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Latest from Cowles & Thompson P.C.

Often one of the biggest disputes at trial relates to the value of services that a claimant seeks to recover from the opposing party.  At least for routine cases, the form and manner of proving the value of those services is made easier by statute, but when the value of the services is contested, things can get a little complicated. Section 18.001 of the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code allows a claimant to prove…
I’ve run the numbers on the reversal rates for the intermediate appellate courts in Texas for the calendar year 2019.  The overall reversal rate for the year was 77%.  To clarify, when the Supreme Court of Texas granted a petition for review, it reversed the court of appeals 77% of the time in 2019.  Some of the courts of appeals performed better than others: First District Court of Appeals — 75% reversal rate Second District…
A dispute exists among the bench and bar as to whether attorney immunity from suit by a non-client is limited to conduct that is related to litigation. In 2015, the Supreme Court of Texas recognized that attorneys do not owe a professional duty of care to third parties who may be damaged by the attorney’s negligent representation of a client.  Cantey Hanger, LLP v. Byrd, 467 S.W.3d 477, 481 (Tex. 2015).  The policy reasons…
I am crunching the numbers for opinion dispositions by the Supreme Court of Texas for the calendar year 2019.  I expect to have a few blog posts showing how the numbers shake out.  Here’s what the initial numbers show: During the 2019 calendar year, the Supreme Court of Texas disposed of 88 causes.  That’s 10 fewer causes than 2018, but more in line with 2017 and 2016, when the court disposed of 84 causes in…
The Texas Citizens Participation Act (TCPA) is designed to protect the constitutional right of persons to speak freely, associate freely, and participate in government without the threat of an unmeritorious lawsuit being filed against them as a result.  More particularly, it protects the rights of persons to speak out on “matters of public concern.”  The TCPA defines what is a “matter of public concern” as including “an issue related to” health or safety. A divided…
With the close of 2018, the statistics for opinion disposition by the Texas Supreme Court are in.  I’m still crunching numbers and will follow this post with additional statistics, but here’s what some of the preliminary data show for the 2018 calendar year:…