After ruling that a paralegal’s alleged deal to split fees with a Houston lawyer for clients he brought in connection with the 2010 BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill was illegal, a Texas Court of Appeals nevertheless allowed the paralegal to move forward with a suit seeking at least some portion of the $503,080 he claims to be owed.

Houston’s First Court of Appeals decision in Luong v. McAllister focuses on Truyen Luong, who alleges he entered into an oral contract with lawyer Robert A. McAllister and his law firm in 2010 for a fee-sharing agreement in which Luong would be paid a percentage for bringing in clients and working on their files.