Appellate Law

Texas Supreme Court Orders & Opinions 7/11/08

By D. Todd Smith

The Texas Supreme Court issued four decisions with this week's regular orders.

In City of Waco v. Lopez (No. 06?0089), a retaliatory discharge action in which the City filed a plea to the jurisdiction, the Court held that  the Texas Commission on Human Rights Act  provided the exclusive state statutory remedy.  The Court reversed the court of appeals’ judgment and dismissed the case because the only pleaded theory was not actionable and because plaintiff had not satisfied the administrative prerequisites for maintaining a retaliation claim.

In David J. Sacks, P.C. v. Haden (07?0472) (per curiam), the Court concluded that an unambiguous written attorney's fee agreement specifying only hourly rates could not be modified by any oral agreement to cap the total fees to be charged.  Because the court of appeals held that evidence of an oral agreement raised a fact issue on whether the parties had a meeting of the minds, the supreme court reversed and reinstated the trial court's judgment awarding damages to the law firm for breach of contract.

In a related case, David J. Sacks, P.C. v. Haden (07?0487) (per curiam), the court of appeals reversed a turnover order in the law firm's favor after reversing the trial court's money judgment.  Because of the result reached in No. 07-0472, the supreme court reversed and remanded so the court of appeals could consider whether the turnover order was proper under Section 31.002(e) of the Civil Practice and Remedies Code. 

In Sells v. Drott (07?0848) (per curiam), the Court reversed a default judgment granted after the trial court struck facially valid answers filed on defendant's behalf without notice to defendant that the answers' validity was in dispute.

This set of orders marks the beginning of "summer recess."  A few opinions and rulings on petitions may trickle out over the next several weeks, but the Court has no conferences scheduled until mid-August.

Full post as published by Texas Appellate Law Blog on July 11, 2008 (boomark / email).