Appellate Lawyer Newsletter

  • Issue v. Argument Preservation October 31, 2022
    The record provides the raw material of an appeal; it is the closed universe in which appellate practitioners work. The Texas courts of appeal, after all, do not consider matters outside the record on appeal. That’s old hat. The record is important, critically so. And, so, we are all well-acquainted with the appellate record’s preparation. ...
  • Appellate Considerations in a Contested Special Master Appointment October 31, 2022
    by Nicholas Bruno The Texas Rules of Civil Procedure allow the appointment of a “master in chancery” “in exceptional cases” and “for good cause.” Tex. R. Civ. P. 171. Such appointments may be by agreement. But oftentimes that appointment may be contested—and appellate lawyers may be consulted in advising a client about, and ultimately briefing issues ...
  • Case Updates from the Fifth Circuit October 28, 2022
    by Kelsi White Standing: This quarter, the Fifth Circuit issued a handful of standing decisions analyzing the impact of TransUnion LLC v. Ramirez, 141 S. Ct. 2190 (2021), on Fifth Circuit precedent. Anyone looking at moving to dismiss for lack of standing should do some refresher research on the state of the law, as the Fifth ...
  • Case Updates from the First Court of Appeals October 28, 2022
    by Parth Gejji Amelang v. Harris County Appraisal District, No. 01-20-00623-CV, __ S.W.3d __, 2022 WL 4371518 (Tex. App.—Houston Sept. 22, 2022, no pet. h.). Panel consisted of Justices Landau, Hightower, and Rivas-Molloy. Opinion by Justice Hightower. This opinion deals with incompetent expert testimony offered to prove the fair market value for two properties. Karl J. Amelang, ...
  • Case Updates from the Fourteenth Court of Appeals October 28, 2022
    by Eleanor Mason, Staff Attorney for Justice Hassan, Fourteenth Court of Appeals Lennar Homes of Tex., Inc. v. Rafiei, 652 S.W.3d 532, (Tex. App.—Houston Aug. 16, 2022, no pet. h.) (Zimmerer, J., majority; Jewell, J., dissenting). In Lennar Homes of Texas, Inc., the Fourteenth Court of Appeals affirmed the denial of a motion to compel ...
  • Did You Know? October 28, 2022
    by JoAnn Storey, JoAnn Storey, P.C. It is improper for the trial court to conduct a conflicts-of-law analysis regarding the application of Chapter 33’s provisions governing proportionate responsibility in a tort case. See Smith v. Cudd Pressure Control Inc., 126 S.W.3d 106, 111 (Tex.App.─Houston 2003, pet. denied). The court reasoned that such an analysis ...
  • A Couple Developments in Preserving Evidentiary Errors in Summary Judgment Practice July 20, 2022
    The record provides the raw material of an appeal; it is the closed universe in which appellate practitioners work. The Texas courts of appeal, after all, do not consider matters outside the record on appeal. That’s old hat. The record is important, critically so. And, so, we are all well-acquainted with the appellate record’s preparation. ...
  • Permissive Interlocutory Appeals Under Texas Law July 20, 2022
    by Nicholas Bruno Litigators are well aware of the “general rule” that only final judgments are appealable. While not a true “appeal,” the availability of review of an (often interlocutory) order at an appellate court through mandamus is often an exception to that “general rule.” Mandamus, however, is not the only avenue for interlocutory review. The Texas ...
  • Case Updates from the Fifth Circuit July 20, 2022
    by Kelsi White Rolls v. Packaging Corp. of Am. Inc., 34 F.4th 431 (5th Cir. 2022). In Rolls, the Fifth Circuit affirmed (1) the denial of a motion to remand and (2) the grant of summary judgment on a Louisiana plaintiff’s wrongful-death claims for the death of her husband in a workplace explosion. This case is useful ...
  • Case Updates from the First Court of Appeals July 20, 2022
    by Parth Gejji Budget Rent a Car System, LLC v. Ozumba, No. 01-20-00408-CV, 2022 WL 2347742 (Tex. App.—Houston June 30, 2022, no pet. h.) (mem. op.) (Rivas-Molloy, J.). This case reinforces a fundamental lesson regarding jury charges: be careful about combining different theories of liability or defense into one jury question where there is a ...
  • Case Updates from the Fourteenth Court of Appeals July 20, 2022
    by Eleanor Mason, Staff Attorney for Justice Hassan, Fourteenth Court of Appeals Simmons v. Taylor, __ S.W.3d __, 2022 WL 1498090 (Tex. App.—Houston May 12, 2022, no pet.) (Christopher, C.J.). In Simmons, the court held that it had jurisdiction over an interlocutory appeal challenging an oral ruling denying a motion to dismiss under the Texas ...
  • Did You Know? July 20, 2022
    by JoAnn Storey, JoAnn Storey, P.C. Discovery is not unduly burdensome “here a responding party’s own conscious, discretionary decision, such as how it chooses to store and organize its materials, causes discovery to be burdensome.” In re K & L Auto Crushers, LLC, 627 S.W.3d 239, 253 (Tex. 2021) (orig. proceeding) (citing In re State Farm ...
  • Procedural Considerations for En Banc Consideration in the First Instance April 29, 2022
    by Nicholas Bruno The relative infrequency of en banc decisions in the courts of appeals leaves relatively few opinions governing various issues related to en banc procedures. This is especially true because not all of the intermediate appellate courts in Texas are comprised of more than three justices. A recent set of opinions from a case in ...
  • The Timing of Record Supplements on Appeal April 29, 2022
    The record provides the raw material of an appeal; it is the closed universe in which appellate practitioners work. The Texas courts of appeal, after all, do not consider matters outside the record on appeal. That’s old hat. The record is important, critically so. And, so, we are all well-acquainted with the appellate record’s preparation. ...
  • Case Updates from the Fifth Circuit April 29, 2022
    by Kelsi White Q Clothier New Orleans, L.L.C. v. Twin City Fire Ins. Co., No. 21-30278 (Mar. 22, 2022). In Q Clothier, the Fifth Circuit weighed in on insurance coverage for COVID-related losses from government shutdown orders under Louisiana law. Q Clothier, an upscale men’s clothing store, made a claim on its property insurance after government shutdown ...
  • Case Updates from the First Court of Appeals April 29, 2022
    by Parth Gejji Innovative Vision Solutions, LLC v. Kempner, No. 01-20-00195-CV, 2022 WL 868130 (Tex. App.—Houston Mar. 24, 2022, no pet. h.) (mem. op.). Panel consisted of Justices Goodman, Hightower, and Rivas-Molloy. Opinion by Justice Hightower. This opinion is notable because it deals with an oral Rule 11 agreement that was a settlement agreement. The important ...
  • Case Updates from the Fourteenth Court of Appeals April 29, 2022
    by Eleanor Mason, Staff Attorney for Justice Hassan, Fourteenth Court of Appeals M.A. Mills, P.C. v. Knotts, 640 S.W.3d 323 (Tex. App.—Houston Jan. 20, 2022, no pet. h.) (Christopher, C.J.). As a matter of first impression, the Fourteenth Court of Appeals in Knotts held that an agreement’s alleged violation of the Texas Disciplinary Rules of ...
  • Did You Know? April 29, 2022
    by JoAnn Storey, JoAnn Storey, P.C. A person need not be a party to the underlying litigation in order to seek mandamus relief. Terrazas v. Ramirez, 829 S.W.2d 712, 723 (Tex.1991) (orig. proceeding). Rather, relators must have a justiciable interest in the underlying controversy. Id. (holding relators, registered voters, have a justiciable interest in challenge to ...
  • April 2022 Crossword Puzzle April 29, 2022
    Puzzle in .puz format.  To use this puzzle, right click on the link, save the file, and then save a version of the file, changing the extension, .pdf, to .puz to use. Solution  
  • The Scope of Permissive Interlocutory Appeals in Texas January 31, 2022
    by Ryan Philip Pitts, an associate in the appellate practice group of Haynes Boone, LLP’s Houston office. Texas law authorizes a trial court to permit—and a court of appeals to accept—an interlocutory appeal from an otherwise unappealable order if the order “involves a controlling question of law as to which there is a substantial ground for ...
  • Special Judges under Government Code Section 24.004 January 31, 2022
    by Nicholas Bruno The typical civil case in Texas state court is heard by the district court judge of that court. But various Texas statutes allow a person, other than the elected district court judge, to preside over the case with various limitations. This article describes the possibility of—and potential limits to—seeking the appointment of a ...
  • Case Updates from the Fifth Circuit January 31, 2022
    by Kelsi White Vikas WSP, Ltd., v. Economy Mud Prods. Co., __ F.4th __, No. 20-20309, 2022 WL 92861 (5th Cir. Jan. 10, 2022). In Vikas, the Fifth Circuit considered a district court’s jurisdiction to consider various claims arising from breach of a settlement agreement entered in that same court when the district court retains jurisdiction to ...
  • Case Updates from the First Court of Appeals January 31, 2022
    by Parth Gejji Patriot Contracting, LLC v. Shelter Prods., Inc., __ S.W.3d __, No. 01-19-00971-CV, 2021 WL 6067721 (Tex. App.—Houston Dec. 23, 2021, no pet. h.) (Countiss, J.). This opinion is notable because it deals with Mary Carter agreements—an important topic in Texas law that arises on occasion. Patriot Contracting, LLC (“Patriot”) was the general contractor ...
  • Case Updates from the Fourteenth Court of Appeals January 31, 2022
    by Eleanor Mason, Staff Attorney for Justice Hassan, Fourteenth Court of Appeals DHI Holdings, LP v. Deutsche Bank Nat’l Trust Co., __ S.W.3d __, 2021 WL 5071472 (Tex. App.—Houston Nov. 2, 2021, no pet. h.) (Spain, J., majority and Zimmerer, J., dissenting). In DHI Holdings, the court held that a party may not appeal a ...
  • Did You Know? January 31, 2022
    by JoAnn Storey, JoAnn Storey, P.C. Way back in June 2010, a bunch of really committed and dedicated appellate lawyers, trial-court judges, and court of appeals justices got together to brainstorm ideas to revamp this newsletter. Since then, we’ve all been treated to their efforts and to the efforts of those who give their time and ...
  • Case Updates from the Houston Courts of Appeals Part I October 29, 2021
    by Eleanor Mason, Staff Attorney for Justice Hassan, Fourteenth Court of Appeals Lennar Homes of Tex. Land & Constr., Ltd. v. Whiteley, 625 S.W.3d 569 (Tex. App.—Houston 2021, no pet. h.) (Hassan, J.). In Lennar Homes v. Whiteley, the Fourteenth Court of Appeals held that a special warranty deed’s arbitration provision did not constitute a ...
  • Case Updates from the Houston Courts of Appeals Part II October 29, 2021
    by Parth Gejji Barker v. Hurst, No. 01-19-00529-CV, 2021 WL 2428981 (Tex. App.—Houston June 15, 2021, no pet.). Panel consisted of Chief Justice Radack and Justices Goodman and Farris. Majority Opinion by Chief Justice Radack. Dissenting Opinion by Justice Goodman. This fascinating opinion was rendered in the second appeal arising from a case dealing with the ...
  • A Clean Break from Messy Citations: “(cleaned up)” October 29, 2021
    by McKenzie Edwards and Stephani Michel The legal profession has a reputation for being resistant to change. Despite this, a recently proposed modification to the Bluebook’s citation rules has rapidly infiltrated the legal community.[1]Jack Metzler, Cleaning up Quotations, 18 J. App. Prac. & Process 143 (Fall 2017); see generally @SCOTUSPlaces, Twitter, … Continue reading This new citation method—the ...
  • Transfers Between the Texas Courts of Appeals October 29, 2021
    by Nicholas Bruno Typically, there is little reason for parties to transfer an appeal between the courts of appeals. It is often clear that one—and only one—appellate court is the appropriate court for the appeal. Houston appellate lawyers are aware of one exception in which the appropriate appellate court is not clear from the outset. The First ...
  • Did You Know? October 29, 2021
    by JoAnn Storey, JoAnn Storey, P.C. A trial court has the inherent authority to change or modify any interlocutory order or judgment until the judgment becomes final. H.S.M. Acquisitions v. West, 917 S.W.2d 872, 876-77 (Tex. App.—Corpus Christi 1996, writ denied). Thus, for example, a trial court has the discretion to reconsider its prior order denying ...
  • The Primary Jurisdiction Doctrine’s “Inherently Judicial” Boundary under Texas Law October 29, 2021
    by Ryan Philip Pitts, an associate in the appellate practice group of Haynes Boone, LLP’s Houston office. This article addresses an unexplored but substantial restriction on when the “primary jurisdiction” doctrine may apply to relegate a matter to an agency rather than a court. The restriction is that an agency cannot have primary jurisdiction over “inherently ...
  • October 2021 Crossword Puzzle October 29, 2021
    Puzzle in .puz format.  To use this puzzle, right click on the link, save the file, and then save a version of the file, changing the extension, .pdf, to .puz to use. Solution  
  • Case Updates from the Houston Courts of Appeals July 29, 2021
    by Eleanor Mason, Staff Attorney for Justice Hassan, Fourteenth Court of Appeals Berry Y&F Fabricators, LLC v. Bambace, 604 S.W.3d 482 (Tex. App.—Houston 2020, no pet.) (Jewell, J.).  In Berry Y&F Fabricators, LLC v. Bambace, the Fourteenth Court of Appeals analyzed an arbitration agreement and provided guidance with respect to who decides – a court or an arbitrator – public policy arguments that challenge whether certain claims may be compelled to ...
  • Did You Know? July 29, 2021
    Did You Know?
  • Statutory Interpretation Principles in Recent Houston Courts of Appeals Decisions July 29, 2021
    by Nicholas Bruno, Beck Redden LLP The principles of statutory interpretation are often ancient doctrines. The roots of these principles can be demonstrated by the fact that many of them are referred to by their name in a dead language: Latin.   Despite their age, or maybe because they withstood the test of time, these principles are still highly important today. Their application is seriously debated, and they have enormous consequences ...
  • En Banc Decisions and Preservation Issues in Recent Fourteenth Court of Appeals Decisions March 2, 2020
    by Nicholas Bruno, Beck Redden LLP Three recent en banc decisions in the Fourteenth Court of Appeals demonstrated disagreements among the justices of that court over preservation issues. Appellate practitioners should watch similar developments in future cases to determine whether these disagreements are part of a broader trend and how they might affect appellate practice in ...
  • Features for March 2020 February 28, 2020
    Welcome to the March 2020 edition of the Appellate Lawyer — the newsletter of the HBA Appellate Practice Section. EDITOR’S NOTE by Jill Schumacher, Editor-in-Chief, Daniels & Tredennick, LLP A CLOSER LOOK AT TEXAS’S JUDICIAL ELECTIONS PROCESS: REACTIONS FROM A SITTING JUSTICE by Justice Julie Countiss, First Court of Appeals AN INTERVIEW WITH JUSTICE SARAH BETH LANDAU, FIRST COURT OF APPEALS by ...
  • Editor’s Note February 27, 2020
    by Jill Schumacher, Editor-in-Chief, Daniels & Tredennick, LLP The practice of law is a team sport.  This is an inherent aspect of the practice of law.  It is true for all practitioners, regardless of whether they practice on a trial team or as a solo appellate practitioner.  By its nature, the practice of law encompasses the ...
  • A Closer Look at Texas’s Judicial Elections Process: Reactions from a Sitting Justice February 27, 2020
    By Justice Julie Countiss, First Court of Appeals Right now, the Texas Commission on Judicial Selection (TCJS) is considering the state’s current system of electing judges for statewide offices, and the deadline to submit findings is just around the corner.  The TCJS was created in 2019 by the 86th Texas Legislature to study and review the ...
  • The “Short-Term” Cell Site Location Information Exception February 27, 2020
    by Nelson S. Ebaugh, Nelson S. Ebaugh, P.C. The law is always one step behind technology. In connection with cell site location information (“CSLI”), the law is starting to catch up.  However, there are still many unanswered questions.  For instance, how long can the government track a person’s cell phone before it becomes a Fourth Amendment ...
  • Appellate 9-1-1: Emergency or Temporary Relief in State Appellate Court February 27, 2020
    by Angela Spoede, Staff Attorney at the First Court of Appeals In comparison to trial-level litigation, which involves multiple deadlines for discovery and filings, the whims of opposing counsel, and the constraints of the trial court’s time and resources, appellate practice is more sedate. There are fewer documents changing hands, there are fewer filings to juggle, ...
  • Did You Know? February 27, 2020
    by JoAnn Storey, JoAnn Storey, P.C. Under Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 295, if the jury’s verdict is incomplete, not responsive to the questions, or contains conflicting answers, the court shall: in writing instruct the jury in open court of the nature of the incompleteness, unresponsiveness, or conflict; provide such additional instructions as may be proper; and retire the ...
  • Case Updates from the First Court of Appeals February 27, 2020
    by Rachel Stinson, Trial and Appellate Attorney for the City of Houston In re Stagner, 01-18-758-CV (Memorandum opinion issued on January 23, 2020 by Justice Evelyn V. Keyes.  Panel consists of Justices Keyes, Goodman, and Countiss.) Mattress Firm sued several individual and corporate defendants for fraud, negligence, unjust enrichment, and breach of fiduciary duty, alleging that some of ...
  • Case Updates from the Fourteenth Court of Appeals February 27, 2020
    by Eleanor Mason, Staff Attorney for Justice Hassan, Fourteenth Court of Appeals Bandin v. Free & Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llava, __ S.W.3d __ , 2019 WL 6000580 (Tex. App.—Houston Nov. 14, 2019, no pet. h.) (Bourliot, J.). In Bandin, the Court limited the reach of the Texas Citizens Participation Act ...
  • March 2020 Crossword Puzzle February 27, 2020
    Click here to access the March 2020 Crossword Puzzle in .puz format for Across Lite users.  To use this puzzle, right click on the link, save the file, and then save a version of the file, changing the extension, .pdf, to .puz to use.    
  • Solution to the March 2020 Crossword Puzzle February 27, 2020
    Solution to the March 2020 Crossword Puzzle
  • Upcoming Events February 27, 2020
    1) The 29th Annual Appellate Judicial Reception The 29th Annual Appellate Judicial Reception Honoring The Justices of the First and Fourteenth Courts of Appeals and Special Honorees The Honorable Laura Higley The Honorable Michael Massengale The Honorable Martha Hill Jamison Wednesday, April 15, 2019 5:30–8:00 p.m. Brennan’s of Houston 3300 Smith Street Hors d’oeuvres Cash Bar Members $30.00  Non-Members $50.00   2) Upcoming Luncheons Thursday, March 12, 2020 “In Stereo, Where Available: ...
  • An Interview with Justice Sarah Beth Landau, First Court of Appeals February 12, 2020
    by Mark Trachtenberg, Haynes & Boone, LLP 1. Hello Justice Landau! Thanks for making the time to do this interview.  To begin, would you tell our audience a little about who you are, where you grew up, etc.? Hello! Thank you for the opportunity. I’ve spent most of my adult life in Texas. I moved here “temporarily” ...
  • Features for December 2019 December 10, 2019
    Welcome to the December 2019 edition of the Appellate Lawyer — the newsletter of the HBA Appellate Practice Section. LESSONS FROM JUSTICE WILLIAM J. BOYCEALSO by William J. Boyce, Alexander Dubose & Jefferson LLP PART II: IS THERE MORE DIVERSITY OF THOUGHT AFTER THE 2018 MIDTERM ELECTIONS?  A LOOK AT DECISIONS REGARDING EN BANC MOTIONS IN THE FIRST AND ...
  • LESSONS FROM JUSTICE WILLIAM J. BOYCEALSO December 10, 2019
    by William J. Boyce, Alexander Dubose & Jefferson LLP As I reflect on lessons learned while serving on the bench, my thoughts keep returning to one judge in particular.  This towering legal figure taught me important lessons about life in the law, and life in general.  Perhaps the most important lessons. His name is Justice William J. ...
  • Part II: Is there more diversity of thought after the 2018 midterm elections? A look at decisions regarding en banc motions in the First and Fourteenth Courts of Appeals December 10, 2019
    by Nicholas Bruno, Beck Redden, LLP As noted in last edition’s article, during the 2018 election, several of the current justices serving on the Houston Courts of Appeals promised greater “diversity of thought” if more ideological diversity existed on the Courts of Appeals. While some speculated that the election results would lead to greater frequency of ...
  • The Building Blocks of Brief Writing December 10, 2019
    by Angela Spoede, Staff Attorney at the First Court of Appeals Before I was a lawyer, in what feels like another life, I was an English teacher. One of the biggest challenges I faced was imparting persuasive writing skills to my students. Their first efforts at “persuasion” usually involved the use of various typeface changes to ...
  • Did You Know? December 10, 2019
    by JoAnn Storey, JoAnn Storey, P.C. A successor judge lacks the authority to file findings of fact and conclusions of law on behalf of his or her predecessor displaced by an election. Ad Villarai, LLC v. Chan II Pak, 519 S.W.3d 132 140 (Tex.2017). In some instances, the defeated judge has the power to file findings ...
  • Case Updates from the Fourteenth Court of Appeals December 10, 2019
    by Eleanor Mason, Staff Attorney for Justice Hassan, Fourteenth Court of Appeals Mem’l Hermann Health Sys. v. Heinzen, __ S.W.3d __, No. 14-18-00476-CV, 2019 WL 4071940 (Tex. App.—Houston Aug. 29, 2019, no pet. h.) (Christopher, J.). A recent case from the Fourteenth Court of Appeals further refines the expert-report requirements under the Texas Medical Liability ...
  • Case Updates from the First Court of Appeals December 10, 2019
    by Rachel Stinson, Trial and Appellate Attorney for the City of Houston 01-19-00391-CV, In Re Colonial County Mutual Insurance Company. Panel consists of Justices Lloyd, Goodman, and Landau. Memorandum opinion issued November 5, 2019, conditionally granting writ challenging trial court’s denial of a motion to abate discovery regarding an insured’s Insurance Code and DTPA claims against her insurer because ...
  • December 2019 Crossword Puzzle December 10, 2019
    Puzzle in .puz format.  To use this puzzle, right click on the link, save the file, and then save a version of the file, changing the extension, .pdf, to .puz to use.    
  • Solution to the December 2019 Crossword Puzzle December 10, 2019
    Solution to the December 2019 Crossword Puzzle
  • Upcoming Events December 10, 2019
      Upcoming Luncheons: Thursday, January 9, 2020 Appellate Mediation: Finding Common Ground Post Judgment with Vikram Chandhok, Chief Circuit Mediator, Fifth Circuit Marcy Hogan Greer, Alexander Dubose & Jefferson Justice Terry Jennings, Terry Jennings – ADR Russell Post, Beck Redden Mediators Vikram Chandhok (Fifth Circuit Chief Mediator) and Retired First Court Justice Terry Jennings (TerryJennings-ADR.com) will discuss the benefits of mediating disputes post judgment ...
  • Features for August 2019 August 19, 2019
    Welcome to the August 2019 edition of the Appellate Lawyer — the newsletter of the HBA Appellate Practice Section. IS THERE MORE DIVERSITY OF THOUGHT AFTER THE 2018 MIDTERM ELECTIONS?  A LOOK AT DISSENTING OPINIONS IN THE FIRST AND FOURTEENTH COURT OF APPEALS DURING THE FIRST HALF OF 2019. by Nicholas Bruno, Beck Redden LLP WHY THE LAW IS ...
  • Is there more diversity of thought after the 2018 midterm elections? A look at dissenting opinions in the First and Fourteenth Court of Appeals during the first half of 2019. August 19, 2019
    by Nicholas Bruno, Beck Redden LLP During the 2018 elections, several then-candidates for the Courts of Appeals promised greater “diversity of thought” if more ideological diversity existed on the Courts of Appeals. After the election, five new justices took seats on the First Court of Appeals and five new justices took seats on the Fourteenth Court ...
  • Why The Law Is Not Just What Judges Say It Is August 19, 2019
    by Justice Evelyn V. Keyes and Angela W. Spoede, First Court of Appeals As Chief Justice John Marshall famously said in Marbury v. Madison, “It is emphatically the province and duty of the judicial department to say what the law is.” 5 U.S. 137, 177 (1803). This is not a quaint and dusty maxim whose significance ...
  • A New Sheriff in the Lode Star State August 19, 2019
    Texas Supreme Court restates the law on recovery of attorney’s fees. Is that a good thing? by William Ogden, Kean Miller LLP The Texas Supreme Court has issued a significant new decision restating the law on recovery of attorney’s fees.  In a 56 page opinion issued April 26, 2019, authored by Justice Paul Green writing for a unanimous ...
  • Case Updates from the First Court of Appeals August 19, 2019
    by Rachel Stinson, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP McDaniel v. Meador, No. 01-18-00041-CV, 2019 WL 758321 (Tex. App.— Houston   Feb. 21, 2019, no pet.) (mem. op.) Panel consists of Justices Keyes, Higley, and Landau. Memorandum Opinion by Justice Higley, issued February 21, 2019. Where decedent’s Will named “the issue who survive me of those of my children ...
  • Case Updates from the Fourteenth Court of Appeals August 19, 2019
    by Kyle Lawrence, Beck Redden LLP In re Preventative Pest Control Houston, LLC, No. 14-19-00274-CV, __ S.W.3d __, 2019 WL 2897542(July 2, 2019, orig. proceeding) After the plaintiff was struck by a Preventative Pest Control Houston truck, she sued the company and its employee truck driver (collectively, the “Pest Control Parties”) for negligence. In the ensuing litigation, ...
  • Crossword Puzzle – Aug 2019 August 19, 2019
    Download and print the Puzzle: Solution
  • Crossword Puzzle – Aug 2019 – Solution August 19, 2019
    Crossword Puzzle - Aug 2019 - Solution
  • Upcoming Events August 19, 2019
    Upcoming Luncheons: Thursday, September 12 “Appellate Practice by the Numbers: The Ethics and Policy-Based Case for Further Diversity” by Marcy Hogan Greer, Judge Ellison, and Judge Vanessa Gilmore Friday, October 11 (Please note the change in day) “The New Roberts Court: Looking Back and Looking Forward” by Professor Josh Blackman (South Texas College of Law) RSVP Deadline for September’s luncheon ...
  • Did You Know? March 14, 2019
    A defendant is not required to object to a plaintiff’s omission of an independent theory of recovery in the jury charge. United Scaffolding, Inc. v. Levine, 537 S.W.3d 463, 481 (Tex. 2017). But, the broad proclamation in United Scaffolding that a defendant is not required to object that the charge is not “supported by the plaintiff’s ...
  • Thinking Like a Lawyer: What Legal Reason Is and How to Use It March 13, 2019
    Thinking Like a Lawyer:  What Legal Reason Is and How to Use It by Justice Evelyn Keyes, First Court of Appeals Every day we as lawyers think like lawyers as we advise clients and present and decide cases.  But we do not stop to ask what “thinking like a lawyer” actually is and how it turns us into ...
  • Inside Judicial Internships at the Houston Courts of Appeals March 13, 2019
    Kem Thompson Frost, Chief Justice, Fourteenth Court of Appeals What are our courts doing to help prepare the next generation of lawyers and judges for the appellate arena? For the past several years, Texas’s First and the Fourteenth Courts of Appeals have combined forces to plan and grow a joint judicial internship program for law students.  ...
  • Interview of Justice Julie Countiss March 13, 2019
    Interview with Justice Countiss, First Court of Appeals by Jill Schumacher, Daniels & Tredennick, LLP 1.      What made you decide to attend law school? Do the same things or different things motivate you to continue serving as a lawyer?       When I was growing up I loved going to the courthouse with my Dad. He was a state ...
  • Interview of Justice Richard Hightower March 13, 2019
    Interview of Justice Richard Hightower by Jill Schumacher, Daniels & Tredennick, LLP 1.      Who are you as a person? I grew up in Livingston, Texas, born into a family full of public servants.  My father was an attorney and District Attorney and my brother a State Representative.  I have other relatives who are lawyers, judges, sheriffs, county clerks, ...
  • Case Updates from the First Court of Appeals March 13, 2019
    Case Updates from the First Courts of Appealsby Rachel Stinson, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP Primoris Energy Servs. Corp. d/b/a Sprint Pipeline Servs. v. Thomas Myers, –S.W.3d–, 2018 WL 6542569 (Tex. App.— Houston Dec. 13, 2018) (no pet. h.) (Op. on Reh’g). While sitting atop his parked 4-wheeler, Thomas Myers was struck by a reversing ...
  • Fourteenth Court of Appeals Case Updates March 13, 2019
    Case Updates from the Fourteenth Court of Appealsby Kyle Lawrence, Beck Redden LLPHamilton Metals, Inc. v. Global Metal Services, Ltd., — S.W.3d –, 2018 WL 6174321, No. 14-17-00670-CV (Tex. App.—Houston Nov. 27, 2018, no pet. h.) The Texas “turnover” statute (Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 31.002) authorizes certain relief if the judgment debtor ...
  • Upcoming Events March 13, 2019
    28th Annual Appellate Judicial Reception Please join us for the 28th Annual Appellate Judicial Reception!April 24, 2019 5:30-8:00 Brennan’s of Houston 3300 Smith Street Upcoming Luncheon:April 18th with Fifth Circuit Judges Don Willett and James HoRSVP Deadline: noon on Monday April 15thPlace: Coronado Club, 919 Milam Street, Suite 500 from 11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.Cost: $30 for Justices and Staff ...
  • Crossword Puzzle March 13, 2019
    by James Marrow, Hogan & Hogan Here is the latest HBA Appellate Lawyer crossword puzzle. For those who prefer to solve online, there is a .PUZ version of the file. (To solve online, you may need the Across Lite software, which is available for free.) A PDF version of the puzzle is available. The solution is also available.
  • I’m (Going to Be) a Lawyer. Why Should I Study the Humanities November 2, 2018
    This article is on a much deeper topic than the ones Angela and I usually write about. But I think it is one that is important to all of us—more than we commonly realize—and one we seldom think and talk about.  Why, as lawyers and judges and future lawyers and judges, should we study the ...
  • An Interview of Justice Kevin Wiggins November 2, 2018
    Interview conducted by Carol Farquhar, Dallas, Texas. Except edited and submitted by Jo Ann Storey.                                                                      The following is an excerpt of an interview of Justice ...
  • An Interview of Judge Larry Meyers November 2, 2018
    Interview conducted by Andrew Guthrie, Haynes & Boone, Dallas, Texas Except edited and submitted by JoAnn Storey The following is an excerpt of an interview of Judge Larry Meyers (LM) conducted on June 25, 2015, by Andrew Guthrie (AG).  From 1989 to 1992, Judge Meyers served as an associate justice on the Fort Worth Court of Appeals.  ...
  • Defending against evolved e-mail phishing attacks November 2, 2018
    by Jill Schumacher, Caldwell Boudreaux Lefler PLLC, and Adam Schumacher, C.I.S.S.P., FlightAware, LLC As one of the oldest technologies developed for the internet, email was not designed with security or privacy in mind.  By default, there are no mechanisms to validate the identity of either the sender or the recipient of an email, nor are there ...
  • Case Updates for the First and Fourteenth Courts of Appeals November 2, 2018
    by Rachel Stinson, Morgan, Lewis, & Bockius LLP (First Court of Appeals updates) and Kyle Lawrence, Beck Redden LLP (Fourteenth Court of Appeals updates) Ortega v. Abel,  — S.W.3d –, 2018 WL 4028427 (Tex. App.—Houston Aug. 23, 2018) Ortega, the owner of two grocery store chains in Oklahoma and Texas, purchased a smaller chain of ...
  • Crossword Puzzle November 2, 2018
    by James Marrow, Hogan & Hogan Here is the latest HBA Appellate Lawyer crossword puzzle. For those who prefer to solve online, there is a .PUZ version of the file. (To solve online, you may need the Across Lite software, which is available for free.) A PDF version of the puzzle is available. The solution is also available.
  • Upcoming Luncheon November 2, 2018
    November 8th   “Briefing Outside the Rules: Sur-reply Briefs, Letters of Supplemental Authority, and Post-Submission Briefs” by Justice Terry Jennings and Kevin Dubose RSVP Deadline: noon on Monday November 5thPlace: Coronado Club, 919 Milam Street, Suite 500 from 11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.Cost: $40 for Section members who RSVP; $45 for non-members who RSVP and for Section ...
  • Features for July 2018 July 31, 2018
    Welcome to the July 2018 edition of the Appellate Lawyer —the newsletter of the HBA Appellate Practice Section. ORAL ARGUMENT: WHEN YOU NEED IT, HOW TO GET IT, AND WHAT TO DO ONCE IT’S GRANTEDby Justice Evelyn Keyes andAngela Spoede, First Court of Appeals, Houston ORAL ARGUMENT: PRESENT TO HELP THE COURTby Nicholas Bruno, Beck Redden, LLP U.S. ...
  • Cybersecurity Risk Assessments: The First Step in Securing Your Practice July 31, 2018
    by Jill Schumacher, Caldwell Boudreaux Lefler PLLC, and Adam Schumacher, CISSP, IT Operations & Security at FlightAware, LLC To start managing your cybersecurity, perform a risk assessment. In a risk assessment, you attempt to determine the threats you face, where you are vulnerable to those threats, and the impact the threats would have on your ...
  • Crossword Puzzle July 31, 2018
    by James Marrow, Hogan & Hogan Here is the latest HBA Appellate Lawyer crossword puzzle. For those who prefer to solve online, there is a .PUZ version of the file. (To solve online, you may need the Across Lite software, which is available for free.) A PDF version of the puzzle is available. The solution is also available.
  • Upcoming Luncheons July 31, 2018
    August 9   “Jury Charge and Casteel,” by Hon. Tracy Christopher and David Gunn RSVP Deadline: noon on Monday August 6thPlace: Coronado Club, 919 Milam Street, Suite 500 from 11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.Cost: $40 for Section members who RSVP; $45 for non-members who RSVP and for Section member walk-ins; $50 for non-member walk-ins. To RSVP, please e-mail ...
  • Case Updates for April, May, and June 2018 July 24, 2018
    By Andrew Nelson, Wright & Close, LLP and Kyle Lawrence, Beck Redden LLP  FIRST COURT OF APPEALS In re Vantage Drilling International, No. 01-17-00592-CV, 2018 WL 2666945 (Tex. App.—Houston June 5, 2018, orig. proceeding)The court refused to grant mandamus relief reversing a trial court’s order compelling arbitration when the party opposing arbitration failed to prove ...
  • U.S. Supreme Court Treats Circuit Split by Recommending Less Vitamin C July 24, 2018
    By Mark Ritchie, Law Office of Mark Ritchie, P.C. U.S. Supreme Court Treats Circuit Split by Recommending Less Vitamin C On June 14, 2018, the Court issued its opinion in Animal Science Products, Inc. v. Hebei Welcome Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.,addressing a circuit split on the weight given to foreign governments’ interpretation of their own laws in U.S. ...
  • Oral Argument: When You Need It, How to Get It, and What to Do Once It’s Granted July 24, 2018
    By Justice Evelyn V. Keyes, Justice, First Court of Appeals and Angela W. Spoede, Staff Attorney Oral argument is a frequent topic of discussion at every CLE presentation and bench-bar networking event. Appellate attorneys want to know how they can get oral argument granted more often, and they want to know how they can use oral ...
  • Did You Know? July 24, 2018
    by JoAnn Storey Did You Know – –  If one or two alternate jurors are to be impaneled, each side is entitled to one additional peremptory challenge in addition to those otherwise allowed by law. Tex. Gov’t Code Ann. § 62.020(e).  If three or four alternate jurors are to be impaneled, each side is entitled to two ...
  • Oral Argument: Present to Help the Court July 24, 2018
    by Nicholas Bruno, Beck Redden LLP. There are scores of articles from many far more experienced than this writer—including from U.S. Supreme Court Justices—providing advice on how to present an oral argument. See, e.g., John Roberts, Chief Justice Roberts on Oral Argument, available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJQ7Ds4nAmA. Adding another article to that excellent advice is a needless ...
  • Features for March 2018 March 28, 2018
    Welcome to the March 2018 edition of the Appellate Lawyer —the newsletter of the HBA Appellate Practice Section. PRACTICAL LEGAL REASONINGby: Justice Evelyn Keyes, First Court of Appeals and Angela Spoede, Staff Attorney ARBITRATION’S APPEALby: Mark Ritchie, Law Office of Mark Ritchie, P.C. NEW BOOKS, POWERPOINTS, AND OPPORTUNITIES TO GIVE BACK TO ...
  • Practical Legal Reasoning March 27, 2018
    By Justice Evelyn V. Keyes, Justice, First Court of Appeals, and Angela W. Spoede, Staff Attorney Legal arguments and reasoning follow a similar path, drilled into aspiring lawyers beginning their first year of law school. In an appellate brief, the lawyer begins by setting out the issue or question to be answered, followed by the governing ...
  • Arbitration’s Appeal March 27, 2018
    By Mark Ritchie, Law Office of Mark Ritchie, P.C. The Ever-Expanding Role of Arbitration While arbitration has been widely used in England to resolve commercial disputes since the latter part of the eighteenth century, it has struggled to achieve broad acceptance in the United States. Until relatively recent times, arbitration was only ...
  • Should Lawyers Be Cybersecurity Experts Too? March 27, 2018
    By Jill Schumacher, 14th Court of Appeals, and Adam Schumacher, CISSP, IT Operations & Security at FlightAware, LLC The Internet is always on, always present, and lawyers almost always have access. The modern lawyer uses the Internet to communicate, research, and store massive amounts of data. Without the Internet, most law practices would grind to a ...
  • Case Update for January and February 2018 March 27, 2018
    By Andrew Nelson, Wright & Close, LLP and Kyle Lawrence, Beck Redden LLP, FIRST COURT OF APPEALS Jackson v. Stroud, No. 01-17-00145-CV, 2017 WL 6519913 (Tex. App.—Houston Dec. 21, 2017, no pet. h.) In reversing and remanding a case for a new trial, the court found that a trial court improperly overruled a Batson challenge when ...
  • Did you Know? March 27, 2018
    By JoAnn Storey We all know the following about cases transferred by the Texas Supreme Court from one court of appeals to another: 1. The transferee court must decide the case in accordance with the precedent of the transferor court if the transferee court’s decision otherwise would have been inconsistent with the precedent of the transferor ...
  • Crossword Puzzle March 27, 2018
    by James Marrow, Hogan & Hogan Here is the latest HBA Appellate Lawyer crossword puzzle. For those who prefer to solve online, there is a .PUZ version of the file. (To solve online, you may need the Across Lite software, which is available for free.) A PDF version of the puzzle is ...
  • Upcoming Luncheons March 27, 2018
    April 26, 2018 “An Original Document for Every Song in ‘Hamilton: An American Musical,’” by Charles EskridgeRSVP deadline: noon on Monday, April 23CLE: 1.0 hour May 10, 2018 “Oral Argument Dissection: A Video Analysis of Oral Arguments at the Texas Supreme Court” by Tom Wright, Reagan Simpson, and Justice Tracy ChristopherRSVP deadline: noon on Monday, May 7CLE: 1.0 ...

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References

References
1 Jack Metzler, Cleaning up Quotations, 18 J. App. Prac. & Process 143 (Fall 2017); see generally @SCOTUSPlaces, Twitter, https://twitter.com/SCOTUSPlaces?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor.