Brenda Sapino Jeffreys

March 10, 2003 |

Jenkens & Gilchrist wants an arbitrator to decide claims brought by four disgruntled clients who allege in a $1.4 billion federal suit that the Dallas-based firm gave them faulty tax advice on COBRA transactions that is now at issue as the IRS examines the taxpayers' returns. The 510-lawyer firm and a Chicago-based shareholder are among defendants in a RICO suit filed in federal court in New York.

By Brenda Sapino Jeffreys

10 minute read

February 02, 2006 |

Opening statements in the criminal trial of former Enron Chairman Kenneth Lay and Chief Executive Officer Jeffrey Skilling began with a federal prosecutor telling jurors, This case is not about accounting, it is about lies and choices.

By Brenda Sapino Jeffreys

5 minute read

May 13, 2009 |

Former U.S. District Judge Samuel B. Kent was sentenced Monday to 33 months in prison after earlier pleading guilty to one count of obstruction of justice. U.S. District Judge Roger Vinson of the Northern District of Florida told Kent he must surrender himself by June 15.

By Brenda Sapino Jeffreys

5 minute read

March 03, 2003 |

Bayer Corp., a defendant in a Baycol products liability trial under way in Corpus Christi, faces possible sanctions after an in-house lawyer authorized the mailing of a letter to more than 2,000 addresses in Corpus Christi during jury selection. Mikal Watts, lead lawyer for the plaintiffs, said at a hearing that the letter from a public relations executive at Bayer might be an attempt at jury tampering. A Bayer lawyer says he believes his company's PR staff made an honest mistake.

By Brenda Sapino Jeffreys

11 minute read

July 27, 2009 |

Judge Manuel Banales, presiding judge of the 5th Administrative Region who sentenced Mauricio Celis after recusing the judge who presided over Celis' criminal trial, has been taken off the case himself. Nueces County District Attorney Carlos Valdez had filed a motion seeking to recuse Banales from presiding over the prosecution of Celis.

By Brenda Sapino Jeffreys

3 minute read

February 02, 2009 |

Lawyers handling civil suits in Harris County district courts will soon have fewer excuses for missing a court hearing. On Jan. 17, the Harris County District Clerk's Office began testing an automated docketing feature that sends an e-mail to lawyers each weekend with a listing of all of their court hearings for the next week. The clerk's office plans to add more features in the future.

By Brenda Sapino Jeffreys

4 minute read

February 13, 2007 |

The 5th Circuit affirmed a Rule 11 sanctions order against Dallas lawyer Donald H. Flanary Jr. in connection with a brief he filed in a racial discrimination suit that contained a racially charged word not used in the supporting affidavit. Flanary says he wants to talk to his counsel before deciding if he will ask for a rehearing before the 5th Circuit. "It's an important issue for lawyers -- if someone makes a one-word mistake in the brief," he says.

By Brenda Sapino Jeffreys

3 minute read

July 17, 2008 |

Over the past 15 years, even before she became a lawyer, Carlie Bishop spent thousands of hours working at the Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo as a volunteer, and that extracurricular work became her passion. Now her passion is her job, too. Bishop is the show's new general counsel and chief administrative officer, a position she calls her "dream job." In addition to all legal matters for the show, Bishop oversees risk management, contracts, human resources, education programs and office administration.

By Brenda Sapino Jeffreys

7 minute read

May 20, 2010 |

R. Allen Stanford filed a motion Tuesday seeking release from pretrial detention -- or dismissal of the indictment against him -- on the ground that his constitutional due process rights have been violated. Hours after Stanford filed the motion, Texas federal Judge David Hittner, who denied two earlier release requests from Stanford, signed an order striking the document because it was not in 14-point font and double-spaced and because it included names of lawyers who are not attorneys of record in the case.

By Brenda Sapino Jeffreys

4 minute read

June 17, 2008 |

Roughly 27 percent of Houston-based Bracewell & Giuliani's 418 lawyers are in out-of-state offices, and managing partner Mark Evans expects that percentage to grow over the next five years -- "Easily at least 35 percent," says Evans. His confidence about Bracewell's growth outside Texas reflects the enthusiasm expressed by managing partners of other big Texas firms about why they're happy to increase the size of their national and international footprints with a network of new offices.

By Brenda Sapino Jeffreys and Miriam Rozen

28 minute read