Texas Legal News & Case Updates

Waco Jury Says Federal Bus Regulators Have It Wrong

For years now, the bus manufacturing industry has repeatedly defeated lawsuits focused on the lack of seatbelts on commercial buses. Federal highway safety regulations have never mandated that seat belts are required on passenger buses, and the industry has relied on that lack of regulation to shiel

By The Legal Examiner

/ 22 Feb 2006

Is Your Child's Teddy Bear Full of Toxins?

At Chatham College, in Pittsburgh, Dr. Renee Falconer and lab technician Caitlin Corbitt, are finding dangerous levels of chemical pollutants in some of our children’s favorite toys. “We decided to go ahead and look for pesticides, while we were looking for the flame retardants, and we found both,”

By The Legal Examiner

/ 21 Feb 2006

$4.45 Million Settlement To Be Paid to New York Employees of Service Corp. International Affiliates

Service Corp. International will pay over $4 million to settle a lawsuit alleging violations of overtime laws.The case involves premium payments, overtime and other wage & hour claims for funeral directors and other non-exempt employees under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) and the New York La

By The Legal Examiner

/ 21 Feb 2006

Birth Control Patch Doubles the Risk of Potentially Deadly Blood Clots

A new study shows that women using the Ortho Evra birth-control patch have double the risk of developing blood clots compared with those who take the birth-control pill, the Food and Drug Administration said Friday. The finding comes from one of two studies comparing the patch and the pill, said Ort

By The Legal Examiner

/ 20 Feb 2006

U.S. District Judge Approves a Kmart Settlement Involving 401(k) Investments

A federal judge gave preliminary approval to a class-action settlement between investors and Kmart executives. Shareholders accuse the company of investing 401(k) savings plans in Kmart stock, which became worthless after the company filed for bankruptcy back in 2002. The agreement would pay nearly

By The Legal Examiner

/ 17 Feb 2006

Jury Recommends $553 Million Award in Contamination Suit

A federal jury in Denver has recommended an award of $553.9 to several thousand land owners whose property was contaminated by Dow Chemical Company and Rockwell International Corp. The area in dispute in the lawsuit, filed in 1990, surrounds the former Rocky Flats nulear waeapons facility near Denve

By The Legal Examiner

/ 15 Feb 2006

UBS will Pay $89 Million to Settle Overtime Suit

UBS Financial services has agreed to settle class-action suits by employees claiming to have been underpaid for overtime work. Settlement of all claims, both state and federal, could result in payment of up to $89 million. The basis for the suits was that UBS misclassified as exempt certain financia

By The Legal Examiner

/ 14 Feb 2006

FDA Panel Urges Strict New Warnings for Ritalin

Stimulants like Ritalin could have dangerous effects on the heart, and federal regulators should require manufacturers to provide written guides to patients and place prominent “black box” warnings on drug labels describing these risks, a federal advisory panel voted on Thursday. “I must say that I

By The Legal Examiner

/ 13 Feb 2006

Lessons Learned from Litigation against Wal-Mart about Class Certification in Sex Discrimination Cases.

In Dukes v. Wal-Mart Stores the federal district court certified the largest ever private civil rights class. There are 1.5 million female current and former Wal-Mart workers certified to be part of the suit. Beyond the unprecedented size and scope of the class the class members come from different

By The Legal Examiner

/ 10 Feb 2006

Welding Products Cause Neurological Damages

A welding products worker sued his former employer for his debilitating neurological damages, including his Parkinson’s disease. He claims that his employers were negligent and should be found liable because they failed to warn him of the dangers associated with exposure to magnesium and for not pro

By The Legal Examiner

/ 8 Feb 2006

Sea-Doo Manufacturer Settles Wrongful Death Suit

Bombardier Inc., the maker of the popular Sea-Doo personal watercraft, settled a wrongful death lawsuit involving a 12-year old girl that was fatally wounded after crashing a Sea-Doo in 1999. The parties reached the private settlement agreement after jurors informed the trial judge that the jury was

By The Legal Examiner

/ 8 Feb 2006

Texas Lawsuits Filed by Families of TASER Victims

The families of two men who died after being shot with a TASER gun have sued the City of Amarillo, Texas and the manufacturer of the TASER.Although the defendants claim the weapon is safe, the families of Corey Calvin Clark and Troy Dale Nowell who were killed, feel differentlyThe defendants claim t

By The Legal Examiner

/ 7 Feb 2006