The latest from Texas Lawyer
- Litigator of the Week: Man on a Mission
- Get Down to Brass Tacks: His French Horn Days are Over, but Judge Still Knows the Score
- VerdictSearch
- Appellate Lawyer of the Week: Unsigned, But Executed
- The States Are Getting in on the MDL Action
- Inadmissible
- Discipline
- Newsmakers
- Ten Key Supreme Court Decisions of the 2010-2011 Term
- Questions to Ask to Win the Next Hearing
- Letter to the Editor: Credit Where It's Due
- I Like Being a Lawyer
- Commentary: The ABCs of TROs
- Commentary: Law and Living La Dolce Vita
- Commentary: Med-Mal Suits Against Government-Employed Docs Nixed
- How to Motivate Lawyers Effectively
- Commentary: Leaning In — Female Professionals Must Embrace Ambition
- Commentary: How to Deal With Questions From the Bench
- Commentary: Board Certification — The Last Big Hurdle
- Are You Beer-Worthy?
| Litigator of the Week: Man on a Mission | Top |
| An unusual procedural approach during the trial of Gruma Corp. v. Mexican Restaurants Inc. recently led to a defense judgment in a trademark infringement suit for a Houston lawyer and his client Mexican Restaurants Inc. The lawyer says the trial judge granted his pretrial motion requesting a "rare" advisory jury, which he had never used before. | |
| Get Down to Brass Tacks: His French Horn Days are Over, but Judge Still Knows the Score | Top |
| If Steve Smith weren't the judge of the 361st District Court in Bryan, he'd probably be a band director. Before a friend "veered" him off course to law school, Smith was marching toward a career in music. He was a part-time municipal judge in College Station and later a court-at-law judge before landing at the 361st District Court after winning election in 1998. | |
| VerdictSearch | Top |
| Female workers who claimed judge fondled them awarded $3.2 million. Doctor not liable for breast-implant complications. Patient gets $264,000 for injuries from lithium toxicity. Jury awards $12,984 to motorcyclist thrown from bike. Plaintiff awarded $4,030 for knee injury. Defendant not liable for rear-ender with city truck. Elderly pedestrian gets $212,500 for truck accident. Driver recovers for back and neck injuries. Worker burned by boiling water gets $64,000. Tree stand maker not liable for hunter's fall. | |
| Appellate Lawyer of the Week: Unsigned, But Executed | Top |
| For his first-ever oral argument before an appeals court, a Beaumont lawyer traveled from Beaumont to El Paso, because the Texas Supreme Court reassigned the 9th Court of Appeals case to the 8th Court of Appeals under a caseload equalization program. He says he was surprised the appeal was moved so far from where the parties and lawyers live, instead of to a venue closer to Beaumont such as Tyler or Eastland. But things worked out just fine for his client. | |
| The States Are Getting in on the MDL Action | Top |
| The field of combat in the Toyota sudden-acceleration litigation is the Central District of California, where 300 cases have been coordinated in federal multidistrict litigation. But there are plenty of side skirmishes in state courts (including Texas), which over the years have emulated the federal coordination system. "The frustration for some of the practitioners is that you'd end up with a bunch of cases in federal court in an MDL, but you didn't have that in state court," says Dallas attorney Yvette Ostolaza. | |
| Inadmissible | Top |
| "Wildfire Losses," "Party Time," "Jones Not Amused," "Costa Nominated," "Powerful Post" and "'Staggering Chutzpah'" | |
| Discipline | Top |
| Three lawyers have been publicly reprimanded, the State Bar of Texas reported recently. | |
| Newsmakers | Top |
| Ten Key Supreme Court Decisions of the 2010-2011 Term | Top |
| Texas is among the nation's largest and most economically vibrant and diverse states. So it's no surprise the state's highest civil court enjoys a regular diet of significant legal controversies, write James C. Ho and Ashley E. Johnson. They chose 10 of those decisions to highlight from the 2010-2011 term. | |
| Questions to Ask to Win the Next Hearing | Top |
| Though it should go without saying, judges are busy, writes James M. Stanton. They can spend only a fraction of the time attorneys do preparing for each hearing. To zero in on what the judge wants to know to resolve the dispute in a client's favor, counsel should be prepared to answer four questions, regardless of the type of motion or plea he is presenting. | |
| Letter to the Editor: Credit Where It's Due | Top |
| I Like Being a Lawyer | Top |
| Tracy J. Willi lists the top five reasons she likes being a lawyer. | |
| Commentary: The ABCs of TROs | Top |
| It's a sunny Friday afternoon at 2:00. An associate is thinking about ducking out of the office early for happy hour. But just then the phone rings: It's a big client, and her company needs a petition and a temporary restraining order filed ASAP. What to do? Anthony Lowenberg offers a quick primer on the last-minute TRO. | |
| Commentary: Law and Living La Dolce Vita | Top |
| At some point in their lives and careers, many people dream about how life would be in a different country. The fantasy is often that life is easier on the other side of the pond. Suzanne E. Tomkies, an American expatriate and a Texas lawyer who has lived overseas for 12 years, says attorneys often ask her how to go about living and working in another country. She gives a glimpse into the life of an American lawyer in Rome. | |
| Commentary: Med-Mal Suits Against Government-Employed Docs Nixed | Top |
| Most Texas lawyers know that in 2003 the Legislature, in H.B. 4, enacted sweeping legislation to protect doctors in medical-malpractice suits, writes Amy Warr, a partner in the appellate boutique Alexander Dubose & Townsend in Austin. H.B. 4 capped damages, required the early filing of expert reports, shortened the limitations period and mandated jury unanimity for punitive damages. | |
| How to Motivate Lawyers Effectively | Top |
| Managing partners in today's first-generation firms are increasingly aware of the need for an effective method of motivating their lawyers, says Joel A. Rose. The basic question facing these partners is how to enable lawyers to achieve — in effect, how to motivate lawyers so they will stay with the firm. | |
| Commentary: Leaning In — Female Professionals Must Embrace Ambition | Top |
| August means two things to big-firm lawyers: goodbye to summer associates and hello to first-year associates — that and weather hot enough to melt a cheap briefcase, says Kathleen J. Wu. For those sending the summers back to law school and bringing the newly minted lawyers into the fold, she offers some wisdom from an up-and-comer in whom she has taken a particular interest. | |
| Commentary: How to Deal With Questions From the Bench | Top |
| One of the most stressful moments of a hearing or argument comes when the judge looks up from her papers, clears her throat and says, "Counsel, I have a question." This simple sentence can fluster new and experienced counsel alike, but the strategy for capable answers in the courtroom is simple, says Jim Moseley. To deal effectively with questions from the bench, a lawyer must appreciate the queries for what they are, anticipate what questions may be asked and prepare truthful responses that advance the client's position. | |
| Commentary: Board Certification — The Last Big Hurdle | Top |
| In 1994, Kendall Gray was a briefing attorney at the Texas Supreme Court. When he and his co-clerks looked at the briefs and sat in the courtroom listening to arguments, they often thought the lawyering wasn't especially good, he remembers. They thought they could do at least as well, if not better. But he says he now knows that appellate practice is not as easy as it looks. | |
| Are You Beer-Worthy? | Top |
| Let's face it, many lawyers are introverts, says Adrian Dayton. They feel more comfortable working at their desks than at a networking reception filled with strangers and awkward moments. Perhaps this is why introverts are drawn to the idea of social networking and business development through LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook. They hope they won't have to put themselves out there to build new relationships. Unfortunately, this is not reality, he says. | |
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