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NEWSLETTER AND LEGAL UPDATES: SUMMER 2014

OUR VISION:

SUCCESS BASED ON LONG LASTING

RELATIONSHIPS FORGED IN INTEGRITY,

EXCELLENCE, COMMITMENT AND TEAMWORK.

Fanning Harper Martinson Brandt & Kutchin, P.C. is pleased to provide you with our Summer 2014 Newsletter and Legal Update. Below you will find information regarding successes and activities of our attorneys.

Please click the hyperlinks for updates regarding LocalGovernment, Constitutional and Civil Rights Law, Products Liability, Employment Law, School Law, Automobile and Trucking Litigation, Premises Liability, Land Use, Zoning, and Regulatory Taking, Insurance Law, and Homeowners Association Law.  Please call us with your questions or comments.

 

VICTORIES AND HONORS

APPELLATE COURT VICTORIES

THOMAS P. BRANDT and JOSHUA SKINNER won an important appellate victory on behalf of a small southeast Texas school district in this nationally publicized dispute about whether high school cheerleaders can put religious messages on run-through banners at football games.  We successfully argued that the case should be dismissed because the school district took prompt action and resolved the controversy. The district court entered an order against the school district, but the Beaumont Court of Appeals reversed that decision, holding that the district court should have dismissed the plaintiffs’ claims.  The plaintiffs have announced that they plan to seek review from the Texas Supreme Court.

To read the entire opinion, please click here.

 

DISTRICT COURT VICTORIES

THOMAS P.  BRANDT and STEPHEN D. HENNINGER obtained a victory in U.S. District Court for a large city in the metroplex in an employment discrimination case. Plaintiff, a former Captain with the City’s Fire Department, sued the City alleging age discrimination when he was not promoted to Battalion Chief on multiple occasions. Plaintiff maintained the City’s Fire Department had a policy of not promoting anyone over the age of 50 to the rank of Battalion Chief. The Court granted the City’s motion for summary judgment and dismissed all claims, finding there was no evidence that any discrimination occurred and that the plaintiff was not promoted because he was not the best candidate for the position.

JOSHUA SKINNER and LAURA O’LEARY obtained a traditional summary judgment in state court in favor of a community college district in an employment discrimination case.  The plaintiff, a former police officer, claimed that he was subject to a hostile work environment and that his employment was terminated for racially discriminatory reasons.  Upon consideration of FHMBK’s traditional motion for summary judgment, the Court dismissed all claims.

ROCKY LITTLE recently won a jury trial with a unanimous verdict in favor of the defendant in a personal injury case in County Court in Dallas.  The jury found that the auto accident was caused solely by the plaintiff’s own negligence.

FRANK VALENZUELA and LAURA O’LEARY obtained a victory on behalf of a golf club and board members in a lawsuit brought by a former employee alleging tortious interference with an employment contract, conspiracy to tortiously interfere with an employment contract, intrusion upon seclusion, and conspiracy to intrude upon the plaintiff’s seclusion.  Upon consideration of FHMBK’s no-evidence and traditional motions for summary judgment, the state district court dismissed the plaintiff’s claims with prejudice.

THOMAS P. BRANDT and JOHN HUSTED obtained a total victory in a case in which they were defending an Austin-area school district from a suit brought by a former school counselor of the school district alleging race discrimination and retaliation claims.  Due to the counselor’s dilatory tactics and conduct during the discovery process, FHMBK filed a motion for sanctions, seeking monetary sanctions and requesting that the case be dismissed.  After briefing and oral argument, the Court granted the motion for sanctions, dismissed the case, and awarded monetary sanctions against the plaintiff. 

THOMAS P. BRANDT and JOHN F. ROEHM obtained a victory in Dallas District Court for school officials and a school district in a child neglect/child endangerment case.  The plaintiff sued multiple school officials and the school district claiming that they failed to supervise, secure and protect her child while he was at school.  The Court granted a motion to dismiss the school officials and granted a plea to the jurisdiction for the school district.

 

SPEECHES AND PUBLICATIONS

THOMAS P. BRANDT is scheduled to speak at Texas Municipal League Intergovernmental Risk Pool 2014 Annual Attorney Workshop in Austin, Texas at August 22, 2014.  His presentation will address First Amendment Retaliation.

THOMAS P. BRANDT, LAURA O’LEARY, and PAULA WALKER, Executive Director of Special Education for Lewisville Independent School District, will be speaking at the 2014 TASA/TASB Convention in Dallas on September 26-28.  Their presentation will address bullying and school liability and will discuss recent changes in state law regarding bullying, administrative guidance about schools’ responses to bullying, and recent litigation involving claims of bullying.

JOSHUA SKINNER recently spoke at the annual State Bar Bill of Rights Conference on recent developments in the law affecting criminal suspects, defendants and incarcerated individuals.  JOHN F. ROEHM and JOHN HUSTED are co-authors with Josh on the paper published in conjunction with the talk.

JOSHUA SKINNER was featured on a podcast for the Federalist Society, speaking on the Supreme Court’s decision in Plumhoff v. Rickard, which involves the application of the doctrine of qualified immunity to police officers who used lethal force against a suspect fleeing in a motor vehicle.  The podcast is available at http://www.fed-soc.org/multimedia/detail/plumhoff-v-rickard-post-decision-scotuscast. Josh also did an earlier podcast about the Supreme Court oral argument.

FRANK VALENZUELA spoke at this year’s State Bar Government Law Boot Camp on July 30, 2014, about recent legal developments in Texas Whistleblower Act jurisprudence.  JOHN HUSTED and Mr. Valenzuela co-authored the paper published in conjunction with the talk.  To read their paper, click here.

JOSHUA SKINNER recently spoke at the annual State Bar Government Law Boot Camp on July 30, 2014.  Josh spoke on the topic of “Basics of Qualified Immunity.”  THOMAS P. BRANDT and NICHOLE PLAGENS were co-authors with Mr. Skinner on the paper that was submitted in conjunction with the talk.  To read their paper, click here.

THOMAS P. BRANDT spoke at the 2014 Suing & Defending Governmental Entities conference held in Austin, Texas on Friday, August 1, 2014.  Mr. Brandt spoke on the subject of Qualified Immunity.  To read his paper, click here.

 

ANNOUNCEMENTS AND HONORS

DON MARTINSON was recently named in Best Lawyers magazine’s 2014 Survey Results for Insurance Law in the Dallas area.

 

UPCOMNG EVENTS

THOMAS P. BRANDT is scheduled to speak at Texas Municipal League Intergovernmental Risk Pool 2014 Annual Attorney Workshop in Austin, Texas at August 22, 2014.  His presentation will address First Amendment Retaliation.

THOMAS P. BRANDT, LAURA O’LEARY, and PAULA WALKER, Executive Director of Special Education for Lewisville Independent School District, will be speaking at the 2014 TASA/TASB Convention in Dallas on September 26-28.  Their presentation will address bullying and school liability and will discuss recent changes in state law regarding bullying, administrative guidance about schools’ responses to bullying, and recent litigation involving claims of bullying.