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April 15, 2015 Like TTLA on Facebook Follow TTLA on Twitter

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Upcoming Online CLE
21
Apr
Taking the Long View: Being a Professional in an Instant Gratification Age
22
Apr
Medicare Set Asides in General Liability and Medical Malpractice Cases
23
Apr
Persuasive Presentation for the Courtroom
24
Apr
Legislative Update
6
May
Anatomy of an Insurance Policy
8
May
Legislative Update
12
May
Watch Out for the Federal Employee Workers Comp Lien on Your Personal Injury Claim!
14
May
The Evolution of Rules of the Road to Rhetorical Questions
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2015 Midyear Conference and CLE Seminar
Be Inspired'Litigation with Compassion, Competence, and Confidence, June 3-5, The Omni Austin Hotel Downtown 700 San Jacinto at 8th Street, Austin, TX. Earn up to 12.25 hours MCLE credit. Click on the headline to register.

Texas Tribune Daily Brief

The Brief for April 15
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John Reynolds, Texas Tribune 04/15/2015 Facebook iconTwitter iconLinkedIn Icon
Read Article: Texas Tribune


Issues

Driller May Face Fines in Arlington Gas Well Emergency
Vantage Energy may face fines for a variety of violations, including waiting nearly two hours to call 911, in a natural gas well site emergency over the weekend that led to the evacuation of more than 100 southwest Arlington homes, Fire Chief Don Crowson said Tuesday. Crowson and the city staff provided the City Council a preliminary report on the investigation into what caused thousands of gallons of salty, pressurized frack water to begin back-flowing out of a well at Vantage's Lake Arlington Baptist Church drill site off Little Road on Saturday afternoon.
SUSAN SCHROCK, Star Telegram 04/15/2015 Facebook iconTwitter iconLinkedIn icon
Read Article: Star Telegram


Laws/Cases

Widow Can't Sue in Dallas Firefighter's Death
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Jenny Wilson has no recourse, her attorney says she can't file a lawsuit for the May 20, 2013, line-of-duty death of her husband, Dallas firefighter Stanley Wilson. She can't compel fire officials to testify about an alleged cover-up of investigative details. She can't force the changes she wants to see in the fire department. Stanley Wilson, 51, was fatally crushed inside a collapsing condo during a far northeast Dallas blaze that reached six alarms. His death prompted strife within the department, and fire officials stayed mostly mum about the findings of an internal investigation. State law won't allow him to file a lawsuit because Wilson was a city employee who died on duty.
TRISTAN HALLMAN, The Dallas Morning News 04/15/2015 Facebook iconTwitter iconLinkedIn Icon
Read Article: The Dallas Morning News

New Concussions Deal with NCAA Proposed
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Filings in U.S. District Court in Chicago late Tuesday night notified a federal judge that there was a new proposed settlement for a head injury lawsuit against the NCAA brought by football players and other college athletes. U.S. District Judge John Lee rejected the initial settlement in December, though, in doing so, he encouraged the sides to try again. It is likely to be weeks before they know for sure if this agreement pleases Lee more than the first. In ruling on Dec. 7 that he was rejecting the initial deal, Lee portrayed it as unclear in sections and potentially underfunded.
Michael Tarm, AP, The Washington Post 04/15/2015 Facebook iconTwitter iconLinkedIn Icon
Read Article: The Washington Post

Alabama Blogger to Pay $3.5M in Defamation Lawsuit
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A blogger from Shelby County, Alabama has been ordered to pay $3.5 million after writing about a former governor's son on his blog. A defamation lawsuit was filed against the blogger by the former campaign manager for Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange. The defendant had written about an alleged affair between the plaintiff and the Attorney General. The defamation lawsuit was filed in 2013 and ended in a default judgement of $1.5 million in compensatory and $2 million in punitive damages.
Kent Faulk, AL.com 04/14/2015 Facebook iconTwitter iconLinkedIn Icon
Read Article: AL.com

Sandy Insurance-Claims Talks Hit Snag Over Legal Fees
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Talks to settle thousands of lawsuits over flood-insurance claims from superstorm Sandy have all but stalled after officials in Washington concluded that federal law bars them from paying homeowners' legal fees, according to people familiar with the negotiations. The ruling over attorneys' fees is a setback for roughly 2,000 homeowners in New York and New Jersey who are awaiting settlements...
JOE RYAN, Newsday 04/15/2015 Facebook iconTwitter iconLinkedIn Icon
Read Article: Newsday

Court Orders VA to Pay Stroke Victim $21M in Malpractice Case
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A federal court in New Hampshire this month ordered the Department of Veterans Affairs to pay $21.5 million in medical-malpractice damages to a stroke victim for failing to properly diagnose and treat the patient. U.S. District Judge Landya McCafferty issued the ruling on April 3. The victim, 60-year-old Navy veteran Michael Farley, sought help from the VA in 2010 after experiencing partial blindness and headaches. Six weeks later, he suffered a massive stroke that left him with 'locked-in syndrome,' meaning he remains fully conscious and able to feel pain but controls only minor movements of his eyes and head. The judge concluded that the patient suffered from 'harrowing psychological trauma' from the incident.
Josh Hicks, The Washington Post 04/15/2015 Facebook iconTwitter iconLinkedIn Icon
Read Article: The Washington Post

Texas Mother Accused in Death of Son's Prom Date Faces Lawsuit
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A lawsuit has been filed against a Texas mother who is facing criminal charges in the death of her son's prom date. The 17-year-old girl was found dead in a hotel room after prom. According to the charges, the mother booked the hotel room for the minors for the night of prom and provided alcohol and hydrocodone to them as well. The mother has been charged with two counts of delivery of a controlled substance and one count of purchasing alcohol for a minor and her son has been charged with aggravated assault. The girl's family filed the lawsuit and seeks $1 million for funeral expenses and other expenses after the girl's death.
Staff Report, KHOU-TV 04/14/2015 Facebook iconTwitter iconLinkedIn Icon
Read Article: KHOU-TV

"Free-range" Parents Filing Suit Over Police Custody Incident
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According to a Washington D.C.-based law firm, the parents of two children, ages 10 and 6, who were taken into custody after they were reported walking home alone from a park are filing a lawsuit over the incident. According to the couple's attorney, the Maryland parents were 'rightfully outraged by the irresponsible actions' of Maryland Child Protective Services and Montgomery County police. The couple claim to be proponents of "free-range" parenting, which allows the children to be self-reliant by roaming the world without the supervision of adults. The lawsuit alleges that the children were held in a police car for three hours and kept from their parents for six hours without food.
Donna St. George and Brigid Schulte, The Washington Post 04/14/2015 Facebook iconTwitter iconLinkedIn Icon
Read Article: The Washington Post


Products

Reports to Feds on Deadly Bacteria Outbreaks Arrived Late
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Medical device makers are required to file reports to the Food and Drug Administration within 30 days of learning that a product may pose safety risks. But as duodenoscopes were tied to the transmission of drug-resistant bacteria among patients in at least eight U.S. hospitals from 2012-2014, the agency wasn't notified of some outbreaks until long after they occurred, an ongoing USA TODAY investigation finds. And in some cases, the disclosures never were filed.
Peter Eisler, USA Today 04/15/2015 Facebook iconTwitter iconLinkedIn Icon
Read Article: USA Today



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