs. I know, you
are probably asking yourself how anyone can even have 65 heirs. The
problem here? The woman died without executing a will. She had no
parents, no husband, no children, and no Posted on Friday, January 22, 2010 at 2:53 am

Jimmy Verner announced today that Grandparents' Rights in Texas is now
available as a Kindle eBook from amazon.com. A physical copy will soon
be available through amazon's CreateSpace feature. In 2000, the United
States Supreme Court decided a case called Troxel v. Granville. The
Court ruled that a grandparent may not obtain visitation with a
grandchild over a parent's objection unless the grandparent can
demonstrate that the parent is unfit. Since 2000, the Texas Supreme
Court has addressed grandparents' Posted on Thursday, January 21, 2010 at 1:46 pm

Texas Lawyer's "Tex Parte Blog" posted a nice blurb about our iPhone
app that calculates Texas guideline child support: Texas child
support? There's an app for that. Jimmy Verner Jr. (pictured), a
shareholder in Dallas' Verner & Brumley, has begun marketing a
Texas child support calculator application for an iPhone. "I'm kind of
a techy person. I developed a formula for figuring out child support
payments online, and someone in my office said, 'You ought to turn it
into an iPhone application,' " recalls Posted on Thursday, July 30, 2009 at 4:38 pm

Verner & Brumley, P.C., announces that Jimmy Verner has created an
iPhone application that calculates Texas guideline child support. With
only five inputs, anyone - whether an attorney or a person in the
middle of a divorce or modification suit - can calculate the exact
amount of Texas guideline child support that must be paid. The inputs
are: whether the person who will pay child support is self-employed
that person's gross annual income how many children are before the
court the amount of annual Posted on Friday, July 24, 2009 at 4:52 pm

The Delaware Corporate and Commercial Litigation Blog recently
discussed a decision out of the Eastern District of Texas. In Proctor
& Gamble Co. v. S.C. Johnson & Son, Inc., the Court refused to
shift the costs involved to OCR the defendant's production of
documents. The Court found that cost shifting was inappropriate in
this case because the defendant failed to show the documents were
obtainable from other sources, had adequate financial resources
available, and the OCR process was likely to Posted on Thursday, January 7, 2010 at 11:43 am

In Superior Production Partnership v. Gordon Auto Body Parts Co. (S.D.
Ohio 2009) the Court ruled that sanctions were not appropriate absent
evidence that any relevant information had been destroyed. The case
involved predatory pricing and Superior Production d/b/a PBSI brought
a motion for sanctions based upon the defendants failure to institute
a legal hold and failure to conduct a thorough search for relevant
information. The Defendants had not instituted a formal legal hold and
their search for Posted on Thursday, January 7, 2010 at 11:43 am

Here is a quick survey of activity going around around the e-Discovery
Universe this morning: Bow Tie Law's Blog recently wrote about The
Plumbing of a Motion to Compel, the discussion of a failed argument to
avoid the production of ESI because of undue burden. The Delaware
Corporate and Commerical Litigation Blog recently provided two posts
of interest. The first discussed Four Recent Chancery Court Decisions
on Electronic Discovery Issues. The second discussed a recent article
written on Rule 502 and Posted on Thursday, January 7, 2010 at 11:43 am