Recent Blog Posts
Company Seeks Declaratory Judgment Relieving It of Liability In Connection With Shooting
MGM’s decision to sue 1,000 victims of the Las Vegas shooting last year has left many perplexed, wondering why a company would want to do that. In fact, companies will sometimes seek a declaratory judgment in a case like this in order to protect themselves from corporate liability in a variety of insurance defense… Read More »
Where to Draw the Line with Films, Folklore, and Copyright Infringement
Some of the most widely covered copyright infringement lawsuits involve litigation filed against movie producers and film companies, accusing them of reproducing, distributing, performing, publicly displaying, or making copyrighted work into a derivative without first obtaining the permission of the copyright owner. One such lawsuit was recently filed and dismissed in connection with the… Read More »
Major Changes Coming to Texas Insurance Policies
On August 6, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas began a new program that could very well lead to a number of new insurance defense cases. Specifically, the companies have announced that they may deny payment for certain out-of-network emergency room visits if it is determined that the patient should have gone elsewhere… Read More »
New Study Sheds Light on How Product Liability Affects Innovation
In 2016, product liability cases accounted for approximately 70 percent of the personal injury cases filed in all U.S. district courts. One recent example is the case brought against General Motors in connection with faulty ignition switches, which resulted in a $2.5 billion settlement. An important new study out of Harvard Business School examines… Read More »
Texas Students Sue DeVry under Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act
In late June 32, former DeVry students filed suit against the school in San Antonio federal court, alleging that the school and parent company (Adtalem Global) committed fraud and violated the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act by misrepresenting the benefits of the degrees it offers. Specifically, the complaint alleges that the defendants falsely advertised… Read More »
Facebook Payout in Texas Copyright Infringement Case Halved By Judge
A copyright infringement case filed in the Northern District of Texas (Dallas) and involving allegations that Facebook—by virtue of acquiring Oculus VR (“Oculus”)—had stolen computer code from ZeniMax Media Inc. (“ZeniMax”) in order to create its virtual reality headset (the “Oculus Rift”) was recently decided in favor of ZeniMax. However, this week (June 27th),… Read More »
Properly Considering Tax Issues before Selling Your Business to Avoid Corporate Liability
When it comes to potential corporate liability, nothing is quite as risky as selling your company while ignoring tax issues. It is crucial that business sellers never agree on any aspect of a sales agreement until they are advised by an attorney that works in corporate liability and business transactions who can advise them… Read More »
Texas Supreme Court Makes Important Decisions Regarding Insurance Disputes
Below, we discuss two important insurance contract decisions made by the Texas Supreme Court this summer: Arbitration Clauses in Insurance Contracts The Texas Supreme Court recently decided that a party to an insurance policy that mandates arbitration is not required to enter into arbitration in a dispute that involves another party which is not… Read More »
Breach of Contract, Morals Clauses, and Tortious Interference
Breach of contract and tortious interference with business relationships are two issues that often accompany each other, particularly when it comes to business contracts. Take, for example, Spotify’s new conduct policies for curated playlists, which could potentially lead to some legal issues with various record companies. Pursuant to the company’s new “hate content and… Read More »
Automotive Products Liability and Autonomous Vehicles
While there is no question that autonomous vehicles (AVs) will prevent many accidents every year, what to do when accidents arise is still ultimately a question of product liability. Concerns over product liability are now one of the main obstacles to the industry’s development and sales. As these vehicles gain more and more traction… Read More »
