Brackett & Ellis, P.C.

Brackett & Ellis, P.C. has been providing a diversified range of transaction and litigation services in Fort Worth, Texas, since 1978. As a midsize law firm, our team offers every client the experience and dedication that is necessary for success. We represent a wide range of clients, from individuals to large companies and nonprofit organizations. For more than three decades, our firm has developed a reputation as a valued corporate citizen in the Fort Worth community.

Latest from Brackett & Ellis, P.C. - Page 2

The Fort Worth Business & Real Estate Law Journal

Texas Supreme Court Limits Grantor’s Liability Under Special Warranty Deed – Pt. 3

By Amanda Hernandez

September 8, 2020

This is the third and final post regarding the Texas Supreme Court’s (the “Court”) decision in Chicago Title Insurance Company v. Cochran Investments, Inc., No. 18-0676 (Tex. 2020). Part 1 addressed the Court’s ruling that qualifying language in a special warranty deed limits the grantor’s liability for breach of the implied covenant of seisin [click here for Part 1] and Part 2 discussed the effect of the merger doctrine on Chicago’s claim for…

The Fort Worth Business & Employment Law Reporter

Dallas Court of Appeals Rejects Application of TCPA to Trade Secrets Case

By Heath Coffman

September 3, 2020

Pile of envelopes with overdue utility bills on the desk — (c) BillionPhotos.com / Adobe Stock

Collaborative Imaging, LLC v. Zotec Partners, LLC, No. 05-19-01256-CV, 2020 WL 3118614 (Tex. App.–Dallas June 12, 2020, no pet. h.) is another example of the courts’ increasing unwillingness to apply the previous version Texas’s anti-SLAPP statute the Texas Citizens Participation Act (TCPA) to cases involving the Texas Uniform Trade Secrets Act (TUTSA). In Collaborative Imaging, an employee of a healthcare practice management services provider quit his job with that provider and…

The Fort Worth Business & Employment Law Reporter

More Lessons from Title Source v. HouseCanary

By Heath Coffman

August 24, 2020

Confidential files and documents in binder locked with padlock and chain. — (c) Adobe Stock / vchalup

Title Source, Inc. v. HouseCanary, Inc., No. 04-19-00044-CV, 2020 WL 2858866 (Tex. App.–San Antonio June 3, 2020, pet. granted) is a new case addressing the jury charge in Texas Uniform Trade Secrets Act (TUTSA) cases. In my previous post about the case, I discussed the Casteel problem in the misappropriation instructions that resulted in reversal of this multi-million dollar judgment. (For a complete discussion of the facts, please see this previous blog post…

The Fort Worth Business & Employment Law Reporter

Just a Picture on a T-Shirt (Part 1): The Basics of the Most Common Trademark Application

By Lee B. Hunt

August 20, 2020

Vector t-shirt and apparel design, print, poster with styled fac

If trademark applications were Chinese food, the logo on the front of a shirt would be General Tso’s chicken. It’s what “Piano Man” is to the bar crooner—a fan favorite, a crowd pleaser. So it would make sense that familiarity with filing of trademarks would necessarily include familiarity with this particular process. After all, you wouldn’t open a pizza restaurant without access to pepperoni.…

The Fort Worth Business & Employment Law Reporter

A Practitioner’s Guide to the Texas Uniform Trade Secret Act

By Heath Coffman

August 5, 2020

Last fall, the Texas Journal of Business Law, the journal of the Business Law Section of the State Bar of Texas, published my colleagues Joe Cleveland and Kevin Smith‘s article A Practitioner’s Guide to the Texas Uniform Trade Secret Act. It’s a great resource for any trade secret litigator. …

The Fort Worth Business & Employment Law Reporter

TCPA’s Commercial Speech Exemption Applies to Employer’s Claims Against Former Employee

By Heath Coffman

July 24, 2020

Insurance agent presentation and consultations with a lawyer or insurance agent. — (c) RedPixel / Adobe Stock

For the last few years, defendants in trade secrets and other commercial litigation claims have used the previous version of Texas’s anti-SLAAP statute the Texas Citizens Participation Act (TCPA) as a defense to those claims. Langley v. Insgroup, Inc., No. 14-19-00127-CV, 2020 WL 1679625 (Tex. App.–Houston [14th Dist.] Apr. 7, 2020, no pet. h.) is another example of this strategy. In Langley, an insurance salesman left his employer to work for a…

The Fort Worth Business & Employment Law Reporter

Employer’s Breach of Agreement Containing Non-Compete Provision Results in Court’s Denial of Request to Enforce Non-Compete Provision

By Heath Coffman

July 17, 2020

Courts will not enforce non-compete provisions in employment contracts when the employer breached the employment contract, too. That is the lesson of Insgroup, Inc. v. Langley, No. 14-18-01071-CV, 2020 WL 1679401 (Tex. App.-Houston [14th Dist.] Apr. 7, 2020, no pet. h.). …

The Fort Worth Business & Employment Law Reporter

Bona Fide Intent to Use as Applied to “Empire Records” (1995)

By Lee B. Hunt

July 13, 2020

“Empire Records” (1995), A conversation between Ethan Embry (“Mark”) and Rory Cochrane (“Lucas”): Mark: Oh! I’ve decided I’m going to start a band. Lucas: Really? [Leaning in], the first thing you need, is a name. Then you’ll know what kind of band you’ve got. Mark: Yeah. I know. I know. I was kinda thinking about, umm, “Marc”. What do you think of that? Lucas: Is that with a “C” or with a “K”? Mark:…

The Fort Worth Business & Employment Law Reporter

Navigating Amazon’s Neutral Patent Evaluation in Real Life

By Heath Coffman

July 7, 2020

Sankt-Petersburg, Russia, April 27, 2018: Amazon shopping application icon on Apple iPhone X screen close-up. Amazon shopping app icon. Amazon mobile application. Social media network — (c) Aleksei / Adobe Stock

Congratulations to my colleague Angelique McCall. She recently published two articles on Amazon’s Neutral Patent Evaluation in The Tipsheet, the newsletter of the Intellectual Property Section of the Texas State Bar. You can also find the articles on IP Watchdog. …

The Fort Worth Business & Employment Law Reporter

Save Your Money: You Can’t Register that Social Movement Phrase

By Lee B. Hunt

June 29, 2020

In the first Spiderman movie of the superhero era in which we still find ourselves, J. Jonah Jameson believed he thought of a catchy title for the bad guy. To his assistant, he then said the following declarative: “Call the patent office, copyright the name “Green Goblin.” I want a quarter every time someone says it!” This line demonstrates a mistake made by many, and it isn’t simply that the Library of Congress rather…

Brackett & Ellis, P.C.

Texas Supreme Court Limits Grantor’s Liability Under Special Warranty Deed – Pt. 3

Dallas Court of Appeals Rejects Application of TCPA to Trade Secrets Case

More Lessons from Title Source v. HouseCanary

Just a Picture on a T-Shirt (Part 1): The Basics of the Most Common Trademark Application

A Practitioner’s Guide to the Texas Uniform Trade Secret Act

TCPA’s Commercial Speech Exemption Applies to Employer’s Claims Against Former Employee

Employer’s Breach of Agreement Containing Non-Compete Provision Results in Court’s Denial of Request to Enforce Non-Compete Provision

Bona Fide Intent to Use as Applied to “Empire Records” (1995)

Navigating Amazon’s Neutral Patent Evaluation in Real Life

Save Your Money: You Can’t Register that Social Movement Phrase

Stay Connected

Company

Products

Support

New to the Network