Announcements | | | TTLA Annual Conference has moved to June 1-3 in Austin | | We’ll be hosting all the events you’ve come to expect from our December conference. Between the 2-day CLE, parties, meetings, legislative update & special events. Check out the CLE program agendas for Wednesday and Thursday, which include a live video presentation with David Ball plus family friendly events to make this a true vacation opportunity. Register now! | Share with your FB friends! | | Gibson Vance: How our cars got safer, Washington Post 4-16-11. Traffic deaths in the United States have dropped to their lowest level since 1949, according to a report released this month by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Remarkably, this drop occurred even as Americans drove 21 billion more miles in 2010 than they had the previous year. Click on the headline to continue reading. | Laws/Cases | | | US judge: Citgo Not Liable for $177M Cleanup | | Citgo does not have to pay $177 million in cleanup costs stemming from the massive 2004 spill of crude oil from a tanker nearing its dock on the Delaware River, a federal judge has ruled. The judge cleared Citgo of liability in the third-largest oil spill in U.S. waters, which occurred when the single-hull Greek tanker struck a rusty anchor long submerged in the riverbed. Associated Press, The Washington Post 04/18/2011 | Read Article: The Washington Post | Ex-Camp Lejeune Schools Worker Sues Over Water | | Contaminated water at Camp Lejeune led to an aggressive form of cancer for a woman who worked at schools on the base for over two decades, according to claims in a federal lawsuit that will be considered with several others by a judge in Atlanta. Linda Jones, of Jacksonville, seeks unspecified damages in the lawsuit filed this week. Jones, 62, says she developed non-Hodgkins lymphoma in 2007, after about 22 years of working in food service at schools on the Marine Corps base. TOM BREEN, AP, Miami Herald 04/18/2011 | Read Article: Miami Herald | No Protective Order for Tom Phillips, Wife in Wrongful-Death Suit | | Last month, a judge denied a protective order sought by Baker Botts partner and retired Texas Supreme Court Chief Justice Tom Phillips and his wife, defendants in a wrongful-death suit brought by the parents of Audrey King, who died in a 2009 car accident after allegedly attending a party hosted by the Phillipses' son Daniel where underage drinking occurred. Miriam Rozen, Texas Lawyer 04/18/2011 | Read Article: Texas Lawyer | Cowboys Receiver Settles Jewelry Lawsuit | | Dallas Cowboys receiver Dez Bryant has reportedly reached a settlement with a New York-based jeweler over an unpaid bill totaling just under $250,000. A+A Diamonds and Rafaello Company filed a lawsuit against Bryant in March after he refused to pay for $246,000 in merchandise he had purchased over the last year. The terms of the settlement were not disclosed. Bryant is still facing a similar lawsuit from a Texas jeweler and ticket broker. Arin Karimian,, USA Today 04/15/2011 | Read Article: USA Today | Issues | | | Lap-Band Death Blamed on Anesthesiologist | | Tamara Walter died Dec. 26, three days after she had a Lap-Band device implanted at the Beverly Hills Surgery Center, a lawyer for her family said. She is one of four Southern California patients to die after Lap-Band surgeries in the last two years at clinics that received referrals from the 1-800-GET-THIN advertisements, according to interviews with relatives of the deceased patients, lawsuits and autopsy reports. Stuart Pfeifer, LA Times 04/18/2011 | Read Article: LA Times | FDA Issues Warning About Generic Acid Reflux Drug | | The Food and Drug Administration has issued a warning to consumers about the use of a generic acid reflux drug made by Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. The warning only concerns the drug when administered by oral syringe or feeding tube. The agency said they have received reports of clogging problems, and in some cases patients have had to seek emergency medical assistance. Staff Report, Reuters 04/15/2011 | Read Article: Reuters | TEXAS LAWYER CASE SUMMARIES | | | Austin Court of Appeals: Civil Practice - Expert Reports | | Janet Carroll appeals a district court judgment dismissing her health care liability claim against Dr. Juliette Humsi for failure to serve the expert report or reports required by Civil Practice & Remedies Code §74.351 within 120 days after Carroll filed her original petition. Carroll contends that the district court abused its discretion in dismissing her claim because she timely served Humsi with an expert report meeting §74.351's requirements. Section 74.351 is applied as it is currently written, notwithstanding any perceived imperfections in the statute's calculation of its 120-day deadline for serving expert reports. The district court did not abuse its discretion in dismissing Carroll's health care liability claim against Dr. Humsi. Carroll v. Humsi, Austin Court of Appeals, No. 03-09-00292-CV, 04-13-2011 , Texas Lawyer Opinions (TTLA Members Only) 04/18/2011 | Read Article: Texas Lawyer Opinions (TTLA Members Only) | | | | |