Tuesday, May 09, 2006

In the final home-stretch before the summer break, the Court released seven new opinions last week:

  • In Kroger v. Suberu, a case involving a shop-lifting prosecution that went wrong, the Court held that a Kroger customer had insufficient evidence to support her claims of malicious prosecution and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Chief Justice Jefferson wrote the majority opinion and Justice Johnson wrote the dissenting opinion.
  • In In the Interest of A.M. and B.M, the Court examined "under what circumstances a parent, who has been ordered to pay periodic child support, may raise the affirmative defense of Texas Family Code section 157.008", a statute allowing a parent to off-set child support if the parent cared for the child longer than the court-ordered possession. In an almost unanimous opinion, Justice Medina reversed the lower court by holding that "reimbursement remedies of offset or counterclaim are alternative, not cumulative." Justice Johnson wrote a concurring and dissenting opinion.
  • In Evanston Ins. Co. v. Atofina Petrochem., Inc., Justice Green issued this unanimous opinion discussing the scope of insurance coverage that is provided to a third-party additional insured under an excess insurance policy.
  • In Belt v. Oppenheimer, Blend, Harrison, & Tate, Inc., the Court addressed whether there is a legal bar preventing an estate's personal representative from maintaining a legal malpractice claim on behalf of the estate against the decedent's estate planners. In a unanimous opinion, Justice Jefferson wrote that there is no legal bar.
  • In Shupe v. Lingafelter, the court issued this per curiam opinion holding that the failure to submit a negligent entrustment charge in this personal injury car crash case was harmless error.
  • In Amer. Flood Research v. Jones, the Court issued this per curiam opinion regarding imposing sanctions on a lawyer for discovery abuses.
  • In In re Ron Smith, the Court issued this per curiam opinion regarding a trial court's order setting aside a party's cash deposit in lieu of a supersedeas bond.