Law Commons^™

Am I A “Licensed Liar”?: An Exploration Into The Ethic Of Honesty In Lawyering . . . And A Reply Of “No!” To The Stranger In The La Fiesta Lounge, Josiah M. Daniel Iii

St. Mary's Journal on Legal Malpractice & Ethics

After hearing for the first time the lawyer-disparaging phrase, “licensed liar,” the author investigated its significance. This article presents the question of those two words’ meaning and explains how the author reached the conclusion that, as applied to attorneys, the phrase is an unmerited epithet. The phrase is known and utilized in nonlegal texts in fields such as fiction, poetry, literary criticism, and journalism, but the two words are absent from legal texts. The author’s discovery of the phrase in various criticisms of lawyers in other publications illuminates and confirms that the phrase constitutes the pejorative allegation that an attorney …

When Giving Birth Becomes A Liability: The Intersection Of Reproductive Oppression And The Motherhood Wage Penalty For Latinas In Texas, Dania Y. Pulido

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

Abstract forthcoming.

An Analysis Of Austin Lawyers Guild V. Securus Technologies, Inc.: The Constitutional And Ethical Implications Of Using Illegally Recorded Attorney–Client Telephone Conversations As Derivative Evidence, Christina Santos

St. Mary's Journal on Legal Malpractice & Ethics

For the justice system to operate effectively, privileged communications between an attorney and his or her client should be afforded the utmost and strictest protections. Intrusion by law enforcement upon these communications severely diminishes the confidence and candor needed in the attorney-client relationship. Although the United States Supreme Court recognizes prosecutorial immunity and generally leaves prosecutorial discipline to state bar authorities, the Court has long held that the attorney-client privilege is needed for attorneys to effectively advocate on behalf of their clients.

Austin Lawyers Guild v. Securus Technologies, Inc., a civil class-action lawsuit, is currently pending before the United …

Landowners Under Siege In The Big Bend, Amy Hardberger

Faculty Articles

It is safe to say that property rights are sacred in Texas. Nowhere is this truer than in the Big Bend region of Texas. In 2012, the Texas Attorney General’s Office issued a Landowner’s Bill of Rights specifying all the protections each of us has against government interference, including the taking of property under eminent domain. One of the requirements for land condemnation is that it be for a public use. This is to ensure that the burden placed on a few will benefit the larger community; however, the mechanisms for balancing private property rights against the public good are …

Deadly Misunderstandings About Police Use Of Deadly Force, Gerald S. Reamey

Faculty Articles

This short article, written for law enforcement and criminal justice professionals in Texas, summarizes and addresses some of the most common ways in which the laws of justification in Texas are misunderstood and misapplied. The focus is on the use of deadly force by law enforcement officers and the specific provisions contained within the Texas Penal Code regulating the use of the highest level of force by police and others.

Use Of Expunged Records In Attorney-Disciplinary Proceedings, Roland D. Ramos

St. Mary's Journal on Legal Malpractice & Ethics

The Texas Supreme Court’s decision in In re State Bar of Texas should be modified. In In re State Bar of Texas, the Court allowed the use of a criminal defendant’s expunged records in a subsequent disciplinary proceeding against his attorney. Allowing the use of expunged records for any purpose violates Texas law. For example, under the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, it is an offense to knowingly release or use expunged records for any reason, unless a court’s final expunction order permits the expunged records to be retained for future use or if a defendant waives his or …

Put Your Money Where Your Water Is: Building Resilience Through Rates, Amy Hardberger

Faculty Articles

Utilities are challenged with the task of meeting future water demands while generating revenue through the use of the resource. Customarily, utilities base demand projections on subsequent use and calculate price on past consumption. The traditional model of extrapolating cost, based on past consumption, does not allow the utility flexibility to protect the resource in times of crisis. In recent years, water resources have been taxed by population increases and changes in weather patterns. Utilities encourage the use of water at low fees and are unable to conserve during times when the resource is available and cheap. This ineffective rate …

Interlocutory Appeals In Texas: A History, Elizabeth Lee Thompson

St. Mary's Law Journal

This Article delves into the evolution of Texas's interlocutory appeals statute with the related goals of tracing the expanding subject matter of interlocutory appeals and identifying what these changes reflect about legal priorities and developments in Texas since the late nineteenth century.