| Live Webinar (9/27/18): The New Federal Tax Law: Implications are Surprisingly Bad for Plaintiffs |
Robert W. Wood will discuss the new federal tax law and its implications for plaintiffs and their lawyers. For many types of cases, the lack of tax deductions for legal fees may be catastrophic. Plaintiffs in many types of litigation will feel the full force of paying taxes on their gross recoveries, with no deduction for their legal fees and costs. Topics discussed will include: changes in how taxes on attorney fees are determined, and the elimination of the 'below-the-line deduction' for legal fees; the numerous types of cases impacted by the changes, including insurance bad faith, employment, whistle blower, sexual harassment, intentional emotional distress, and punitive damages; and, the implications of the tax laws on settlement negotiations. Click on the headline to register.
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Texas Tribune Daily Brief
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| The Brief for August 9 |
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In today's Brief: There were more than 100,000 pending U.S. citizenship applications in Texas at the end of March, opponents of the state's voter ID law say the years-long case is settled, and education officials are set to release the first official grades for school districts next week.
Cassi Pollock , Texas Tribune 08/09/2018   
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Texas Tribune
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| Wood: Trump Tax Law Hurts Personal Injury Suit Settlements |
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Punitive damages and interest are taxable, and there are key changes under the Trump tax law. To qualify for tax-free treatment, the injuries must be physical. Emotional distress is not enough, and physical symptoms such as insomnia, headaches and stomachaches are normal byproducts of emotional distress, says the IRS. Exactly what injuries are 'physical' is confusing. If you make claims for emotional distress, your damages are taxable. In contrast, if you claim that the defendant caused you to become physically sick, those damages should be tax free. Yet, if it is emotional distress that causes you to become physically sick, even that physical sickness will not spell tax-free damages. However, if you are physically sick or physically injured, and your sickness or injury produces emotional distress too, those emotional distress damages should be tax free. If you are confused, you are not alone. To learn more on this issue register for the The New Federal Tax Law: the Implications are Surprisingly Bad for Plaintiffs and their Lawyers Live Webinar on 9/27/18 at 2:00PM (Registration information listed in the (EClips Announcement section.)
Robert W. Wood (Contributor), Forbes 08/09/2018
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Forbes
TTLA
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| Farmer Files Suit Over Herbicide Damage to Crops |
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A farmer from Nebraska has filed a lawsuit alleging that the herbicide dicamba damaged his crops. The Bloomfield farmer filed a lawsuit last month in U.S. District Court against four makers of the herbicide alleging that they are responsible for the damage to his crops. According to the lawsuit, the application of dicamba products by the plaintiff's neighbors caused damage to his soybean crops last summer. The nearby use of the herbicide led to "significant dicamba injuries on his crops, including, but not limited to cupping, curling, strapping, discoloration, leaf elongation, wrinkling, stunting, trumpeting, or twisting of exposed plants," says the plaintiff.
Matt Olberding, Sioux City Journal 08/05/2018
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Sioux City Journal
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| Young Girl Suffers Injury on Water Slide at Resort, Parents File Suit |
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The parents of a child who was injured on a slide at San Luis Resort in Galveston have filed a lawsuit. The personal injury lawsuit was filed on July 13 in Galveston County District Court and names Fertitta Hospitality LLC, owner of the San Luis Resort, Spa & Conference Center in Galveston, and the resort's water slide manufacturer, Dream Pools of Texas, Inc., as defendants. According to the complaint, the defendants were negligent in failing to prevent the incident in which the young girl was knocked unconscious on the water slide.
Nick Powell, Houston Chronicle 07/31/2018
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Houston Chronicle
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| Couple Wounded in Sutherland Springs Shooting Sue Academy |
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Rosanne Solis and Joaquin Ramirez sued Academy Sports + Outdoors for selling Devin Patrick Kelley a Ruger AR-556 with 30 round capacity magazines. While this model is legal in Texas, Kelley was a resident of Colorado, where it's illegal to sell, possess or manufacture magazines with capacities over 15 rounds. The couple, who were both shot, accuse Academy of gross negligence and seek damages of more than $1 million each for physical and mental anguish, disfigurement and medical expenses. The suit was filed in Bexar County District Court.
Lauren McGaughy, The Dallas Morning News 08/09/2018
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The Dallas Morning News
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| Mother of D'ashon Morris Files Lawsuit Against Superior HealthPlan |
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D'ashon Morris is permanently brain damaged because Superior HealthPlan cared more about its profits than the foster baby's needs, his adoptive mother contends in a lawsuit she filed last week.
Linda Badawo's lawyers accuse Superior, owned by Missouri-based Centene Corp., of improperly denying round-the-clock nursing for the boy to save money, even though his doctor and nurses had documented his dangerous habit of pulling out his breathing tube.D'ashon, now 3, is now in a persistent vegetative state, and Badawo, who adopted the child last year, wants a jury to decide if the company is to blame.
The lawsuit, filed in state District Court in Travis County, accuses Superior of fraud and gross negligence and seeks more than $1 million in damages.
J. David McSwane, The Dallas Morning News 08/09/2018
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The Dallas Morning News
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| AstraZeneca to Pay $110 million to Settle Texas Medicaid Fraud Claims |
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AstraZeneca will pay $110 million to settle a pair of whistle-blower lawsuits accusing the company of falsely marketing two of its drugs to Texas Medicaid providers, including illegally promoting a powerful antipsychotic medicine for use by children. The cases were filed in 2013 by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's office, which accused the United Kingdom-based drug maker of 'off-label marketing' of Crestor, a cholesterol medicine, and Seroquel, an antipsychotic drug used to treat conditions like schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. The state initially sought $5 billion in its lawsuit.
Conor Shine, The Dallas Morning News 08/09/2018
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The Dallas Morning News
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| Lax Oversight: Surgery Center Regulators and Patients Left in the Dark |
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A USA TODAY NETWORK and Kaiser Health News investigation found that surgery centers operate under such an uneven mix of rules across U.S. states that fatalities or serious injuries can result in no warning to government officials, much less to potential patients. The gaps in oversight enable centers hit with federal regulators' toughest sanctions to keep operating, according to interviews, a review of hundreds of pages of court filings and government records obtained under open records laws. No rule stops a doctor exiled by a hospital for misconduct from opening a surgery center down the street.
Christina Jewett and Mark Alesia, USA Today 08/09/2018
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USA Today
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| Former Diver Added to Sexual Abuse Class Action Suit Against USA Diving |
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Another former Indiana University diver has been added to a class action lawsuit alleging sexual abuse. The lawsuit alleges that a young woman, 17 years old at the time, sent naked photos of herself to a volunteer assistant diving coach for IU, at the coach's request. Further, the lawsuit alleges the coach pressured the woman into performing sex acts on him by threatening to show the naked photos to her boyfriend. The class action lawsuit accuses Indianapolis-based USA Diving of ignoring or obstructing accusations of sexual abuse.
Mark Alesia, Indianapolis Star 08/06/2018
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Indianapolis Star
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| Shreveport Facing Lawsuit Over Death of Child in Drainage Ditch |
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The City of Shreveport, Louisiana, is facing a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the parents of a young boy who drowned after being swept away in a drainage ditch. The 7-year-old boy went missing on Aug. 1, 2017, and his body was found two days later in a drainage ditch. The lawsuit blames the city for failing to implement grating or any type of guard to prevent the young boy from being swept away. The lawsuit, which seeks unspecified damages, was filed in Caddo Parish district court July 25.
Nick Wooten, The Shreveport Times 08/01/2018
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The Shreveport Times
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