U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
Recent News About U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
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Fifth Circuit serves up win for Harris County Criminal Court at Law judges
HOUSTON – The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued a ruling on Aug. 14 in the case of ODonnell v. Harris County, granting the request of the Harris County Criminal Court at Law judges to issue a stay of Judge Lee Rosenthal’s order in U.S. District Court, which required the release of defendants who claimed they could not afford to pay for bail. -
Fifth Circuit nixes $151M verdict, finds Mark Lanier misrepresented that experts weren’t compensated
DALLAS – DePuy Orthopaedics and Johnson & Johnson will get a new trial after the previous one in 2016 ended with the companies having to pay $151 million in damages to five plaintiffs with alleged hip replacement injuries. -
Abbott appoints Jimmy Blacklock to Texas Supreme Court
AUSTIN – On Jan. 3, Gov. Greg Abbott appointed and swore in Jimmy Blacklock to the Texas Supreme Court following Justice Don Willett’s confirmation to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. -
Family members of man struck and killed at SXSW Festival appeal wrongful death suit to federal court
NEW ORLEANS – The mother and child of Steven Craenmehr, who was killed when an allegedly intoxicated driver drove through road block signs into pedestrians in 2014 at the SXSW Festival, has appealed their case to the U.S. 5th District Court of Appeals after a district court dismissed their wrongful death suit. -
Texas investors appeal recently dismissed $7.2 billion Stanford Ponzi case against Proskauer law firm
NEW ORLEANS – Texas investors who for years have accused Proskauer Rose LLP of nurturing the $7.2 billion Robert Allen Stanford Ponzi scheme, appealed their case five days after it was dismissed by a federal judge who said the firm was entitled to attorney immunity. -
Tort reform group cheers reversal of $663M judgment against Trinity Industries
WASHINGTON - The American Tort Reform Association is cheering the recent reversal of a record-setting $663 million False Claims Act verdict in a case that helped land the Eastern District of Texas on ATRA’s Judicial Hellhole list two years ago. -
Fifth Circuit rejects Philip Klein appeal in litigation against Layne Walker
BEAUMONT – Area blogger Philip Klein recently had an appeal shot down by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in his litigation brought against former district judge Layne Walker. -
Supreme Court to determine future of employer arbitration agreements, lower courts divided on issue
NEW ORLEANS – Earlier this month, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit sided against the National Labor Relations Board, finding that Convergys Corp. has the right to require employees to arbitrate disputes against the company, keeping them from initiating class action lawsuits. -
Fifth Circuit affirms dismissal of civil rights suit against former JC Judge Layne Walker
BEAUMONT – On Aug. 9, The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed a federal court’s dismissal of a civil rights suit brought by African-American attorney Stella Morrison against former 252nd District Judge Layne Walker. -
EmCare loses appeal in wrongful termination lawsuit
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission wins appeal -
Fifth Circuit confirms dismissal of process server’s suit against Layne Walker
BEAUMONT – On Tuesday the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit confirmed a lower court’s dismissal of a complaint brought by a process server against the former Jefferson County district judge who had him arrested. -
SCOTUS declines review of Texas Hazlewood Act, AG declares victory for veterans and taxpayers
AUSTIN – On Jan. 9 the U.S. Supreme Court’s opted not to review a ruling that upholding Texas’ Hazlewood Act, a decision Attorney General Ken Paxton praised and called a victory for veterans and taxpayers. -
Exxon sued over misleading shareholders on climate change
On Nov. 6, 2016, stockholders filed a class action suit against Irving-based Exxon Mobil Corp. claiming the company concealed knowledge of climate change to investors. -
Fifth Circuit panel rules BKE suit must return to district court
NEW ORLEANS -- A Fifth Circuit panel recently affirmed the dismissal of an investor suit against Burger King Europe GmbH on the grounds that the district court was not best suited to hear the case. However, the case was sent back to the district court because it refused the investor’s request to amend its complaint without an explanation. -
AG Healey asks court to reconsider discovery order in Exxon climate change case
ABILENE – Earlier this month, a federal judge found Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey might have acted in bad faith when subpoenaing ExxonMobil, which the Democratic AG contends buried information on climate change for the past 40 years. -
Attorney Dan Linebaugh recognized by the American Association for Justice
HOUSTON -- Personal injury attorney Dan Linebaugh, founder and leader of the Linebaugh Law Firm, recently received the American Association for Justice (AAJ) Diplomates of Trial Advocacy designation. This title recognizes attorneys who have demonstrated their ongoing commitment to legal education by completing more than 400 hours of qualifying AAJ educational programs. -
Don't Thread on Me
The Texas Supreme Court’s 2015 decision in Patel v. Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, striking down a state law requiring at least 750 hours of training in order to perform commercial “eyebrow threading”—a form of hair removal mainly performed in South Asian and Middle Eastern communities—has generated substantial notoriety for the court and for the Institute for Justice, which brought the lawsuit challenging the law. -
Judicial Rebellion Against Voter ID
Like unruly schoolchildren using the presence of a substitute teacher as an opportunity to misbehave, in Veasey v. Abbott, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, sitting en banc, has sent the jurisprudential equivalent of a spitball at the U.S. Supreme Court knowing that the deadlocked Court would probably take no corrective action. -
DuPont refutes claims of reporting violations at Louisiana acid plant
NEW ORLEANS – E I DuPont de NeMours & Co recently asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit to dismiss a False Claims Act-based lawsuit filed against the company by Jeffrey M. Simoneaux.