Brenda Sapino Jeffreys

February 09, 2004 | Texas Lawyer

Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld and a former partner recently settled a state-court suit alleging fraud and securities law violations in connection with the firm's representation of a now-defunct Internet startup in San Antonio called E-Court Inc.

By Brenda Sapino Jeffreys

10 minute read

February 08, 2006 | Corporate Counsel

If you meet someone who does "PI" work at a law firm, don't assume the "PI" stands for "personal injury." Bickel & Brewer, a 35-lawyer firm that handles securities and large commercial suits, hired its own in-house investigators -- and it's not the first firm to do so. Bickel partner William Brewer III says the four-member investigative unit saves the firm money and does a better job than outside investigators who wouldn't be as familiar with the material or apt to work as closely with the litigators.

By Brenda Sapino Jeffreys

7 minute read

May 23, 2008 | Texas Lawyer

In the motion, the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services seeks a stay to prohibit the 3rd Court of Appeals from enforcing a conditional mandamus it issued on May 22 that orders 51st District Judge Barbara Walther to vacate her order giving the department temporary custody of some of the 450 children who had been living at the polygamist compound.

By Brenda Sapino Jeffreys

4 minute read

July 27, 2009 | Texas Lawyer

Alleging a partner in Strasburger & Price in Dallas failed to issue an arbitration decision in a dispute over ownership of a ranch, a former owner of Fort Worth-based Blackmon Mooring seeks nearly a half-million dollars in actual damages and unspecified punitives from the firm and partner Charles M. Hosch in a breach of contract and fraud suit.

By Brenda Sapino Jeffreys

6 minute read

May 07, 2001 | Law.com

Because Texas is ground zero for the energy industry, some of the state's lawyers are being drawn into the politically charged litigation resulting from California's energy crisis. Haynes and Boone's Robert Albergotti is happily racking up frequent-flyer miles to the West Coast, advising California Assembly Speaker Robert Hertzberg. "I'll never have a chance to work on something like this again," says Albergotti.

By Brenda Sapino Jeffreys

8 minute read

January 22, 2007 | Law.com

It's been nearly 16 years since the Americans with Disabilities Act went into effect. Lawyers with disabilities say it's still tough to get big-firm jobs, despite the ADA and despite advances in technology that help them handle legal work. "Most attorneys who are blind or visually impaired work for the government or work in solo practice," says Chris Prentice, a solo in Texas who is legally blind. Prentice says he would like to leave solo practice and work at a firm for financial reasons.

By Brenda Sapino Jeffreys

14 minute read

April 25, 2011 | Law.com

A group of 187 former clients of the O'Quinn Law Firm has sued the Houston firm, the late John M. O'Quinn's estate and others, alleging the defendants overcharged them for expenses in silicosis suits, failed to distribute some silicosis settlements and communicate information about them, and were negligent in handling claims against some bankrupt silica defendants. Dale Jefferson (pictured), a partner in Martin, Disiere, Jefferson & Wisdom of Houston, says, "We deny the pled allegations."

By Brenda Sapino Jeffreys

4 minute read

February 11, 2009 | Corporate Counsel

Darryl Burman, general counsel of Group 1 Automotive, says executives at the Houston-based auto retailer made the right choice in January when they voluntarily agreed to a 10 percent pay cut to help Group 1 survive the slump in the automobile industry. "I'm very proud of my company for that. We elected to do the moral and ethical and responsible thing," says Burman. "We wanted to protect jobs." Burman also asked all of the company's outside firms to freeze billing rates at 2008 levels.

By Brenda Sapino Jeffreys

10 minute read

April 05, 2010 | Texas Lawyer

With just nine months before he goes to trial on criminal charges, R. Allen Stanford wants to hire a new set of criminal-defense lawyers, as one of his current lawyers says he has disagreed with Stanford over trial and pre-trial strategy. Stanford is asking to substitute Michael Essmyer as Stanford's lead attorney, replacing Kent Schaffer, and to substitute Bob Bennett for George McCall "Mac" Secrest Jr.

By Brenda Sapino Jeffreys

5 minute read

August 22, 2005 | Law.com

A Texas jury awarded $253.4 million in damages Friday to plaintiffs in the nation's first civil Vioxx trial against Merck & Co., finding that negligence on the drug maker's part was a proximate cause in Robert Ernst's death in 2001. Merck says it is examining bases for appeal, focusing on the testimony and evidence allowed by the judge. In impassioned argument Wednesday, plaintiffs lawyer W. Mark Lanier told jurors, "You hold them accountable, you'll be the first jury in America to say, 'Time out, Merck.'"

By Brenda Sapino Jeffreys

5 minute read