Constitutional Challenge, Eminent Domain, Litigation, Procedure

Bridge reconstruction which prevented property owner from turning is trailer into property was not a material or substantial impairment to access says First Court of Appeals

Darrell Church v. City of Alvin, Texas 01-13-00865-CV (Tex. App. – Houston [1st Dist.] June 25, 2015) In this inverse condemnation involving decrease access to a driveway entrance the Houston First District Court of Appeals affirmed the granting of the City’s plea
Read More

Constitutional Challenge, Official/Qualified Immunity, Sec. 1983

U.S. Supreme Court holds pretrial detainees suit under Due Process clause is analyzed under objective reasonableness standard only

Kingsley v. Hendrickson 14-6368 (U.S. June 22, 2015) This is an excessive force case where the U.S. Supreme Court held the subjective awareness of individual officers was not relevant but the jury could have been confused by the instruction. [Comment: the officers
Read More

Constitutional Challenge, Search and Seizure

City ordinance requiring hotels to provide certain data to law enforcement equates to unconstitutional search and is facially invalid says U.S. Supreme Court

Los Angeles v. Patel 13-1175 (U.S. June 22, 2015) In this case the U.S. Supreme Court analyzed the standards for making facial challenges to particular city ordinances. After analyzing the specific ordinance, the Court held the City’s ordinance unconstitutional. The City of
Read More

Constitutional Challenge, Contracts, Declaratory Judgments, Land Use, Sovereign Immunity, Vested Rigths

Payday loan company has no jurisdiction to challenge City ordinance regulating payday loans says Fort Worth Court of Appeals

ACE Cash Express, Inc. v. The City of Denton, Texas 02-14-00146-CV (Tex. App. – Fort Worth, June 4, 2015). This is a case involving a company’s attempt to invalidate a city ordinance regulating credit access businesses in which the Fort Worth Court
Read More

Constitutional Challenge, Contracts, Official/Qualified Immunity, Sec. 1983, Sovereign Immunity, Uncategorized

U.S. 5th Circuit holds school district not a proper RICO defendant, but former trustee is; former trustee not entitled to §101.106 immunity for bribery allegations

The Gil Ramirez Group, L.L.C. v. Houston Independent School District  13-20753 (5th Cir. May 18, 2015). This is a bribery and federal Racketeer Influenced Corrupt Organizations Act (“RICO”), claim case against the Houston Independent School District (“HISD”), a former HISD trustee (“Marshall”)
Read More