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April 20, 2012

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Device Malfunction Casts Doubt on Industry Pledge

BP, Plaintiffs’ Attorneys Present Fed Judge With Terms of $7.8B Gulf Oil Spill Settlement

La’s Property Insurer of Last Resort Asks High Court to Hear $104M Appeal

Supreme Court Says Organizations Can’t be Sued Under Law for Torture Victims

NJ District to Pay $4.2M to Settle Lawsuit Over Bully’s Punch that Paralyzed Middle-Schooler

Cancer Patients Rarely Speak Up About Care Problems

Virginia Tech Victims' Families Spur Insurance Inquiry

Austin Court of Appeals: Health Law

Backhoe Falls on Car, Kills One, Lawsuit Filed

 

 

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Announcements

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2012 Annual Conference Discover TTLA, June 6-8 at the Hyatt Lost Pines, Bastrop

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Join TTLA for our biggest event of the year, complete with 2 days of CLE programs, parties, receptions, committee meetings, Board of Directors meeting and our annual awards luncheon. Nestled in the tranquil Central Texas countryside, this year's Annual Conference also offers family-friendly activities, a golf tournament, tennis tournament and more! Click on the headline to learn more!  

 

Why I'm a member of TTLA...

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The TTLA Communications Team, working with the Membership Department, has launched a new page on ttla.com with member testimonial videos on the value of being a TTLA member. In addition to this new web page, these videos will be used for member recruitment in the coming weeks and months. Click on the headline to access the testimonial page.  

 

TTLA is accepting nominations for the Making a Difference Award.

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TTLA, at the discretion of the Executive Committee, presents the Making a Difference Award to recognize and honor those clients whose cases demonstrate the critical role of the civil justice system in protecting the rights of Texas families. Any client (past or present) of a current TTLA member is eligible for this award. Click on the headline to learn more and download the nomination form.  

 

Products

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Device Malfunction Casts Doubt on Industry Pledge

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As doctors scramble to understand the risks posed by a flawed heart device component made by St. Jude Medical, the episode is raising a bigger question — whether the $10 billion heart device industry has fully embraced promised safety reforms. The industry was shaken in 2005 by disclosures that a major maker of heart defibrillators, Guidant, had not warned doctors about a potentially fatal flaw in its products.  BARRY MEIER & KATIE THOMAS, The New York Times  04/20/2012

Read Article: The New York Times    

 

Laws/Cases

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BP, Plaintiffs’ Attorneys Present Fed Judge With Terms of $7.8B Gulf Oil Spill Settlement

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BP and attorneys for more than 100,000 people and businesses presented a federal judge Wednesday with a class-action settlement designed to resolve billions of dollars in claims spawned by the 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. BP and the lawyers are asking U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier in New Orleans to give preliminary approval to the settlement agreement. The judge is scheduled to consider their request April 25. The details of the agreement, spelled out in hundreds of pages of documents, are consistent with the deal announced last month, but the reaction was mixed, leaving open the possibility that many businesses and individuals might decide not to take part.  Associated Press, The Washington Post  04/20/2012

Read Article: The Washington Post    

 

La’s Property Insurer of Last Resort Asks High Court to Hear $104M Appeal

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Louisiana’s property insurer of last resort has asked the nation’s highest court to hear an appeal of a $104.6 million award to 18,500 policyholders who sued over slow adjustment of hurricane claims in 2005. The action by Louisiana Citizens Property Insurance Corp. came as an order was issued to the East Baton Rouge Parish sheriff to get the money from the insurer’s bank. In a statement, plaintiffs' attorney said a state district judge in Jefferson Parish would decide how to divide the money once it is turned over by Regions Bank. Citizens’ chief executive said a request for the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the case was filed Wednesday.  Associated Press, The Washington Post  04/20/2012

Read Article: The Washington Post    

 

Supreme Court Says Organizations Can’t be Sued Under Law for Torture Victims

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The Supreme Court ruled unanimously Wednesday that organizations may not be sued for claims they aided in torture or killings abroad under a law aimed at helping torture victims. Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote the court’s opinion dismissing the lawsuit filed by the family of an American who died in the custody of Palestinian intelligence officers in Jericho in 1995. The family wanted to sue the Palestinian Authority and Palestine Liberation Organization under the Torture Victim Protection Act.  Associated Press, The Washington Post  04/20/2012

Read Article: The Washington Post    

 

NJ District to Pay $4.2M to Settle Lawsuit Over Bully’s Punch that Paralyzed Middle-Schooler

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A New Jersey school district has agreed to pay $4.2 million to settle a lawsuit by a middle school student who was paralyzed when a known bully punched him in the abdomen. The settlement between the Ramsey school district and the family of Sawyer Rosenstein, who had complained to the district about being bullied, was worked out over the past two months but not made public until last week.  Associated Press, The Washington Post  04/20/2012

Read Article: The Washington Post    

 

Healthcare

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Cancer Patients Rarely Speak Up About Care Problems

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In a new survey of cancer patients, many people who'd had problems with their treatment never said anything to the doctor they thought was responsible -- and almost none formally reported the problems to the hospital. There could be many reasons why cancer patients don't always bring up concerns about those issues during treatment, according to the study's lead author, Kathleen Mazor, from Meyers Primary Care Institute and the University of Massachusetts Medical School in Worcester.  Genevra Pittman, Reuters  04/20/2012

Read Article: Reuters    

 

Insurance

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Virginia Tech Victims' Families Spur Insurance Inquiry

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A lawyer for the families of two Virginia Tech students shot to death on campus five years ago persuaded a judge Tuesday to permit an inquiry into what state insurance policies might exist to pay damages. A jury last month found Virginia Tech negligent for failing to adequately warn students. Families of two the victims, Erin Peterson and Julia Pryde, filed the wrongful death suits that were heard in court last month. Although the jury recommended each family receive $4M, the office of the VA attorney general says the Virginia Tort Claims Act caps the award to each family at $100,000.  Jeff Sturgeon, Roanoke Times  04/20/2012

Read Article: Roanoke Times    

 

TEXAS LAWYER CASE SUMMARIES

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Austin Court of Appeals: Health Law

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In this health care liability case, the defendant health care providers bring this interlocutory appeal of the probate court's orders concerning expert reports. A non-suit and repleading does not restart an expired deadline for serving an expert report addressing the health care liability claim asserting the original defendant's direct liability, and a "supplemental" report may not provide essential information for that health care liability claim that was omitted from the previously served expert reports. The probate court's orders are reversed and remanded in part and rendered in part. Fung v. Fischer, Austin Court of Appeals, No. 03-10-00298-CV, 04-13-2012. http://www.law.com/jsp/decision.jsp?id=1202549428879  , Texas Lawyer Opinions (TTLA Members Only)  04/20/2012

Read Article: Texas Lawyer Opinions (TTLA Members Only)    

 

Wrongful Death

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Backhoe Falls on Car, Kills One, Lawsuit Filed

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A lawsuit has been filed against electricity company National Grid over the death of a Massachusetts woman. She was killed when a backhoe fell off a company trailer and landed on her car while driving on Interstate 495. The suit claims the driver of the National Grid vehicle lost control, causing the backhoe to fall from the trailer, which crushed the family's minivan. The woman's daughter and two grandchildren suffered serious injuries in the accident.  Colin A. Young, Boston Globe  04/20/2012

Read Article: Boston Globe    


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