In In re Schrandt, the Fifth Court addressed the petitioner’s entitlement to advancement of legal fees under company bylaws. The Court agreed with the petitioner’s position, concluding that  the bylaws did not condition entitlement to advancement on whether a party did or did not initiate a suit, or even on whether a suit was pending at all. It also found that mandamus relief was proper for a fee-advancement claim under Fifth Court precedent. No. 05-24-01041-CV, Nov. 22, 2024 (mem .op.). LPHS represented the successful petitioner.

Tex. R. Civ. P. 176 and 205 set out a detailed process for obtaining discovery from a nonparty; after review of a record involving notices, subpoenas, and motions to quash, the Fifth Court granted mandamus relief, holding: “Respondent abused her discretion by ordering discovery from nonparties without hearing their motions for protective orders regarding the subpoenas served on February 28, 2024.” In re Creuzot, No. 05-24-00450-CV (Nov. 14, 2024) (mem. op.).

Mandamus issued in a failure-to-rule case when: “Megatel filed its motion to compel arbitration on June 30, 2022, and the motion was initially set for hearing two years ago on November 2, 2022. For various reasons and despite three hearings, two additional settings, and multiple requests, the trial judge failed to rule on the motion to compel arbitration and instead set a jury trial date.” In re Megatel, No. 05-24-01161-CV (Nov. 18, 2024).

Rockwall County is on the edge of the rapidly expanding Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area. That surging growth inevitably brings friction, such asCity of McLendon-Chisholm v. City of Heath, in which one Rockwall city sued the other, and the Fifth Court held that the City of Heath had standing to challenge its neighbor’s land-use decision.

Specifically, the Court found that Heath had demonstrated concrete and particularized injuries, including a projected 358% increase in traffic and a significant decrease in property values, which would negatively impact Heath’s tax base and public services. These injuries were enough for standing because they were distinct from general public injuries and directly traceable to McLendon-Chisholm’s actions.

The Court also held that Heath had standing to bring claims under the Texas Open Meetings Act, noting that TOMA ‘broadly confers standing on any person who shares an injury in common with the general public,” and that Heath alleged specific TOMA violations that directly affected it in a way different from the general public—including the adoption of the challenged land-use actions. No. 05-23-00881-CV, Nov. 8, 2024.

As further detailed in today’s Texas Lawbook, Republicans did not completely sweep the eight races for positions on the Fifth Court. Mail-in and provisional ballots moved Hon. Tina Clinton into a lead over her Republican opponent.

Dallas Palms LLC v. Jones involved claims that were dismissed because of a failure to provide a certificate of merit, when the movant did not establish that he was, in fact, a licensed architect. The statement of facts describes the various proof deficiencies, which could likely have been avoided with a straightfoward affidavit on the subject. No. 05-23-00156-CV (Nov. 8, 2024) (mem .op.).

In addition to resolving a thorny question about a legislative subpoena’s interaction with a death sentence, In re Texas House of Representatives reminded of this fundamental point:

With competing claims from (and in some instances within) the three branches of government, it falls to this Court to resolve as a matter of law which branch’s authority must prevail in this situation. In properly adjudicated cases, “[t]he final authority to determine adherence to the Constitution resides with the Judiciary.” 

No. 24-0884 (Tex. Nov. 15, 2024).

Last Friday I received the inaugural “Lawyer’s Lawyer” award from the Dallas Bar Association, described by President Bill Mateja as a lawyer who “eats, breathes, and sleeps law” in comment and public thought about it. (Next to me is Courtney Marcus, filling in for Glenn West, who also received it.) Many thanks to Bill and the DBA, and to readers of this blog: longtime or new; enthusiastic or not!

Republican candidates swept the eight races for positions on the Fifth Court; the Texas Lawbook has a good summary.