Former President of the Texas Association of Defense Counsel and TEX-ABOTA member, Jay Old, will announce his plans tomorrow to make a run in the Republican primary for Congressman Ron Paul’s seat. Paul has said he will not seek re-election in order to focus on his presidential campaign.
Senator Steve Ogden has said he will not seek re-election. Ogden was the senate’s budget chief in the last session and occasionally expressed his displeasure with the final budget. State Rep Charles Schwertner announced today that he will campaign for Ogden’s spot in the Republican primary.
State Senator Florence Shapiro announced yesterday that she will not seek re-election, setting of a flurry of announcements from those willing to take her seat, including two former Republican state reps, Tony Goolsby and Ken Paxton. Republican and former Air Force pilot, Scott O’Grady, also announced he is in the race.
Corbin van Arsdale, a former Republican state rep from east Texas, recently moved to the northwest Austin/Leander area and announced he would run for the state house to represent his new district. Today, he reversed course and announced that he will not run. Tony Dale and Cynthia Long plan to face off in that Republican primary.
The Texas Supreme Court has indicated it will appoint a task force to recommend civil procedure rules governing expedited trial procedures. The formal announcement is expected soon, perhaps as early as Tuesday. The task force is expected to consider, among other things, the proposed rules recently written and submitted by TEX-ABOTA, TTLA and TADC. See the following for our early report about the proposed rules:
Texas Plaintiffs and Defense Bars Unite to Propose New Rules Governing Expedited Jury Trials and Dismissal Practice: TEX-ABOTA, TTLA and TADC have joined forces to propose new rules of civil procedure to the Supreme Court of Texas governing expedited jury trials and early dismissal practice. Recently passed HB 274 requires the Texas Supreme Court to promulgate rules governing these two new areas of civil practice.
Recognizing an opportunity, the three associations decided it was best to take the initiative and pro-actively propose an agreed set of rules that are fair to both plaintiffs and defendants and serve the best interests of the Texas civil justice system. The groups met extensively over the summer and spent many hours on the project.
The supreme court thanked the three associations for their input. The court and its advisory committee are expected to undertake a review of the proposals, but have made no announcement as to when the rules will be promulgated.
TEX-ABOTA (the Texas Chapters of the American Board of Trial Advocates) is an invitation-only association of plaintiffs and defense attorneys who are dedicated to the preservation of the right to trial by jury and the improvement of the Texas civil justice system. www.tex-abota.org
TADC (Texas Association of Defense Counsel) is an association whose members practice mostly on the side of the defense in civil litigation, including, but not limited to, intellectual property, construction litigation, commercial litigation, labor and employment, product liability and personal injury litigation. TADC is dedicated to ensuring a balanced and effective civil justice system. www.tadc.org
TTLA (Texas Trial Lawyers Association) is an association comprised of Texas plaintiffs attorneys, united in maintaining a civil justice system that protects all Texans and makes Texas a safer and healthier place to live. www.ttla.com
To view the proposed rules and the groups’ two letters of explanation to the Supreme Court of Texas, click on:
http://chmc-law.com/expedited_trials
http://chmc-law.com/dismissal_practice
The Austin Bar Legislative Update is a membership benefit of the Austin Bar Association