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| | Announcements | |
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| | TTLA Is Going To NAPA | |
| | Fine Wine, Fine Food,Fine Company, Fine CLE. September 22—25, 2011 * Villagio Inn. Villagio Inn and Spa in Yountville will be our home away from home while we make our way around the vineyards of NAPA Valley. While in NAPA you will enjoy some of the best selections of wines produced in the area. Our chairs Bob Haslam and Clay Miller will also bring us six hours of informative CLE. | | TTLA on Twitter: Do you Tweet? | |
| | You can now follow TTLA on Twitter and retweet posts with your followers. Social media tools offer an opportunity to cut through the noise of those groups working daily to dismantle the jury system. Let’s work together turn up the volume, join us today! | | TTLA on Facebook: Turn up the volume! | |
| | Spread the truth about the civil justice system and rise above the chatter of the so-called “tort reformers’” propaganda machine. Become a fan of TTLA by liking the TTLA Facebook page and one click of the mouse shares relevant posts with your Facebook friends. | | Laws/Cases | |
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| | DuPont Plaintiffs Can Sue, Seek Medical Monitoring | |
| | Fourteen plaintiffs in a personal-injury case against DuPont can enroll in a related, court-administered medical monitoring program even as they sue the chemical giant over a former West Virginia zinc-smelting plant that they say made them sick. Harrison County Circuit Judge Thomas Bedell issued his ruling in the Spelter smelter case Tuesday, and plaintiffs got word of their victory by mail Thursday. Vicki Smith, AP, Boston Globe 08/19/2011 | | Read Article: Boston Globe | | Tobacco: Court Upholds Award in Smoker's Case | |
| | A CA appeals court upheld $13.8 million in punitive damages against Philip Morris for the addiction and death of a 45-year cigarette smoker, saying the company's decades of concealment and lies about the dangers of its products were "extremely reprehensible." In a 2-1 ruling, the Second District Court of Appeal in Los Angeles affirmed a verdict by a Los Angeles County jury in the case of Betty Bullock of Newport Beach (Orange County). Bullock had started smoking Marlboros in 1956, at age 17, and quit in 2001 after she was diagnosed with lung cancer, two years before her death. Her suit accused Philip Morris of defrauding her by deceptively marketing an addictive and lethal product in the years before the government required warning labels on cigarette packages. Bob Egelko, San Francisco Chronicle 08/19/2011 | | Read Article: San Francisco Chronicle | | 7 Former Players Sue NFL Over Concussions, Brain Injuries | |
| | Seven former players have sued the NFL in Philadelphia over concussion-related injuries, the first potential class-action lawsuit of its kind. The players accuse the league of failing to protect their health and of trying to conceal any links between football and brain injuries. The suit accuses the NFL of negligence and intentional misconduct in its response to the headaches, dizziness and dementia that former players have reported. The suit, filed Wednesday, seeks medical monitoring along with funds to pay for the care of injured players. Associated Press, The Washington Post 08/19/2011 | | Read Article: The Washington Post | | Lawyers, Others Accused in Scam to Recruit Plaintiffs in Bank Lawsuits | |
| | CA prosecutors sued several lawyers and call center operators for allegedly duping desperate homeowners across the country into paying thousands of dollars to join dubious lawsuits against big banks. The complaint unsealed in Los Angeles County Superior Court accuses foreclosure attorneys and businesses of ensnaring borrowers in a scheme that falsely promised a cut of future settlements. They are accused of telling borrowers that they had a solid claim to being victims of predatory lending because courts had already found most lenders to have approved inappropriate mortgages. Associated Press, The Washington Post 08/19/2011 | | Read Article: The Washington Post | | Class-Action Suit Filed Against Olive Garden | |
| | A class-action lawsuit has been filed against Olive Garden after one of the company's Fayetteville employees tested positive for hepatitis A. The lawsuit claims the company "was negligent by failing to require its employees to be vaccinated against hepatitis A and by failing to prevent an infected employee from working." The suit also alleges that the restaurant potentially exposed its customers to contaminated food and workers. The suit seeks more than $10,000 in damages. James Halpin, Fayetteville Observer 08/19/2011 | | Read Article: Fayetteville Observer | | Issues | |
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| | Lawsuits Flow Over Texas Pipelines | |
| | Energy companies are increasingly suing South Texas landowners as they work to build pipelines to accommodate surging oil and gas production. The question isn't whether a company can route a pipeline across a property owner's land. Pipeline companies, under Texas law, wield the power of eminent domain and can use it to acquire an easement even if the property owner opposes it. But landowners can negotiate for compensation and when those talks break down, companies can file suit. In 2011, pipeline companies have filed at least 184 lawsuits against landowners in four South Texas counties, compared with 28 all of last year. The increase in lawsuits comes ahead of a change in state law that will make it harder for pipeline companies to condemn land for easements after Sept. 1, though the companies say they haven't changed their approach in anticipation of the new law. DANIEL GILBERT, Wall Street Journal - $$ Subscription Required 08/19/2011 | | Read Article: Wall Street Journal - $$ Subscription Required($) | | TEXAS LAWYER CASE SUMMARIES | |
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| | Houston's 1st Court of Appeals: Torts | |
| | Appellant Thomas Farrar challenges the no-evidence summary judgment rendered in favor of appellees Sabine Management Corp. a/k/a Sabine Properties Management Inc. and Northwest Building Inc. Farrar, a postal worker, sued Sabine and Northwest after he slipped and fell on a painted wheelchair ramp while delivering mail at one of their properties. When there is evidence of notice to a property owner or operator of a prior similar occurrence — here, evidence of property manager Lori Marshall's knowledge of a near fall attributable to the same condition — such evidence is probative as to the question of notice. The evidence that Farrar fell on the ramp is probative of the fact that the painted wheelchair ramp was unreasonably dangerous. Farrar raised a genuine issue of material fact as to whether Sabine and Northwest failed to exercise reasonable care to reduce or eliminate any unreasonable risk of harm created by the painted wheelchair ramp. Because Farrar's testimony that he fell on the painted wheelchair ramp when it was wet from rain, together with Marshall's testimony, raises a question of material fact as to whether Marshall's negligence caused Farrar's fall, Farrar met his summary judgment burden as to the element of causation. The trial court's judgment is reversed and remanded. Farrar v. Sabine Management Corp., Houston's 1st Court of Appeals, No. 01-09-00492-CV, 08-11-2011. , Texas Lawyer Opinions (TTLA Members Only) 08/19/2011 | | Read Article: Texas Lawyer Opinions (TTLA Members Only) | | Houston's 1st Court of Appeals: Torts | |
| | Ronnie and Rose Tejada appeal the trial court's summary judgment favoring Virgilio Gernale, M.D., contending that the trial court erred in holding their case barred by the statute of limitations, res judicata, and lack of a fact issue that Gernale's negligence proximately caused their injuries. While incarcerated, Ronnie Tejada began to complain of symptoms indicating diabetes, but the doctor supervising his care did not order a blood test despite knowing that his patient was a diabetic. Ronnie Tejada's legs were later amputated below the knee. Under the Texas Civil Practices and Remedies Code ยง 74.251, the statute of limitations in a medical malpractice issue runs for two years from the date of malpractice or the last day of a course of treatment, with an additional 75 days granted upon notice to the physician. Here, the lawsuit was not barred by the statute of limitations because an examination is not required to constitute the last day of a course of treatment — a chart review can suffice when the medical chart reveals a history of diabetes and current diabetic symptoms. Furthermore, res judicata failed as an affirmative defense because there was no privity between Gernale and the supervising agency, as Gernale did not show that he would be bound by the federal court's judgment or that the agency understood itself to be representing him. Finally, based on the testimony of an expert witness that a reasonably prudent doctor would have tested the inmate's blood sugar level on reviewing the chart, some evidence exists that precludes summary judgment. The trial court's judgment is reversed and remanded for further proceedings. Tejada v. Gernale, Houston's 1st Court of Appeals, No. 01-10-00569-CV, 08-11-2011 , Texas Lawyer 08/19/2011 | | Read Article: Texas Lawyer | |
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