Prominent trial lawyers John Eddie Williams and Walter Umphrey have made major donations to help fund Baylor University’s planned stadium project. The university announced May 17 that it has received a “major gift” from Sheila and Walter Umphrey to “support construction of the Sheila and Walter Umphrey Bridge at Baylor Stadium.” The bridge will span the Brazos River and connect the new stadium with Baylor Law School and the Baylor campus in Waco. Umphrey’s donation comes on the heels of another major gift from Williams for naming rights for the field, which will be called John Eddie Williams Field. In March, Elizabeth and Drayton McLane Jr. made a donation to help fund construction of the new Baylor Stadium. Baylor is not revealing the amount of any of the donations, but in press releases, Baylor announced that Umphrey’s gift is among the top 10 capital gifts in university history, and Williams’ gift is among the top five. Baylor spokeswoman Lori Fogleman says the stadium project is expected to cost about $250 million, and fundraising continues. Umphrey and Williams are graduates of the university and the law school. Williams, a partner in Houston’s Williams Kherkher Hart Boundas, says, “I went to Baylor on a football scholarship in 1972, went through Baylor undergrad and law school, mainly on scholarships. It’s a way for me to give back. I’ve always felt that whatever modicum of success I have is the result of a great education.” Umphrey, a partner in Provost Umphrey in Beaumont, says, “Baylor has been awful good to me, especially the law school. I’ve been fortunate economically to be in a position to show my appreciation.”
Steno for Depo?
In response to a question from the Court Reporters Certification Board (CRCB), the Texas Office of the Attorney General (OAG) has decided that a litigant or his lawyer, or an employee of either one, may record a deposition solely by nonstenographic means like video or audio. In a May 14 opinion, AG Greg Abbott decided there is no conflict between Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 199.1, which says parties may record depositions nonstenographically, and Texas Government Code §52.021(f), which says “all depositions . . . must be recorded by a certified shorthand reporter.” In an Aug. 31 letter, 119th District Judge Bob Woodward, also the chairman of the CRCB, asked the OAG if there was a conflict between the rules of procedure and the statute. He wrote that the CRCB’s “inclination” was for the OAG to enforce the statute, requiring court reporters to record depositions stenographically. But the OAG’s opinion noted that Government Code §52.033 includes an exception allowing litigants, their lawyers, or an employee of either to record depositions by audio or video. “These individuals may record a deposition solely by non-stenographic means without violating Government Code section 52.021(f),” says the opinion. It notes because the OAG found no conflict, it didn’t address other “concerns” Woodward raised in his request for an opinion. Woodward notes the opinion highlights the Government Code exception allowing just litigants, lawyers or their employees to record depositions by video or audio. Otherwise, a court reporter must record depositions by stenographic means, he says. “I anticipate that if one of those exceptions does not clearly apply, the court reporters board will have a hearing on any complaints,” he says. OAG spokesman Tom Kelley writes in an email that the office received 13 briefs or other documents weighing in on the deposition-recording question.
