A recent Houston appellate court decision touches on a fascinating question for the Texas Bar: Can a lawyer set a competing attorney up for barratry?

While the recent decision in Carter v. Kubosh doesn't quite answer that question, it does move closer toward resolving a sprawling case brewing in a Houston state district court that's testing the limits of the civil barratry law and questions who can claim to be a victim of the unethical practice.

That consolidated case involves 74 plaintiffs from Harris and Jefferson counties who have all sued Houston traffic ticket lawyer Paul Kubosh and his bail bondsman brother, Michael Kubosh, for barratry. The brothers have offices located next to each other and share computer and telephone lines.