1. Who is a "wrongful death beneficiary"? There is no recognized common-law cause of action for "wrongful death" in Texas; however, such a cause of action has been established by statute, which is codified as Chapter 71 of the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code....
Sadie Horner
Discovery of a Defendant’s Net Worth is not Automatic
When pursuing or defending a personal injury claim, it is important to keep in mind that claims for exemplary damages do not automatically justify digging into a defendant’s financial information. A defendant’s financial information may very well be relevant such...
“Qualified” Under 18.001 Is Not Limited to Medical Practitioners
Recently, the 12th Court of Appeals in Tyler determined that a trial court abused its discretion in granting a motion to strike a counter-affidavit prepared by a medical billing and coding expert who relied on databases to challenge the reasonableness of the medical...
Collisions & Intoxicants: Admissibility of Evidence Concerning Mental Health and Drug Use
In JBS Carriers, Inc v. Washington, et al., the Texas Supreme Court addressed and clarified two important evidentiary issues in the context of a pedestrian-truck collision: (1) the standard for admissibility of evidence concerning mental health and drug or alcohol use...
Intentional Expert Witness Disqualification
Rule 4.04(a) of the Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct provides: "In representing a client, a lawyer shall not use means that have no substantial purpose other than to embarrass, delay, or burden a third person, or use methods of obtaining evidence that...
I got an Affidavit from who? GUNN V. MCCOY – SCOTX weighs in on who can execute an Affidavit under Section 18.001
As previously discussed in our 9-part blog series on the 7 Things You Need to Know about Section 18.001 Affidavits, affidavits submitted under Section 18.001 are an exception to the general hearsay rule that would otherwise require plaintiffs to provide expert...