Contracts, Declaratory Judgments, Injunction, Litigation, Procedure

City wins breach of lease claim against FBO, but quantum meruit claims were remanded

  Laredo Jet Center, LLC v. City of Laredo, 04-17-00316-CV (Tex. App. – San Antonio, July 25, 2018) This is an FBO lease dispute where the San Antonio Court of Appeals affirmed-in-part and reversed-in-part a summary judgment motion issued in favor of the City. Laredo Jet was a fixed-based operator (“FBO”) at the Laredo International […]

Declaratory Judgments, Injunction, Litigation, Procedure, Ultra Vires

trial court properly awarded attorney’s fees to school district as plaintiffs should have reasonably known the individual officials were absolutely immune

Farr et. al. v Arlington ISD, 02-17-00196-CV (Tex. App. – Fort Worth, July 19, 2018) In this asserted ultra vires case, the Fort Worth Court of Appeals affirmed the granting of the school district defendants’ plea to the jurisdiction. The Plaintiffs comprise of students, employees, and parents who asserted they were exposed to poor air […]

Sovereign Immunity, TTCA

4th Court of Appeals holds VIA bus system not immune from bus accident, notwithstanding common carrier heightened standard of care argument

VIA Metropolitan Transit Authority v. Shantinia Reynolds, 04-18-00083-CV (Tex. App. – San Antonio, July 18, 2018) This is an interlocutory appeal from the denial of a plea to the jurisdiction in a Texas Tort Claims Act (“TTCA”)/vehicle accident case where the San Antonio Court of Appeals affirmed the denial. Reynolds was injured when the VIA […]

Litigation, Procedure, Sovereign Immunity, TTCA

University retains immunity from suit after chemistry student accidentally ingested sodium cyanide from lab

Texas A&M University v. Kevin Taylor, et. al, 10-17-00288-CV (Tex. App. – Waco, July 3, 2018) This is an interlocutory appeal from the denial of Texas A&M University’s plea to the jurisdiction where the Waco Court of Appeals reversed the denial. The Taylors’ son, Christian, was a biochemistry major at TAMU. TAMU provided a key […]

Employment Law, Litigation, Procedure, Sovereign Immunity, Whistleblower

A police officer’s subjective preference for assignment is insufficient to prove a materially adverse personnel action says Dallas Court of Appeals

  City of Dallas v. Christopher Worden, 05-17-00490-CV )Tex. App. – Dallas, July 3, 2018). This is an interlocutory appeal from the denial of a plea to the jurisdiction in a Texas Whistleblower Act case where the Dallas Court of Appeals reversed the denial and dismissed the Plaintiff’s claims. Worden is a police officer who […]

Constitutional Challenge, Declaratory Judgments, Elections, Injunction, Litigation, Procedure, Separation of Powers, Sovereign Immunity

Texas Supreme Court holds county official removal statute is subject to Texas Citizens Participation Act and sovereign immunity is waived for attorney’s fees of losing party

State of Texas ex Rel. George Darrell Best v Paul Reed Harper, 16-0647, — S.W.3d – (Tex. July 29, 2018). This is a Texas Citizens Participation Act (“TPCA”) case where the Texas Supreme Court held a suit to remove a county official from elected office under chapter 87 of the Texas Local Government Code (the […]

Constitutional Challenge, Declaratory Judgments, Health and Safety, Injunction, Litigation, Procedure

Texas Supreme Court holds City plastic bag ban preempted under the Solid Waste Disposal Act

  City of Laredo v Laredo Merchants Association, 16-0748, — S.W.3d. – (Tex. June 22, 2018) The Texas Supreme Court held the City’s plastic/paper trash bag ban is preempted. As part of a strategic plan to create a “trash-free” city, the City of Laredo adopted an ordinance to reduce litter from one-time-use plastic and paper […]

Public Works, Sovereign Immunity, TTCA

Developer’s asserted causal link between use of bulldozers and inability to timely sell lots is insufficient to establish waiver of immunity says 13th Court of Appeals

City of Weslaco v. Raquel Trejo and Roberto Trejo, 13-18-00024-CV (Tex. App. – Corpus Christi, June 21, 2018) This is an interlocutory appeal from the denial of the City’s plea to the jurisdiction in a Texas Tort Claims Act case where the 13th Court of Appeals reversed but remanded the case. The Trejos began to […]

Sovereign Immunity, TTCA

City’s affidavit failed to show how a reasonable ambulance driver would have acted similarly, so plea was properly denied

  City of Dallas v Duressa, 05-17-01238-CV (Tex. App. — Dallas, June 13, 2018) This is a Texas Tort Claims Act (“TTCA”)/ambulance accident case where the Dallas Court of Appeals affirmed the denial of the City’s plea to the jurisdiction. Duressa was involved in a car accident and Dallas dispatched an ambulance driven by Officer […]

Constitutional Challenge, Litigation, Official/Qualified Immunity, Procedure, Sec. 1983

City retained ability to revoke non-consent tow permit says U.S. 5th Circuit

  Rountree v. Dyson No. 17-40443 (5thCir. June 11, 2018) This is a 42 U.S.C. 1983 suit where the City of Beaumont removed a tow-truck company from its non-consent tow rotation list and the 5thCircuit affirmed a dismissal in favor of the City. Rountree owned a towing company and had been on the non-consent tow rotation […]