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El Paso Attorney Wins Race for President-Elect of State Bar of Texas
Members of the State Bar of Texas have elected El Paso lawyer Sylvia Borunda Firth as their next President-elect. Firth will be sworn in as President-elect later this month and will serve as President from June 2021 to June 2022. The current President-elect,...
Tyler Court of Appeals Tosses $21 Million Verdict in Trucking Case
In a case that clearly demonstrates the tactics some plaintiff's lawyers use to persuade juries to make mega-million awards in trucking cases, the Tyler Court of Appeals has drawn a line against prejudicial and inflammatory trial tactics. Enbridge Pipelines (North...
Statement by former President George W. Bush
Statement by President George W. Bush "The heroes of America — from Frederick Douglass, to Harriet Tubman, to Abraham Lincoln, to Martin Luther King, Jr. — are heroes of unity. Their calling has never been for the fainthearted. They often revealed the nation’s...
Split Supreme Court Upholds Arbitration Clause in Construction Contract by Governmental Entity
By a 5-4 majority, the Texas Supreme Court has held that a clause in a construction contract between a governmental entity and a private contractor that requires binding arbitration of disputes is enforceable. San Antonio River Authority v. Austin Bridge &...
Duncan, Phillips, Ratliff to Advise TCJL Pandemic Task Force
Three of Texas' top legal experts on civil justice issues have agreed to join the TCJL Pandemic Task Force in advisory roles: former State Senator and Texas Tech Chancellor Bob Duncan, a prime architect of civil justice reforms in 1995, 2003, and 2005; former Chief...
State Sales Tax Collections Plummet
Comptroller of Public Accounts Glenn Hegar has announced a decline in May sales tax receipts of 13.2% from May 2019. According to the Comptroller, this represents the largest year-over-year reduction since the financial crisis in 2010. Unsurprisingly, business...
Former Harris County Republican Chair, Rep. Zedler, and Others Sue Governor Abbott
Former Harris County Chair Jared Woodfill is the named attorney on an emergency petition filed with the Texas Supreme Court last Friday seeking to invalidate Governor Abbott's emergency orders relating to the coronavirus pandemic. The petition alleges that the...
SCOTX Extends Emergency Order Through September
The Texas Supreme Court has renewed and extended its emergency order suspending most proceedings in trial courts until September 30. Deadlines for the filing or service of any civil case falling on a day between March 13, 2020, and July 1, 2020, are extended until...
Southeast Texas Record: TCJL Joins Institute for Legal Reform, Others to Urge Congressional Action on COVID-19 Liability Protection
Today's edition of the Southeast Texas Record reports the joint letter of the Institute for Legal Reform and TCJL urging congressional action on COVID-19 liability protection. You can read the story here:...
TAMU Real Estate Center Releases April Jobs Data
The Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University's Monthly Economic Review paints a grim picture, but not quite as bad as the rest of the country: April 2020 Summary The Texas economy is suffering from COVID-19 pandemic and low oil prices. The state's economy...
Senator Cornyn Cites TCJL Leadership on Federal COVID Legislation
In a story published yesterday, Roll Call reports that federal COVID liability protection legislation will be a "red line priority for Republicans," in the words of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. President Trump is also quoted as backing the measure. Roll...
US Chamber: ILR Briefly COVID-19 Series: State Liability Problems and Solutions
May 21, 2020 As Congress considers how to establish liability protections at the federal level, it is essential that state lawmakers take up the complementary task of creating protections tailored to meet local needs. States like New York, Illinois, and Michigan...