Zeke lost his battle to cancer and died in 2018. He had no children and was survived by his 2 brothers, George and William. In 2010, Zeke drafted a Will leaving everything to Linda who Zeke had lived with for 30 years. George and William contested the 2010 Will on the grounds that Zeke was unduly influenced by Linda into executing it. Linda filed a no evidence motion for summary judgment that was granted by…

Introduction. In the COVID19 age, Business transactions and formal legal proceedings are now commonly being conducted remotely. In the recent Texas Supreme Court decision of Chalker Energy Partners III, LLC v. Le Norman Operating LLC, 595 S.W.3d 668, 669–70 (Tex. 2020), the Court recognizes that transactions conducted remotely and through email can result in the consummation of binding legal contracts. However, the electronically transmitted negotiations in this case were made subject to the execution…

Introduction. My 13 year old son and I were recently traveling through a small Texas town and saw a sign that said computers and guns for sale. Where else but Texas would you find this? Of course, we still have remnants of the open range laws in our great state. This brings me to the interesting SCOTX case of Pruski v. Garcia in which the court held that a rancher was not liable for automobile…

Introduction. In this construction defect case, Pleasant Grove Independent School District (“Pleasant Grove”) sued its general contractor, Altech, Inc. (“Altech”), for breach of warranty and the manufacturer, FieldTurf USA, Inc. (“FieldTurf”), for breach of warranty and fraud, pertaining to the installation of artificial turf in the construction of Pleasant Grove’s new football field. Pleasant Grove Indep. Sch. Dist. v. FieldTurf USA, Inc., 06-19-00022-CV, 2020 WL 1646633, at *1 (Tex. App.—Texarkana Apr. 3, 2020, no pet.…

In this residential property contract case, the Court addressed whether “as-is” and disclaimer-of-reliance contractual  provisions contained in the closing documents barred the homebuyer’s claims for fraud, negligent misrepresentation and violations of the Deceptive Trade Practice Act (DTPA), even when the seller’s disclosure statement apparently misrepresented and omitted material information. Pogue v. Williamson, 01-17-00844-CV, 2020 WL 1173708, at *1 (Tex. App.—Houston [1st Dist.] Mar. 12, 2020, no pet. h.). After considering these issues, the Court of…

Introduction. As a matter of first impression, the Texas Supreme Court, in Energy Transfer Partners, L.P., et al (“ETP”) v. Enterprise Products Partners, L.P., et al (“Enterprise”), affirmed the reversal of a judgment exceeding $500 million involving a pipeline partnership dispute, on the grounds that in Texas parties can contract for conditions precedent to preclude the unintentional formation of a partnership. Energy Transfer Partners, L.P. v. Enter. Products Partners, L.P., 593 S.W.3d 732 (Tex. 2020).…