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When disaster strikes, you can help or take advantage
The door of an armored truck traveling on Interstate 285 outside Atlanta popped open this summer and disgorged more than $175,000 on the highway. You can guess what happened next. A free-for-all ensued, with cash fluttering everywhere like confetti and motorists stopping in the middle of the road to collect as much of it as they could get their hands on.
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Legitimate grievance or snow job?
Could the plaintiff in this case be dreaming of a green Christmas?
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When you’re done, you’re done
The great English metaphysical poet John Donne got terrible grades in college. Often, when taking exams, he would come across a question that required a bit of thought, so he would put his quill pen down and ponder it. The proctor, seeing that he was no longer writing, would approach and ask, “Are you done?” Thinking that he was being asked to affirm his identity, he would reply, “Yes, I am.” Whereupon the proctor would take possession of his uncompleted test and dismiss him, dooming Donne to a failing mark.
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Time waits for no man, nor should it
“This tape will self-destruct in five seconds.”
So it did, week after week. Mr. Phelps of Mission Impossible never complained about the speed with which he had to absorb his assignment. He didn’t try to stop the tape or replay it, and he never confided to his handlers that he’d like an extension to the impending self-destruction.
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Our View on Martin Phipps: Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain!
Two years ago, Phipps Anderson Deacon (now Phipps Deacon Purnell) and three other Texas law firms submitted a contract to represent Bexar County in an opioid lawsuit. District Attorney Nico LaHood subsequently relayed the contract to the Commissioners Court and got same-day approval.
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What’s really dangerous is the political climate generated by demagogues
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton exposed the scam two years ago: “The City of New York, along with liberal mayors and trial lawyers across the country, want to extract billions of dollars from a handful of oil and natural gas companies based on the entirely unproven claim that those companies are responsible for climate change and global warming.”
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Let Chase Taylor rest in peace
Richard and Catherine Taylor’s son, Chase, died two years ago, early on October 10, 2017, in a one-vehicle accident on U.S. 90 in Beaumont that remains a mystery. A passenger in a pickup truck driven by a friend, he died of a gunshot wound to the head.
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Voters can approve or reject opioid lawsuits, too
Two decades ago, Texas legislators revised rules for government agencies hiring outside lawyers, thenceforth requiring contingency-fee contracts to be submitted to the state comptroller for approval, capping contingency fees at 35 percent, establishing strict requirements for keeping billing records, and prescribing a method for calculating fees.
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Miguel Vasquez, the wannabe ‘Five Million Dollar Man’
How much is a foot injury really worth?
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Let TWIA have its say!
Insurance litigation firm Daly & Black is responsible for more than two thirds of the 300+ Hurricane Harvey lawsuits filed against the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association. That’s a lot of cases to litigate. Surely, it would be more efficient and less time-consuming to try them all at once.
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This Hatfield is not the real McCoy
Last year, Channel 2 Investigates published a video showing Rick Daly of insurance litigation firm Daly & Black touting his connection to Todd Hunter, the state representative who went to work as a lobbyist for the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association and then returned to the legislature as a TWIA nemesis.
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San Antonio succumbs to opioid lawsuit addiction
“The misuse and abuse of prescription opioids is a complex public health challenge that requires a collaborative and systemic response that engages all stakeholders,” says John Parker of the Healthcare Distribution Alliance.
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Will Tropical Storm Tony become Mayor Hurricane Buzbee?
With wind speeds of 130+ mph, Category 4 hurricanes spin fast, but not as fast as the Buzbee Law Firm spun as the two-year deadline for filing Hurricane Harvey lawsuits approached. They filed nearly 400 suits in Harris County District Court in just five days.
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We need an appraisal of the appraisal process
“When there are no rules, bad actors come out of the woodwork,” observes attorney Jeff Raizner. “Appraisal misconduct is rampant, and I predict that the entire process will eventually be outlawed … if it doesn’t get cleaned up fast.”
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Tammy Tran is suffering from a bad case of champerty
Like most states, Texas once prohibited third-party financing of lawsuits. Fronting the money for someone else’s litigation in exchange for a share of the anticipated settlement constituted the crime of champerty. It still does in states that have not abandoned this sensible safeguard.
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Wet mops get floors wet? Who knew?
Last month, Lucine Hinze filed a lawsuit against a Frisco Jason’s Deli, seeking up to $1 million in compensation for injuries she allegedly suffered there two years ago after slipping and falling on a wet floor near the salad bar. Hinze argues that the deli was negligent because there was no “wet floor” sign in place to warn customers, and apparently there wasn’t.
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Who’s supporting Sri Preston Kulkarni?
“So you want to see the tax returns of the billionaire that became a politician? A smart person would want to see the tax returns of politicians who became millionaires.”
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Trial lawyers hate arbitration, except when they like it
“Binding arbitration clauses are inescapable,” warns Texas Watch, a group funded by trial lawyers. “They appear in all forms of consumer contracts, big and small. Virtually every time you use a credit card, join a gym, buy a car or use your cell phone you are giving up your legal rights. If you have a dispute with one of these companies, you are forced into a closed, costly, and tilted process without any appeal or public record.”
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We’re not falling for this story
Falling down used to embarrass people. The first thing they’d do is look around to see if anyone had seen them. If not, they’d still have their pride. It was like they’d never fallen at all. They might be hurt, but not embarrassed.