You searched for: Civil Practice

Searching cases from 5/2013

• Scheel v. Alfaro
  •      
    • Subscription Required
  
  The appellant challenges the trial court's order setting aside a courthouse-steps sale conducted by a receiver pursuant to two turnover orders and the trial court's setting aside of those turnover orders. Because Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code §31.002 does not require notice of a turnover application or prohibit turnover orders from being granted absent notice, the trial court erred in sanctioning counsel for the appellant $5,000 under Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 21; that portion of the trial court's order is reversed, the remainder is affirmed. San Antonio Court of Appeals, No. 04-11-00443-CV, 05-15-2013.
• Jones v. Garza
  •      
    • Subscription Required
  
  An accident involving trailer trucks in Virginia gave rise to this attempted suit, in which the trial court denied the special appearance of a Tennessee resident. That the appellant drove a truck belonging to a Texas corporation and licensed in Texas does not satisfy the minimum contacts standard. The trial court's order is reversed and rendered, dismissing the claims for want of jurisdiction. Dallas Court of Appeals, No. 05-12-00532-CV, 05-14-2013.
• Benz Group v. Barreto
  •      
    • Subscription Required
  
  Brokers allege that a Brazilian resident and his employer refused to pay them a commission for their help in securing an oil exploration contract in Brazil. The absolute rule of Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code §71.051(e), which forecloses a statutory avenue for forum non conveniens dismissal if the plaintiff is a resident suing for wrongful death or personal injury, does not apply to commercial cases like this one. Because the trial court acted within its discretion in ruling that the balance of the equities here weigh in favor of dismissal, the trial court's judgment is affirmed. Houston's 1st Court of Appeals, No. 01-12-00056-CV, 05-09-2013.
• Bruington Engineering Ltd. v. Pedernal Energy L.L.C.
  •      
    • Subscription Required
  
  This is an appeal of the trial court's denial of a motion to dismiss based on the claim that the plaintiff failed to timely file a certificate of merit. Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code §150.002(a) does not allow the plaintiff to circumvent the first-filed pleading requirement by nonsuiting a professional defendant, bringing the same defendant back into the suit with an amended petition that alleges the same complaints as in the original petition, and then attaching the certificate to the amended pleading. The trial court's judgment is reversed and remanded for a determination of whether the dismissal of the plaintiff's claims should be with or without prejudice. San Antonio Court of Appeals, No. 04-12-00351-CV, 05-08-2013.