The Dallas Court of Appeals reversed a district court’s order denying a plea to the jurisdiction that had been filed by the Texas attorney general, who had intervened in the proceeding for the purpose of contesting jurisdiction. The court of appeals held that Texas district courts lack jurisdiction to grant divorces to same-sex couples legally married in
August 2010
Discovery of Federal Tax Returns Limited
By Byron Henry on
Posted in Discovery
The Tyler Court of Appeals recently confirmed that individual federal tax returns are discoverable to the extent they are relevant and material. In this case, the tax returns were relevant to the claims and the court found that the parties had agreed to the production of the returns. But that was not the end of the matter. …
Sanctions Payable Prior to Final Judgment Abuse of Discretion
By Byron Henry on
Posted in Opinions & Judgments
The Fort Worth Court of Appeals recently held that an order directing that sanctions be paid prior to final judgment is an abuse of discretion unless the court makes express findings as to why the sanctions do not preclude the sanctioned party from continuing the lawsuit. In this case, the trial court awarded over $19,000…
Just say “no” to net worth
By Mike Northrup on
Posted in News and Events
After waiting more than a decade for some guidance from the Texas Supreme Court on the meaning of "net worth" in discovery matters, we thought we were going to get just that–at least until last Friday, that is. In last Friday’s orders, the high court granted the motion to dismiss filed by the real parties in…