Texas Trial Lawyers Association


This service sponsored exclusively by The James Street Group

  November 6, 2012

 

 


The Plaintiff's Resource

Upcoming Online CLE

8
Nov

The First-Party Special Needs Trust: a Detailed Review of the Pro’s and Con’s of the Two Types of First-Party Special Needs Trusts

13
Nov

Damages with David Ball and Artemis Malekpour

14
Nov

Professionalism: Using the Precepts of Professionalism in Your Client’s Best Interest

15
Nov

Medicare Liens and Set Asides

29
Nov

Your Firm's Legal Website: What You Need To Know When Making or Updating It

5
Dec

Burn Injury Cases

Announcements


 

 

Election Day Nov 6th

Find voting locations in your county.  

 

Connecting with TTLA on Election Night

Beginning at 8 PM tonight, TTLA Communications will be sending updates on Texas election news. Click on the headline to learn more!  

 

Register for the 2012 Annual Meeting & Advanced PI CLE, December 6-7 at the Four Season's Hotel, Austin

Formerly the TTLA Annual Conference, our December event is now the Annual Meeting & Advanced PI CLE! We've streamlined this event and we're now offering a one-day Advanced PI CLE, along with the Annual Membership & Board Meeting, President's Luncheon, and a spectacular Holiday Party with dinner and dancing with the famous Lee Roy Parnell. Click on the headline to learn more!  

 

Laws/Cases


 

 

Suit: Solider's Dead Body Shown in Documentary

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An Army sergeant's widow has filed a lawsuit against National Geographic and Fox, claiming that a 2009 documentary aired by the companies showed her husband's dead body. The documentary includes a photo of the man's body, as well as a photo of their family at Disney World that was allegedly stolen from the sergeant's laptop. The suit accuses the company of using family members' likeness for commercial purposes without permission.
Tim Molloy, Chicago Tribune 11/06/2012    Facebook icon Twitter icon LinkedIn Icon

Read Article: Chicago Tribune    

 

Skins Sues UCI After Armstrong Scandal

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Sportswear group Skins International Trading AG is seeking damages from cycling's governing body in the wake of the Lance Armstrong doping scandal. Skins, an official clothing supplier and sponsor to national federations including the U.S., Australia and New Zealand; and professional teams such as RabobankEuropcar and NetApp, sent a letter to the Union Cycliste Internationaleor UCI, Friday claiming its brand reputation has been harmed.
GILLIAN TAN, Wall Street Journal - $$ Subscription Required 11/06/2012    Facebook icon Twitter icon LinkedIn Icon

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

 

Fort Hood Shooting Victims, Relatives Sue Government

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On Monday, the third anniversary of the Fort Hood rampage, 148 victims and family members sued the government, seeking compensation for the attack, for which an Army psychiatrist is awaiting trial. The shooting at the Army post in Central Texas killed 13 people and wounded more than two dozen others. The lawsuit, alleging negligence by the government, said that the Defense Department is avoiding legal and financial responsibility for the killings by referring to the shootings as “workplace violence” rather than a terrorist attack. The group also is suing the estate of Anwar al-Awlaki, a radical U.S.-born Islamic cleric who the victims say inspired the psychiatrist, Maj. Nidal Hasan, to carry out the attack. The two men exchanged emails before the shootings.
Pete Yost , Austin American Statesman 11/06/2012    Facebook icon Twitter icon LinkedIn Icon

Read Article: Austin American Statesman    

 

Supreme Court Considers Llimits on Class-Actions

 

The Supreme Court appeared divided Monday in two cases in which businesses are trying to make it harder for customers or investors to band together to sue them. The justices heard arguments in appeals from biotech company Amgen Inc. and cable provider Comcast Corp. that seek to shut down class-action lawsuits against the businesses. Last year, the Supreme Court raised the bar for some class-action suits when it sided with Wal-Mart against up to 1.6 million of its female employees who complained of sex discrimination. In the Wal-Mart case, the court said there were too many women in too many jobs at the nation's largest private employer to wrap into one lawsuit.
MARK SHERMAN , Associated Press, Star Tribune-South Metro  
11/06/2012
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Read Article: Star Tribune-South Metro    

 

Issues


 

 

FDA Warns Company over Improper Marketing

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Officials with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration have sent a warning letter to a Tennessee company about marketing an unapproved medical device for the treatment of fungal meningitis. The agency said that with the recent outbreaks, customers may be improperly swayed by products wrongly "touted as cures or treatments." This is the second warning the company, The Avalon Effect Inc., has received from the FDA, The Tennessean reports.
Duane Marsteller, Tennessean 11/06/2012    Facebook icon Twitter icon LinkedIn Icon

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Ruling Reinforces Law on Handguns in Employees' Cars

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In an opinion released Monday that reinforces a 2011 law, Attorney General Greg Abbott's office said that employers cannot prohibit an employee with a concealed handgun license from keeping a handgun in a locked, private vehicle in an employee parking lot. According to the attorney general’s opinion, Section 30.06 of the Texas penal code — which allows employers to post notices restricting handguns or other firearms on the premises — does not supersede the state law that protects concealed handgun license holders. The opinion also notes that there is no statute that suggests a way for employees to respond when the employer violates this law. However, “an aggrieved employee may, depending on the circumstances, have the ability to sue an offending employer,” the opinion states.
Audrey White, Texas Tribune 11/06/2012    Facebook icon Twitter icon LinkedIn Icon

Read Article: Texas Tribune