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Texas Trial Lawyers Association


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December 23, 2013

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Announcements


eFiling Mandate Deadline

In December 2012, the Texas Supreme Court mandated e-filing in civil matters. The first group of counties (Harris, Dallas, Tarrant, Bexar, Travis, Collin, Denton, El Paso, Hidalgo and Fort Bend), the Supreme Court, the Court of Criminal Appeals and the 14 Courts of Appeal become mandatory January 1, 2014. This means that attorneys will no longer be able to file paper documents at the clerk's counter. E-filing in all other counties will become mandatory on a graduated schedule through July 1, 2016. Click on the headline to learn more.

Laws/Cases


Kan. Priest Sexual Abuse Lawsuit Settled for $130K

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The Kansas City-St. Joseph Diocese and a Catholic religious order have agreed to pay $130,000 to settle a lawsuit filed against them over sexual abuse by a priest. The lawsuit alleged that the plaintiff was sexually abused by the priest when he was a student in the 1970's. The plaintiff claimed that the priest would touch him inappropriately during one-on-one basketball games and in the rectory after games. The lawsuit was headed to trial in January.
Judy L. Thomas, Kansas City Star 12/22/2013 Facebook iconTwitter iconLinkedIn Icon

Read Article: Kansas City Star

North Texans Challenge Drillers Over Royalties

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Chesapeake has the drilling rights to more than half of the nearly 500 mineral leases that Fort Worth has issued for city property. Since 2006, the Oklahoma City-based driller has produced more than 200 billion cubic feet of natural gas on city-owned land and has paid the city tens of millions of dollars in royalties. Fort Worth is now battling Chesapeake in a Tarrant County District Court, claiming that the company and its business partner Total E&P USA have shortchanged the city millions of dollars in unpaid royalties. The companies, the complaint states, have fallen well short of their obligations to the city and its citizens, while "willfully and knowingly violating their duties.
Jim Malewitz, Texas Tribune 12/23/2013 Facebook iconTwitter iconLinkedIn Icon

Read Article: Texas Tribune

Issues


Study says Texas Unprepared to Stop Spread of Infectious Disease

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Recent figures released by the non-profit group Trust for America's Health give Texas a failing grade when it comes to being able to prevent and protect its citizens from an infectious disease outbreak. The Lone Star state only scored 4 out of 10 when graded on ten key policies and capabilities that would help Texans fight and protect themselves from dangerous infectious diseases, some of which could kill. The "Outbreaks: Protecting Americans from Infectious Diseases report" released Dec. 17, shows that Texas has a long way to go when it comes to vaccinating young children against whooping cough, flu vaccinations for all, and covering HIV screening under Medicaid. The report says Texas doesn't have an adequate climate change adaptation plan either, which would focus on what we'll do in the event of a steep weather change. Our public health laboratories also took a hit for not being able to handle a hypothetical run on testing and transportation of samples to officials.
Craig Hlavaty, Houston Chronicle 12/23/2013 Facebook iconTwitter iconLinkedIn Icon

Read Article: Houston Chronicle

Oil Boom's Unexpected Byproduct: Broken Windshields

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Bringing a new gas or oil well into production typically requires more than 1,000 loaded trucks traveling to and from a well site. Across portions of South and West Texas, where hundreds of new wells have been drilled, the surge in truck traffic has torn up rural roads and created safety challenges, including the increasingly common occurrence of large trucks sending rocks or debris flying at the vehicles behind them. This month a jury awarded $281 million to the family of a South Texas man who was killed in 2012 when a drive shaft fell off a tractor-trailer truck that belonged to Heckmann Water Resources, an oil patch supplier, and flew through the windshield of the victimâ„¢s pickup truck. The award included $100 million in punitive damages related to allegations that the company had not properly maintained its truck.
Aman Batheja, Texas Tribune 12/23/2013 Facebook iconTwitter iconLinkedIn Icon

Read Article: Texas Tribune

Wrongful Death


Mont. Man Shot to Death over Land Access

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A Montana woman whose husband was shot and killed by another man over a land access dispute has filed a wrongful death lawsuit in civil court. The man was shot with a .40-caliber semi-automatic pistol by the defendant. The lawsuit alleges that the defendant's negligence caused the death of the plaintiff's husband and that the defendant and his wife "failed to render assistance after the shooting, causing additional pain and suffering." The lawsuit seeks survivorship damages.
Wire Report, Missoulian 12/22/2013 Facebook iconTwitter iconLinkedIn Icon

Read Article: Missoulian


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