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St. Mary’s University School of Law

Articles 421 - 438 of 438

Full-Text Articles in State and Local Government Law

Shouting Incitement In The Courtroom: An Evolving Theory Of Civil Liability Comment., Michael P. Kopech Jan 1987

Shouting Incitement In The Courtroom: An Evolving Theory Of Civil Liability Comment., Michael P. Kopech

St. Mary's Law Journal

Civil incitement is an evolving theory, intended to ascribe liability to a publisher. Civil incitement charges that the contents of a publication proximately caused the plaintiff’s physical injury, thus holding publishers civilly liable for the physical consequences of their communications. However, the validity of civil incitement as an actionable tort clashes with the principles of freedom of speech and press embodied within the First Amendment. Incitement, as a successful cause of action, demands following the standards set out in Brandenburg v. Ohio. Prior attempts to hold publishers civilly liable for the physical consequences of their communications have rarely survived motions …

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A New Tort For Texas: Breach Of The Duty Of Good Faith And Fair Dealing., Evelyn T. Ailts Jan 1987

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 …

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Take-Or-Pay Provisions: Major Problems For The Natural Gas Industry Comment., David L. Roland Jan 1986

Take-Or-Pay Provisions: Major Problems For The Natural Gas Industry Comment., David L. Roland

St. Mary's Law Journal

A prompt solution to the take-or-pay problem is vital to the survival of the natural gas industry. Due to the increasingly turbulent and unpredictable natural gas market, most natural gas producers include a take-or-pay provision in their gas purchase contracts. Take-or-pay provisions require a pipeline company to either take an amount of natural gas from the producer or the company must pay for the specified amount. The market, however, has changed and the demand for natural gas declined. The demand can be partly attributed to the energy crisis of a decade ago. As a result of the crisis, consumers are …

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Cancellation Of Water Rights In Texas: Use It Or Lose It., R. Lambeth Townsend Jan 1986

Cancellation Of Water Rights In Texas: Use It Or Lose It., R. Lambeth Townsend

St. Mary's Law Journal

It is the constitutional duty of the State of Texas to conserve and develop the state’s water resources. Texas effectuates water conservation and utilization through its system of granting and administering rights for the beneficial use of the state’s water. The Supreme Court of Texas concluded the state can further conserve water by cancelling appropriations not beneficially used to the limit provided in the permit, certified filing, or certificate of adjudication. Cancellation of unused water rights enables the Water Commission to make water available for beneficial use by others. Only by the beneficial use of water can the state obtain …

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The Vestiges Of The Texas Employment At-Will Doctrine In The Wake Of Progressive Law: The Employment Handbook Exception Comment., Brian Kennington Lowry Jan 1986

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, …

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Court-Sponsored Custody Mediation To Prevent Parental Kidnapping: A Disarmament Proposal Comment., Sue T. Bentch Jan 1986

Court-Sponsored Custody Mediation To Prevent Parental Kidnapping: A Disarmament Proposal Comment., Sue T. Bentch

St. Mary's Law Journal

Texas should implement a court-sponsored custody mediation plan to prevent parental kidnapping. Each day, hundreds of parents kidnap their own children. These kidnapped children are often the innocent victims of an escalating custody battle between parents. The magnitude of the parental kidnapping problem has forced Congress and the legislatures of the various states to address its possible solution. Congress and state legislatures implemented the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Act, the Parental Kidnapping Prevention Act of 1980, state criminal laws, civil laws, and tort suits to address the problem. Unfortunately, these remedies only address the problem after the abduction has occurred. …

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Yellow Pages Legal Ads In Texas: The Complexities Of Dr 2-101(B) & (And) (C)., Vincent Robert Johnson Jan 1985

Yellow Pages Legal Ads In Texas: The Complexities Of Dr 2-101(B) & (And) (C)., Vincent Robert Johnson

St. Mary's Law Journal

This Article explains how attorneys can avoid private reprimands for advertisements in the Yellow Pages pursuant to subsection (B) and (C) of the Texas Code of Professional Responsibility Disciplinary Rule 2-101, given there is no scholarship or precedent. Subsection (B) requires an advertisement to include the name of a lawyer who is licensed to practice law in Texas, who will be responsible for performing the legal service, and the areas of law in which they practice. Subsection (C) requires detailed statements be included concerning whether the individuals named in compliance with subsection (B) are certified with the Texas Board of …

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A New Twist For Texas Lemon Owners., Ayala Alexopoulos Jan 1985

A New Twist For Texas Lemon Owners., Ayala Alexopoulos

St. Mary's Law Journal

Twenty-five percent of the consumers with car warranty problems are dissatisfied with the complaint-handling process in the automobile industry and the result of their grievances. In response to the frustrations of defective car owners, Texas, along with many other states, passed a “lemon law” providing more definitive relief for consumer. Lemon laws provide a clearly defined cause of action against the manufacturer and provide the consumer with a low-cost, readily available mechanism for resolving their disputes. Most states’ lemon laws require the consumer to resort to arbitration provisions before initiating a court action if a manufacturer sets up a dispute …

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Determining Mineral Ownership In Texas After Moser V. United States Steel Corp. - The Surface Destruction Nightmare Continues., David A. Scott Jan 1985

Determining Mineral Ownership In Texas After Moser V. United States Steel Corp. - The Surface Destruction Nightmare Continues., David A. Scott

St. Mary's Law Journal

Total abandonment of the surface destruction test is essential for achieving mineral title certainty in Texas. Many instruments which grant or reserve mineral rights in Texas contain the words “other minerals.” When the instrument does not specifically list which substances the contracting parties include as minerals, a dispute often arises as to ownership of the unspecified substances. To resolve ownership disputes, Texas courts adopted the surface destruction test. This test focuses on the destructive effects removal of a particular substance would have on the surface of the land. Unfortunately, the surface destruction test yielded unpredictable results, causing uncertainty in mineral …

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Lawyers' Negligence Liability To Non-Clients: A Texas Viewpoint., Brian J. Davis Jan 1983

Lawyers' Negligence Liability To Non-Clients: A Texas Viewpoint., Brian J. Davis

St. Mary's Law Journal

Courts should examine the relationship of a non-client to a negligent lawyer to determine whether a lawyer is liable to a non-client despite lack of privity. In most jurisdictions, attorneys enjoy the privity of contract requirement which limits their duty to exercise reasonable care. As a result, lawyers are normally immune to negligent malpractice actions brought by non-clients. Courts should examine the relationship between the attorney and the non-client to determine whether the requirement of privity is an overly restrictive limit on the lawyer’s scope of duty. These relationships can be classified into three categories. The first category involves plaintiffs …

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An At-Will Employee May Be Fired Despite Motives Which Violate State Public Policy., Kelsey Menzel Jan 1983

An At-Will Employee May Be Fired Despite Motives Which Violate State Public Policy., Kelsey Menzel

St. Mary's Law Journal

Scholars generally agree children possess fewer rights than adults under the Constitution. Moreover, the school, as a restricted environment, places additional constraints on the constitutional rights of minors. In recent years, however, the Supreme Court extended to minor students the rights of equal protection and civil due process. In Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District, the Court acknowledged children have First Amendment rights of self-expression in a school environment. This marked a significant change from the judiciary’s traditional reluctance to interfere in school matters. Subsequent First Amendment challenges to school board decisions have focused on library book removal. …

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Electronic Piracy: Can The Cable Television Industry Prevent Unauthorized Interception., Kevin W. Grillo Sep 1982

Electronic Piracy: Can The Cable Television Industry Prevent Unauthorized Interception., Kevin W. Grillo

St. Mary's Law Journal

The FCC and Congress have failed to enact specific regulations regarding unauthorized interception of cable television. This lack of regulation concerning electronic piracy has allowed entrepreneurs to develop means of intercepting cable television signals without compensation to the transmitting companies. The cable television industry has lost a significant portion of income through unauthorized interception of cable television. As the cable television industry continues to expand, the problem of electronic piracy of cable television signals will intensify. This has forced the cable television industry to seek varied legal solutions to resolve the problem. Although the cable television industry has found effective …

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Parental Child-Snatching: Out Of A No-Man's-Land Of Law., Wayne Young Jun 1982

Parental Child-Snatching: Out Of A No-Man's-Land Of Law., Wayne Young

St. Mary's Law Journal

Approximately 100,000 parental child-snatchings occur annually. When a parent takes a kidnapped child to another jurisdiction, the injured parent must convince the court to recognize a foreign custody decree and persuade the same court to enforce that decree. Congress enacted the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Act (UCCJA) to eliminate relitigation of custody decrees in other states and end court practices which protect the kidnapping parent. However, the UCCJA does not resolve parental child-snatching because the Act is ineffective in non-adopting states and the Act fails to aid a state in locating the abducting parent. Non-UCCJA states such as Texas have …

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Recent Amendments To The Texas Child Abuse Statutes: An Analysis And Recommendation., Antoinette M. Pollock Dec 1980

Recent Amendments To The Texas Child Abuse Statutes: An Analysis And Recommendation., Antoinette M. Pollock

St. Mary's Law Journal

Each year approximately one million children experience abuse by their parents and more than two thousand die as a result of injuries suffered. Drafters of child abuse legislation face the difficult task of accommodating the rights of parent and child, while ensuring the necessary exercise of state authority. In view of the delicate balancing of interests involved, child protection laws must be extensive and detailed in order to withstand constitutional challenge. The Sixty-sixth session of the Texas Legislature amended the child abuse section of the Texas Family Code. The Texas Family Code, as amended, is now capable of withstanding constitutional …

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Texas Surface Mining And Reclamation Act - New Hope For Protection Of Texas Resources., Kay C. Martinez Dec 1976

Texas Surface Mining And Reclamation Act - New Hope For Protection Of Texas Resources., Kay C. Martinez

St. Mary's Law Journal

Strip mining has been an increasingly important method of mineral extraction since the 1930's. It is economically preferable to shaft mining, for operator and consumer, because it extracts coal from the surface as opposed to the more costly methods of deep mining. More than 50% of all coal gets mined through the stripping method as of 1972. Unfortunately, some of the same characteristics which have made strip mining desirable have also produced extremely undesirable results in the environment. Sulfuric and sedimentary water pollution, caused by surface mining, affects the suitability of water for human consumption, and the stripping has often …

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Military Retired Pay In Texas: A New Outlook., Joseph F. Sage Mar 1975

Military Retired Pay In Texas: A New Outlook., Joseph F. Sage

St. Mary's Law Journal

Texas courts have solidified the rule that retirement benefits are community property, subject to judicial division on divorce. The courts have largely overlooked an area of federal law and regulation involving the distinction between retirement from active duty and absolute retirement from service. Generally, regularly commissioned officers remain in the military even after retiring from active duty, while officers with reserve commissions terminate their military commitment upon retirement. Texas courts have not observed the distinction between the retirement benefits for regular and reserve officers, which are correctly labeled retired pay and retirement pay, respectively. Hence, current wages fall outside of …

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The Texas Urban Renewal Law - An Important But Primitive Tool For Community Development., Arthur Troilo Mar 1974

The Texas Urban Renewal Law - An Important But Primitive Tool For Community Development., Arthur Troilo

St. Mary's Law Journal

The Texas Urban Renewal Act (the Act) of 1954 has provided nearly twenty-four Texas cities access to federal assistance programs in redeveloping their blighted communities. As the federal government began withholding its financial support for urban assistance programs, many cities began reevaluating their approaches to redevelopment and the outmoded provisions of the Act. The holding in Davis v. Lubbock (1959) established the constitutional limits of the Urban Renewal Act according to the recent Texas Constitution. This study examines the shortcomings experienced as cities relied more on local funding while struggling with the inefficiencies apparent in the Act’s execution in adhering …

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The Scope Of Texas Probate Jurisdiction Over Matters Incident And Appertaining To An Estate., Paula C. Tredeau Jun 1905

The Scope Of Texas Probate Jurisdiction Over Matters Incident And Appertaining To An Estate., Paula C. Tredeau

St. Mary's Law Journal

Providing for probate court jurisdiction to accommodate all types of probate issues would lead to a more efficient probate system in terms of cost, time, and judicial economy. However, the constitutional and statutory constraints establish serious limits on probate jurisdiction. The 1973 legislature adopted a major revision to section 5 of the Probate Code to simplify and clarify probate jurisdiction by reorganizing the probate court system. In the four subsequent revisions to section 5 of the Probate Code, the issue of whether to distinguish the phrases “appertaining to an estate” and “incident to an estate” arose. These subsequent amendments continued …

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