SOUTHEAST TEXAS RECORD

BEAUMONT – With the filing deadline past, four local trial lawyers, three of whom are Democrats, will compete to be the next judge of the 172nd District Court in Jefferson County.

HOUSTON – Earlier this year, a video showing a former United Airlines employee pushing a Houston attorney to the ground went viral. A lawsuit seeking more than $1 million in damages soon followed, alleging the incident left the 73-year old lawyer with “diminishing cognitive function.” And now, plaintiff Ronald Tigner, a Cozen O’Connor attorney, is claiming that United, in response to his suit, is making “overreaching discovery” requests – essentially engaging in a prohibited “fishing expedition” in search of “dirt” that can be used “to try and embarrass” and “intimidate” him from pursuing his lawsuit.

HOUSTON - A well-known car dealership recently had its summary judgment win affirmed by the 14th Court of Appeals in a breach of contract lawsuit.

DALLAS – Several Texas civil justice groups have endorsed John Browning, a Dallas attorney with nearly three decades of experience practicing law, to become a justice on the state’s most active court of appeals.

BEAUMONT – Water utility staff for the city of Beaumont who were demoted or lost their job because of an evaluation performed by CH2M Engineers can proceed with their suits, thanks to a recent appellate court ruling. More than a year ago, several current and former city employees filed suit against CH2M in Jefferson County District Court, seeking damages for defamation and tortious interference with a contract.

HOUSTON – Texas’ First Court of appeals recently found no expert report is needed in a lawsuit against Walgreens, which alleges an “animated discussion” between the plaintiff and a pharmacist resulted in a physical altercation.

AUSTIN – For the past two years, two of Texas’ more litigious venues caught the attention of the American Tort Reform Association -- Hidalgo County, arguably the birthplace of mass hailstorm litigation, and the Eastern District of Texas, a hot spot for patent infringement cases.

BEAUMONT - The Ferguson Law Firm has intervened in a civil lawsuit involving the shooting death of Kera Teel and her unborn daughter, entering the litigation on behalf of Teel’s mother, Mindy Morris.

BEAUMONT – A lack of warning signs for boxes in an aisle of a Family Dollar store allegedly caused a Beaumont woman to slip and fall nearly two years ago.

HOUSTON — A Houston woman’s suit against Wells Fargo, which alleged unlawful employment practices and discrimination, has been dismissed.

AUSTIN - Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has joined 23 other states in urging Congress to enact national concealed-carry reciprocity legislation.

BEAUMONT – A defendant in an automobile collision lawsuit who argued that a police report shows his vehicle was pushed into the plaintiff’s vehicle after he was rear-ended was denied summary judgment.

MARSHALL – While FedEx may advertise that it’s “everywhere you need to be,” apparently that slogan also applies to judicial venue, at least when the litigation is brought in the Eastern District of Texas – a preferred venue for patent suit filers.

BEAUMONT – A bedspread placed in an aisle of a Kohl’s Department Store nearly two years ago “posed an unreasonable risk of harm” to shoppers, according to a recently filed lawsuit.

HOUSTON – A trial court did not error in granting an employee placement firm summary judgment in a lawsuit alleging it was negligent in recommending a temp who eventually embezzled $160,000 from the company she was placed with, the 14th Court of Appeals recently found.

HOUSTON – A Houston attorney named in a malpractice lawsuit recently had her summary judgment win affirmed by Texas’ First Court of Appeals.

AUSTIN – Gov. Greg Abbott has announced his general counsel, Jimmy Blacklock, will fill the vacancy on the Texas Supreme Court Justice Don R. Willett will create if confirmed by the Senate for the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals.

AUSTIN – On Nov. 27, Attorney General Ken Paxton joined a coalition of five states led by West Virginia in support of President Trump’s authority to appoint temporary leadership at the nation’s Consumer Financial Protection Bureau until a permanent director is nominated and confirmed.

HOUSTON – Following Harvey, attorneys from all over began pouring into Houston in hopes of snatching up victims affected by the purposeful release of two reservoirs.

AUSTIN – Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton recently announced that the Child Exploitation Unit of his office arrested 57-year-old David Ray Gardner, of Brady, on two counts of Possession of Child Pornography, a third-degree felony.