Newsroom
Divided SCOTX Reverses Beaumont Court of Appeals in Important Contractual Indemnity Case
A closely divided Texas Supreme Court has reversed a Beaumont Court of Appeals decision that erroneously applied the express negligence rule to an indemnity provision in a contract between a general and subcontractor. S&B Engineers & Constructors, Ltd. and...
SCOTX Reverses El Paso Court of Appeals Decision Blocking Landowner from Appealing Groundwater District’s Denial of Party Status
A unanimous Texas Supreme Court has reversed two El Paso Court of Appeals’ decisions holding that it lacked jurisdiction to consider a landowner’s appeal of the district’s denial of its request for party status to contest a permit application. Cockrell Investment...
Houston [14th] Court of Appeals Affirms TC Order Granting Summary Judgment for Employer in Dispute Over Arbitration Agreement
The Houston [14th] Court of Appeals has affirmed a TC order granting an employer’s motion for summary judgment in case in which an arbitrator determined that Plaintiff-employee had failed to adhere to the arbitration agreement’s requirement that she submit her...
Governor Abbott Appoints Laura Pratt To Seventh Court of Appeals
Governor Greg Abbott appointed Laura Pratt to the Seventh Court of Appeals, Place 2 for a term set to expire December 31, 2026, or until her successor shall be duly elected and qualified. Laura Pratt of Lubbock is a member attorney at Sprouse Shrader Smith PLLC....
Houston [14th] Court of Appeals Reverses TC Award of Prejudgment Interest in Excess of UIM Policy Limits
The Houston [14th] Court of Appeals has affirmed a trial court judgment in favor of the insured in a UIM case but reversed the trial court’s award of prejudgment interest in excess of policy limits. State Farm Automobile Insurance Company v. Lance Bellis (No....
15th Court of Appeals Reverses TC Mandamus to Force DPS to Disclose Materials Related to Uvalde Shooting to News Organizations
The 15th Court of Appeals has reversed a summary judgment for news organizations that made Public Information Requests for all materials, current and future, obtained by DPS in its investigation of the Uvalde school shooting. This doesn't mean that some or all of...
15th Court of Appeals Affirms TC Reversal of TCEQ Decision to Issue Water-Rights Permit to Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority
The 15th Court of Appeals has affirmed a trial court ruling reversing TCEQ’s decision to grant a water-rights permit to a river authority for a substantial diversion of water from the Guadalupe River. Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and Guadalupe-Blanco...
Divided Houston [14th] Court of Appeals Holds That Third-Party Coverage Defendants in South Carolina Asbestos Case Have Standing to Appeal as Post-Judgment Intervenors in Texas Foreign Order Domestication Proceeding
Over a dissent, the Houston [14th] Court of Appeals has held that two insurers of a long dissolved Texas corporation facing an asbestos-related wrongful death suit in South Carolina have standing to appeal the company’s receiver’s suit to domesticate the South...
Business Court Splits Baby in Dispute Over Settlement Proceeds in Suit Between Eagleford Gas Producers
Following the second-ever trial held in the Business Court, the court determined that a squabble over allocation of the proceeds (and responsibility for paying attorney’s fees) of the settlement of a lawsuit brought by Sanchez Oil and Gas against a competitor who...
El Paso Court of Appeals Reverses TC Order Denying Medical Provider’s Objections to Plaintiffs’ Expert Reports
The El Paso Court of Appeals has returned a case to the trial court for erroneously overruling a home health care provider’s objections to Plaintiffs’ expert reports. AOC TX, LLC d/b/a Angels of Care Pediatric Home Health v. Naomi Landeros and Carlos Silva,...
In Case of First Impression Dallas Court of Appeals Hears Relator’s Motion for Rehearing Where It Dismissed Relator’s Original Proceeding as Moot
In a case of first impression, the Dallas Court of Appeals heard a relator’s motion for rehearing following its dismissal of the relator’s petition for writ of mandamus for mootness. The issue involved the construction of § 15.0642, CPRC, which establishes the...
Dallas Court of Appeals Reverses $12 Million Judgment, $700,000 Attorney’s Fee Award in Construction Contract Dispute
The Dallas Court of Appeals has reversed a $12 million judgment against a property owner and surety, along with $700,000 in attorney’s fees, in a breach of contract suit filed by a general contractor. KWA Construction, L.P. and Hartford Fire Insurance Company v....