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January 24, 2012

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Bar Altercation Results in Death, Lawsuit Says

Torture Lawsuit Rejected by Appeals Court

Houston Settles Red Light Camera Contract Lawsuit

Lawsuit Filed in Fatal Helicopter Crash

HCA-Owned Hospital Ordered to Pay $178M in Suit

Jury Awards Patient $1.9M Over Botched Surgery

Two Insurers Sued Over Unclaimed Policies

Tyler Court of Appeals: Torts

El Paso Court of Appeals: Torts

Houston's 1st Court of Appeals: Torts

5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals: Torts

Austin Court of Appeals: Health Law

El Paso Court of Appeals: Torts

 

 

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Announcements

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IRS Issues Regulations on Damages Received from Physical Injury or Sickness

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The IRS has released final regulations relating to the exclusion from gross income for amounts received on account of personal physical injuries or physical sickness. The final regulations in TD 9573 reflect amendments under the Small Business Job Protection Act of 1996 and affect taxpayers who have received damages on account of personal physical injuries or physical sickness and taxpayers paying these damages. The regulations take effect on Jan. 23, 2012. They delete an earlier requirement that to qualify for exclusion from gross income, damages received from a legal suit, action, or settlement agreement must be based upon “tort or tort type rights.” The regulations provide, instead, that the Section 104(a)(2) exclusion may apply to damages recovered for a personal physical injury or physical sickness under a statute that does not provide for a broad range of remedies, and that the injury need not be defined as a tort. Source: Accounting Today. Click on headline to learn more.  

 

Best Kept Trial Secrets: What Happens in Vegas Stays in Vegas

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Don't gamble with your cases. 48 hours in Vegas can change your practice forever! Join some of TTLA's battle-tested veterans and emerging superstars in Las Vegas for a CLE experience that'll change your luck in the courtroom. February 23-25, 2012, Bellagio Hotel, Las Vegas, 8 hrs. MCLE w/ 1 hr. Ethics  

 

Laws/Cases

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Bar Altercation Results in Death, Lawsuit Says

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A Chicago couple has filed a lawsuit against a local teenager who allegedly threw the punch that killed their son at an Indiana beach last summer. The teenagers got into a fight on July 4th, and the defendant allegedly punched the other boy in the head, the suit says. The boy died two days later of blunt force trauma to the head. The lawsuit claims the defendant and his sister were drunk and instigated the disturbance.  Brennan David, Columbia Daily Tribune  01/21/2012

Read Article: Columbia Daily Tribune    

 

Torture Lawsuit Rejected by Appeals Court

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A Washington appeals court has upheld the dismissal of a suit filed by an American citizen who said he was "illegally detained and tortured" in a South Carolina military jail. The court ruled that the man, who had been convicted on terrorism charges, had no right to sue and that "the judiciary cannot review such sensitive military decisions." Allowing the suit to proceed, the court ruled, would open up “past executive deliberations affecting sensitive matters of national security to the prospect of searching judicial scrutiny."  James Vicini, Chicago Tribune  01/23/2012

Read Article: Chicago Tribune    

 

Houston Settles Red Light Camera Contract Lawsuit

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The city of Houston has agreed to settle a lawsuit filed against the use of red-light cameras. Last August, the city turned the cameras off and stopped issuing tickets, but still had to deal with the contract with camera manufacturer American Traffic Solutions (ATS). In the proposed settlement, the city will pay ATS more than $12 million for breach of contract.  Demond Fernandez , KTRK-TV  01/21/2012

Read Article: KTRK-TV    

 

Lawsuit Filed in Fatal Helicopter Crash

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A lawsuit has been filed against a helicopter company over a crash on Dec. 26 that killed three members of a transplant team in Florida. The lawyer for the family filing the suit said crash scene information suggests the accident was caused by "operational negligence." A preliminary report shows the helicopter dropped 150 feet before hitting a 50-foot tree early in the morning. The suit is seeking unspecified damages.  Dan Scanlan , Florida Times Union  01/23/2012

Read Article: Florida Times Union    

 

HCA-Owned Hospital Ordered to Pay $178M in Suit

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A Florida jury Monday awarded a surgery patient $10 million in punitive damages in his suit against HCA Holdings Inc.'s Memorial Hospital Jacksonville, raising the plaintiff's compensation to $178 million. The Jacksonville federal court jury found Memorial Hospital liable for $168 million in damages to Clay Chandler, who went into a coma for a few weeks in 2007 after complications arose from his gastric bypass surgery. The portion of the trial to determine punitive damages concluded Monday.  MATT JARZEMSKY, Wall Street Journal - $$ Subscription Required  01/24/2012

Read Article: Wall Street Journal - $$ Subscription Required($)    

 

Jury Awards Patient $1.9M Over Botched Surgery

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A Harris County jury has awarded nearly $2 million to a woman whose life was changed forever when she went in for a hysterectomy. She says the surgeon she trusted wasn't the person who actually performed most of the surgery. In 2008 she underwent a laparoscopic hysterectomy at Methodist Willowbrook Hospital, never thinking she would end up in a three week medically induced coma, and near death. But it wasn't until she filed a lawsuit against Kelsey-Seybold Clinic and her ob-gyn, Dr. J. Patrick Benge, that she found out a resident performed more than 50 percent of that surgery.  Miya Shay , KTRK-TV  01/24/2012

Read Article: KTRK-TV    

 

Two Insurers Sued Over Unclaimed Policies

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A whistleblower lawsuit alleges MetLife Inc. and Prudential Financial Inc. avoided handing over unclaimed life-insurance policies to Illinois's abandoned-property department, and seeks more than $1 billion in damages on behalf of the state. The lawsuit, filed in January 2011 and unsealed by a Cook County, Ill., state-court judge last week, underlines how litigation stemming from unclaimed policies may continue to dog the life-insurance industry even as some major companies move to settle state-government probes into possible violations.  LESLIE SCISM , Wall Street Journal - $$ Subscription Required  01/24/2012

Read Article: Wall Street Journal - $$ Subscription Required($)    

 

TEXAS LAWYER CASE SUMMARIES

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Tyler Court of Appeals: Torts

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Steven F. Hotze, M.D., appeals from the denial of his summary judgment motions in this defamation case brought against him by Keith E. Miller, M.D. A Texas Medical Board member is a public official. There is no evidence that Hotze acted with actual malice, and Miller has not raised a fact issue regarding actual malice. The judgment is reversed and rendered that Miller take nothing. Hotze v. Miller, Tyler Court of Appeals, No. 12-10-00413-CV, 01-11-2012.  , Texas Lawyer Opinions (TTLA Members Only)  01/24/2012

Read Article: Texas Lawyer Opinions (TTLA Members Only)    

 

El Paso Court of Appeals: Torts

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This is an accelerated interlocutory appeal from a trial court order granting the City of El Paso's plea to the jurisdiction. Evidence including photographs, accident reports, and testimony and affidavits of city employees is sufficient to raise a fact issue on immunity. The order is reversed and remanded. Tirado v. City of El Paso, El Paso Court of Appeals, No. 08-10-00334-CV, 01-11-2012.  , Texas Lawyer Opinions (TTLA Members Only)  01/24/2012

Read Article: Texas Lawyer Opinions (TTLA Members Only)    

 

Houston's 1st Court of Appeals: Torts

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An employee died on the job while working for United Parcel Services Inc. The plaintiff sued, alleging negligence after the employee's injury was determined to be non-compensable for workers' compensation purposes. The trial court granted summary judgment against the plaintiff on the grounds of res judicata and collateral estoppel. A claim by the surviving spouse or heirs of a deceased employee for exemplary damages based on the employer's gross negligence cannot be remedied through the administrative process established by the Texas Workers' Compensation Act. The causation burden under Texas Labor Code §408.008 involves different questions from those in a gross negligence suit. The trial court's judgment is reversed and remanded. Barnes v. United Parcel Service Inc., Houston's 1st Court of Appeals, No. 01-09-00648-CV, 01-12-2012.  , Texas Lawyer Opinions (TTLA Members Only)  01/24/2012

Read Article: Texas Lawyer Opinions (TTLA Members Only)    

 

5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals: Torts

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This interlocutory appeal arises out of the deaths of civilian drivers in a U.S. military supply-truck convoy in Iraq when insurgents attacked in April 2004. State tort claims were brought by or on behalf of spouses and family members of the decedents against the employers of the decedents. The district court found that the claims were not pre-empted by the Defense Base Act. All of the state law claims are barred by the DBA. If an employee's injury falls within the scope of the DBA's coverage as the result of a willful act of a third party directed against the employee because of his employment, the employee cannot proceed with an intentional-tort claim. The district court's order is vacated and the matter remanded with instructions to dismiss the state law claims. Fisher v. Halliburton, 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, No. 10-20202, 01-12-2012.  , Texas Lawyer Opinions (TTLA Members Only)  01/24/2012

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Austin Court of Appeals: Health Law

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The appellants appeal from the denial of their motion to dismiss the appellee's suit alleging medical malpractice. An expert report must include a fair summary of the expert's opinion as to the causal relationship between the medical defendant's failure to meet the standard of care and the injury alleged. The trial court's order is reversed and remanded. Smith v. Wilson, Austin Court of Appeals, No. 03-10-00387-CV, 01-11-2012.  , Texas Lawyer Opinions (TTLA Members Only)  01/24/2012

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El Paso Court of Appeals: Torts

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The plaintiff, acting as trustee, brought suit against the defendants, alleging that they proximately caused damage to the trust's property by allowing accumulated runoff to impact the trust property. The trial court ordered the plaintiff's claims dismissed. Jurors must resolve whether a nuisance is temporary or permanent when there is a dispute regarding what interference has occurred or whether it is likely to continue. The trial court's judgment is reversed and remanded. Sullivan v. Brokers Logistics Ltd., El Paso Court of Appeals, No. 08-10-00267-CV, 01-11-2012.  , Texas Lawyer Opinions (TTLA Members Only)  01/24/2012

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