Houston Personal Injury Blog

The Supreme Court recently ruled against a tenured professor who had sued the University of Houston under the Whistleblower's Act, alleging that it had retaliated against him after he reported "contracting and accounting irregularities."  At trial, the jury listened to the evidence and ruled in favor of the professor.  When the university appealed, the court of appeals ruled that it had waived its "legal sufficiency" challenge to the reporting requirement of the Act.  But in The University of Houston v. Barth, ___ S.W.3d ___ (Tex. 2010)(6/11/10), decided last month, the Supreme Court reversed and remanded the case to the court of appeals, saying that the reporting requirement is "jurisdictional."

"[W]e held [last year in an opinion named Lueck] that 'the elements of [Texas Government Code] section 554.002(a) can be considered to determine both jurisdiction and liability.'  Accordingly, whether Barth's reports to University officials are good-faith reports of a violation of law to an appropriate law-enforcement authority is a jurisdictional question.  Jurisdiction may be raised for the first time on appeal and may not be waived by the parties.  [Here, the] University challenges whether the trial court had jurisdiction."  The result was that, even though the university did not "preserve" in the trial court the claimed error about whether Professor Barth had properly reported the violations, it will nevertheless be allowed a second opportunity in the court of appeals to argue that the evidence of reporting was insufficient.

Smith and Noble is recalling 1.3 million Roman shades and roller shades, after a child was nearly strangled. The Consumer Product Safety Commission says a 5-year-old boy in Tacoma, Wash., was entangled in the cord of a roller shade in May 2009.  If you have these blinds in your home, please contact the manufacturer as soon as possible and remove the blinds.  Always make sure cords from blinds are secured so they do not become a strangulation hazard.

Although stroke is often viewed as occurring primarily in the elderly, it also strikes infants, children, young adults and can even occur before birth.  All with equally devastating results. Strokes are one of the top 10 causes of death in children and teens according to the 2009 report from the American Heart Association Statistics Committee and Stroke Statistics.  Childhood strokes most often happen before age 1, and babies can have them before or right after birth.
Teens and children sometimes have the same stroke symptoms as adults. These include headaches, trouble seeing or speaking, and weakness or numbness on one side of the body. However, they are also more likely to experience signs such as passing out, seizures, breathing prob¬lems and trouble swallowing.
When it comes to treatment, every moment counts. In children, strokes are often linked to congenital heart defects, head or neck injury, infections such as chicken pox, blood clotting disorders and sickle cell disease. In one-third of cases, an underlying cause isn't found.
Of children surviving stroke, 50% to 80% will have permanent neurological deficits, most commonly hemiparesis or hemiplegia. Hemiparesis or hemiplegia is a total or partial paralysis on one side of the body, a common form of cerebral palsy in children born at term, and stroke is its leading cause. Other long-term disabilities caused by a stroke occurring around the time of birth include cognitive and sensory impairments, epilepsy, speech or communication disorders, visual disturbances, poor attention, behavioral problems and poor quality of life.
Between 10 percent and 30 percent of children who have one stroke may have another, so they must be watched closely, especially in the first days and weeks afterward.

 

A few days ago, the President delivered good news.  The cap is on, and early tests show that oil is being contained as efforts to permanently plug the well continue.  The President also delivered words of caution; "...I don't want us to get too far ahead of ourselves."

I think the President's words are well chosen. This cap is admittedly not a permanent fix.  And unfortunately, it may take another day or two to know the true effects the new cap will have. The cap is containing most of the oil, not all.  Again, let's not get too far ahead of ourselves. British Petroleum ("BP") just now has enough ships present to begin siphoning the 80,000 barrels of oil that the well produces a day. It has been estimated that up to 184 million gallons of oil has leaked into the ocean since day one of this disaster. Its now day 85 and the increased presence of ships has shown us that BP is certainly willing to protect its product; now that it can contain the flow of oil and the relief wells are nearing the necessary depths.  If the cap works as planned, maybe soon we will see BP focus on efforts to clean up its "product" and begin to care about the damage caused to the ecosystem and the thousands people along the Gulf of Mexico. 

What this proves is that BP was less concerned with actually stopping the leak than it was with finding a way to capture the oil and make its profits.  Moreover, BP is still spending money telling us what it is doing, rather than taking that same money and taking accountability for what it has already done.

President Obama also reiterated a very important point for those of us that live on the coast of the Gulf, "BP is going to be paying for the damage it has caused."  Given that lawsuits are already being filed against British Petroleum, I can take comfort that the trial lawyers are going to be the ones that make BP pay, and are going to be the ones that secure the much needed compensation for the damages that BP has recklessly caused. 

The Texas Supreme Court recently overturned another jury verdict.  In the case of Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. v. Merrell, et al., ___ S.W.3d ___ (Tex. 2010), the court threw out the testimony of the expert witness; without that testimony, the plaintiff's did not have sufficient evidence for their case.

 Two people died in a fire in their rented home.  The owner of the residence disposed of the household items after the fire marshal's investigation, which included a fire-damaged floor lamp.  The father of one of the victims testified that he had bought the halogen lamp at Wal-Mart.  At trial, the fire origin expert witness testified that the halogen bulb exploded, causing "burning glass shards" to fall on a recliner, which smoldered before burning.  The expert witness ruled out some other potential causes of the fire because they were not in the "area of origin."

 The expert witness had been allowed by the trial judge to testify to the jury, and the jury that had heard his testimony found him credible.  But, on appeal, the Supreme Court ruled that he had not ruled out all other possible sources of the fire, and threw out his testimony entirely, stating that it was "legally insufficient."  Thus, without their expert's testimony, the family did not have enough evidence to prevail.  So, the Supreme Court reversed the jury's verdict and rendered a judgment for Wal-Mart.

Drop-side cribs are again the focus of the Consumer Product Safety Commission.  In a new round of recalls, at least 82,000 cribs from the popular retailer, Pottery Barn Kids are being pulled from the market.  The CPSC has proposed new rules that would completely ban the manufacture, sale and resale of drop-side cribs.  These cribs are identified by their side rail that can be raised and lowered, and have been around for decades.  Unfortunately, there are several instances in which the drop-side rail becomes partially detached, and create a dangerous "v"-like gap between the mattress and the side rail, where a baby can get caught and suffocate or strangle.

This current recall involves all Pottery Barn Kids drop-side cribs, regardless of the model number.  Also, Pottery Barn Kids is offering some free hardware to demobilize the drop-side railing on the cribs.  This type of crib has been blamed in at least 32 deaths of infants and toddlers since 2000, and is suspected in over a dozen more deaths.  The CPSC agreed to develop a new standard to make cribs with four fixed sides mandatory, as well as proposed more stringent tests for cribs and the use of more durable materials.  The chairman of CPSC noted, this will be first new crib standard in 28 years.

Ultimately, the total elimination of these types of cribs from our homes, stores, hotels, and day care centers is the goal.  In the past five years, more than 9 million drop-side cribs have been recalled.  If you believe you have one of these types of cribs, you should contact your manufacturer of the crib to determine if there is a replacement policy in place.  Even if there is not one in place, we recommend you immediately stop using thus type of crib.

"The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has recalled mini bikes and go-carts made by Baja Motorsports due to concerns on leaky fuel tanks that pose a fire threat. There have been at least nine reports of gas caps leaking and detaching from the fuel tank, the government said in a statement Thursday. Additionally, the throttle can stick because of an improperly positioned fuel line and throttle cable, which poses a threat of sudden acceleration. There have been 25 reports of stuck throttles, causing injuries to the face and other body parts. The voluntary recall affects 308,000 units of Baja Motorsports mini bikes with model numbers beginning with HT65, MB165, WR65, MB196, DB30, WR90 and DR90. Go-carts with model numbers BB65, SD65, DN65 and TR65 are affected as well."

Women comprise almost 50 percent of law school graduates. The growing numbers of women entering the legal profession are being reflected in all areas of the legal profession. Notably, the number of women serving as judges has grown recently. The South is setting the trend. Florida, Georgia, Kentucky and South Carolina are among the Southern states helping to decrease the gap between men and women in the judiciary. Twenty states across the nation now have women serving as chief justices, more than any time in the history of the United States.
Unfortunately, this has not always been the case. In 1990, the state of Florida released a report which demonstrated that women were victims of discrimination in the legal profession. Georgia even created a gender bias task force to help deal with the problem. Other states followed suit and it led to changes in rules of court, statutes and common practices that led to reform.  Even with those changes, women have to work harder to overcome public bias. The public wants to know women can be tough. Also, the people want judges who are thoughtful and who listen. The increasing number of women on the bench is evidence that women are breaking down these gender barriers. Diversity on the bench is important to the judicial system. "...A judge's life experience can serve as a lens to magnify what others cannot see," Florida Chief Justice Peggy A. Quince.