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Articles 31 - 43 of 43
Full-Text Articles in Law
Revisiting Standards Of Review In Civil Appeals., W. Wendell Hall
Revisiting Standards Of Review In Civil Appeals., W. Wendell Hall
St. Mary's Law Journal
Applying and defining the accurate standard of review determines how likely an appeal will be successful. While the proper standard of review may be easy to identify, applying the standard of review to a case is often problematic. The standards define the interactions between trial and appellate courts by distributing the power of review throughout the judicial branch. The standards of review also limit a court’s authority to determine an error by a trial court, and whether the error warrants reversal. The standard sets the requirements of substantive law and provides a means for appellate judges to weigh arguments. This …
Unpublished Opinions Shall Not Be Cited As Authority: The Emerging Contours Of Texas Rule Of Appellate Procedure 90(I)., David M. Gunn
Unpublished Opinions Shall Not Be Cited As Authority: The Emerging Contours Of Texas Rule Of Appellate Procedure 90(I)., David M. Gunn
St. Mary's Law Journal
In Texas, worries of judicial overproduction have persisted throughout the twentieth century. Although the Texas Supreme Court began to use per curiam opinions more frequently around 1925, the flood continues. Texas now has more courts and judges than ever before, and history offers no reason to expect retrenchment. The present scheme in Texas creates two classes of judicial opinions, published and unpublished. Unpublished opinions are not supposed to count for purposes of stare decisis, while published opinions do. Texas Appellate Rule 90 regulates the issuance of opinions from the courts of appeals. Part (a) requires intermediate courts to issue written …
Tdhs V. E.B., The Coup De Grace For Special Issues., John J. Sampson
Tdhs V. E.B., The Coup De Grace For Special Issues., John J. Sampson
St. Mary's Law Journal
Although the bench and bar have been recalcitrant in recognition, the Texas Supreme Court has declared the special interest experiment a failure. For nearly eighty years Texas has engaged in an experiment requiring juries answer specific, factually detailed inquiries in various circumstances. The theoretical justifications of special issue inquiries were to ease appeals processes and add clarity to jury decisions. Although the goals were meritorious, the actual result was jury confusion, inefficiency, complexity, and too many retrials. The Texas Supreme Court’s ruling in TDHS v. EB signals the end of special issues and mandates the use of broad form submissions. …
Preserving Error On Appeal In Texas Civil Cases: A Practical Guide For Civil Appeals In Texas., John Hill Cayce Jr.
Preserving Error On Appeal In Texas Civil Cases: A Practical Guide For Civil Appeals In Texas., John Hill Cayce Jr.
St. Mary's Law Journal
Fatal procedural errors can prevent appellees from preserving judgements and appellants from seeking review of court decisions on appeal. This article is a practical guide identifying critical concepts necessary to preserve the various rights of appeal. By examining the Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure, the author identifies procedural pitfalls attorneys may face when attempting to preserve appeals to the Texas Supreme Court or the appellate courts of Texas. Although the Texas Supreme Court has endeavored to eliminate procedural traps from civil appeals, a significant number of requests for appeal fail because lawyers do not follow the requirements necessary to preserve …
Alamo Lumber And Texas Usury Law: Playing With Fire In The Usury Forest., Terry W. Wright, W. Alan Wright, Scott G. Night
Alamo Lumber And Texas Usury Law: Playing With Fire In The Usury Forest., Terry W. Wright, W. Alan Wright, Scott G. Night
St. Mary's Law Journal
The effect of Alamo Lumber Co. v. Gold, and later cases interpreting third party assumption of debt as interest can be perilous to lenders. Lenders are in the business of offering loans to make money. Lenders achieve profit maximization by charging as much interest as possible in the market. Although economic and market factors are always considerations in a lender’s business, in Texas, lenders must also consider harsh usury laws that restrain the maximum amount of chargeable loan interest. Texas defines interest broadly. Statutes define interest as the receipt of compensation for the detention, forbearance or use of money. The …
Reformers' Regress: The 1991 Texas Workers' Compensation Act., Jill Williford
Reformers' Regress: The 1991 Texas Workers' Compensation Act., Jill Williford
St. Mary's Law Journal
The revision of the Texas Workers’ Compensation Act will affect most Texas taxpayers and workers. The Act, entering into force January 1, 1991, significantly restructures the preexisting seventy-six-year-old system. Before the advent of workers’ compensation systems employees relied on the court and common-law causes of action as the sole means of recovery. In 1913, Texas enacted one of the first versions of workers’ compensation in the United States. The original act created a system to compensate workers for injuries sustained during employment without regard to fault. Initially the act was elective for employers and mandatory for employees but was later …
The Court Of Criminal Appeals Versus The Constitution: The Conclusivity Question., Susan Bleil, Charles Bleil
The Court Of Criminal Appeals Versus The Constitution: The Conclusivity Question., Susan Bleil, Charles Bleil
St. Mary's Law Journal
This Article examines the Texas Constitution’s grant of authority to appellate courts to review questions of fact and the Texas Supreme Court’s treatment of that authority. It then contrasts that treatment with the contrary position taken by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals since 1981. It also examines the sentiments of the courts of appeals themselves. The analysis of the decisions demonstrates the highest courts of Texas do not uniformly view the constitutional provision in question. It also shows resulting confusion and dissatisfaction. The Court of Criminal Appeals needs a better, more logical approach in interpreting the Texas constitution. Also …
Raborn V. Davis - Paycheck In Employee's Possession: A Limitation Of The Current Wage Exemption In Texas., Richard E. Flint
Raborn V. Davis - Paycheck In Employee's Possession: A Limitation Of The Current Wage Exemption In Texas., Richard E. Flint
St. Mary's Law Journal
Extensions of credit generally help both the debtor and creditor. However, a result of our credit-based economy is that individuals are free to make poor economic decisions, and that they should suffer the consequences of these poor decisions. Although legal rules have had a role in ensuring that debtors are protected from overzealous creditors, commercial transactions can only exist if obligations of debtors are legally enforceable. The role of government, therefore, is to set parameters for procedures to enforce these obligations, while also setting a floor of protected or exempt assets so that debtors will not become wards of the …
A New Tort For Texas: Breach Of The Duty Of Good Faith And Fair Dealing., Evelyn T. Ailts
A New Tort For Texas: Breach Of The Duty Of Good Faith And Fair Dealing., Evelyn T. Ailts
St. Mary's Law Journal
The concept of good faith and fair dealing as a general derivative contractual obligation remains unrecognized in Texas. However, in English v. Fischer the Texas Supreme Court recognized a duty of good faith and fair dealing exists in some contracts. Subsequent courts, including the Texas Supreme Court, have refused to apply a purely contractual obligation of good faith and fair dealing in every case. Instead, courts have recognized a good faith duty as arising out of “special” relationships of the contracting parties rather than being inherent in the contract itself. The courts focus on “special relationships” as a determinative of …
The Vestiges Of The Texas Employment At-Will Doctrine In The Wake Of Progressive Law: The Employment Handbook Exception Comment., Brian Kennington Lowry
The Vestiges Of The Texas Employment At-Will Doctrine In The Wake Of Progressive Law: The Employment Handbook Exception Comment., Brian Kennington Lowry
St. Mary's Law Journal
Under a traditional approach of the at-will rule, if an employer hires an employee for an indefinite term then the employer may terminate the employee at will. Modification of the at-will rule has gained widespread support throughout the country. A majority of states now follow the progressive view, which allows the employment manual to become part of the labor contract, thereby obligating employers to abide by manual provisions. The progressive view maintains that an employee’s continued service after an employer issues a manual, constitutes ample consideration to make the document binding. Once a court recognizes the existence of independent consideration, …
Elimination Of The Distinctions Between Trespassers, Licensees, And Invitees - Landowner Has A Duty Of Reasonable Care To Foreseeable Entrants., Lawrence Likar
Elimination Of The Distinctions Between Trespassers, Licensees, And Invitees - Landowner Has A Duty Of Reasonable Care To Foreseeable Entrants., Lawrence Likar
St. Mary's Law Journal
A pure negligence approach to bystander recovery imposes an undue burden upon a merely negligent defendant. Third parties, who suffer emotional distress after witnessing someone suffer an injury, lack standing to sue if they themselves suffered no physical injury. Under a pure negligence approach, however, bystanders now have a claim for negligent infliction of emotional distress. Nonetheless, this method of recovery exceeds the scope of the general principles of negligence law. For instance, a secondary reaction to a specific traumatic stimulus is not foreseeable and is heavily dependent upon an individual's prior mental conditioning. The law requires more than mere …
Informing A Jury Of The Legal Effect Of Its Answers., James G. Denton
Informing A Jury Of The Legal Effect Of Its Answers., James G. Denton
St. Mary's Law Journal
Limiting jury consideration to facts, as opposed to the outcome, best serves special issue systems. The purpose of the special issues system is to ensure juries answer the presented questions without bias or prejudice. Though several writers have persuasively advocated for advising juries of the consequences of their findings, doing so seems to undermine the purpose of special issue systems because it allows for juries to answer questions with reference to their desired outcome. To ensure juries answer issues on the facts alone, trial judges should not give a jury, directly or indirectly, any information that may apprise them of …
The Doctrine Of Charitable Immunity Does Not Bar The Suit Of A Paying Patient Seeking To Recover Damages Sustained As A Result Of Negligence On The Part Of An Agent, Servant Or Employee Of A Charitable Hospital., Sidney Gibson
St. Mary's Law Journal
Southern Methodist University v. Clayton limited and clarified the scope of the charitable immunity doctrine in Texas, making it the leading opinion on the doctrine’s scope as of 1943. Clayton held charitable organization are liable to an employee for injuries proximately caused by the negligence of its agents but not liable to others in absence of proof of negligence on part of charity in employing or keeping the agent. Clayton’s progenies subsequently added two refinements: a charity is liable to an injured party, if, through negligence, improper equipment for treatment or service is used and causes an injury; and the …