Category Archives: Legal matters

Lawsuit filed against anti-trans gender affirming care law

Posted on July 14, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

No time wasted on this one. Several families with transgender children are asking a judge to block a new Texas law that would stop minors from accessing many types of transition-related health care, including puberty blockers and hormone therapies. The … Continue reading →

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Were these courts really necessary?

Posted on July 10, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Should have added these two bills to the “will be sued over” list. Republican state leaders’ plan to create two new types of statewide courts is facing backlash from critics who say they are unconstitutional and will unfairly benefit large … Continue reading →

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Latest ReBuild lawsuit dismissed

Posted on July 9, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

One less thing for the next Mayor to worry about. I hope. A district court judge has ruled in favor of Houston leaders in a 4-year-old lawsuit, countering allegations that Mayor Sylvester Turner and the City Council illegally shortchanged the … Continue reading →

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Harris County files its first lawsuit over an election bill

Posted on July 7, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Another early start, for a clear reason in this case. Harris County is headed to court to challenge a new state law that abolishes its elections office, County Attorney Christian Menefee announced Thursday. The county’s lawsuit aims to stop Senate Bill 1750 from going into … Continue reading →

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Houston sues over “Death Star”bill

Posted on July 4, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

First out of the gate. I’m sure they will have company. Houston city attorneys on Monday filed a lawsuit against a new state law that blocks an array of local regulations, marking the first legal challenge to the sweeping crackdown on cities and … Continue reading →

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Federal judge rules for third parties in petition access lawsuit

Posted on July 3, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

We’ll see how much difference this makes. A federal judge in Austin has blocked Texas from enforcing a more than century-old state law that requires third-party candidates to collect petition signatures on paper to qualify for a place on the … Continue reading →

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Supreme Court upholds Abbott’s mask mandate ban

Posted on July 2, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Welp. Settling a heated pandemic-era debate between Gov. Greg Abbott and leaders of the state’s major urban areas, the Texas Supreme Court ruled Friday that the governor had the legal authority to forbid local officials from requiring residents to wear … Continue reading →

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Judge orders DPS to release Uvalde public records

Posted on July 1, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Very good. A state district judge on Thursday ordered the Texas Department of Public Safety to begin the process of releasing public records related to law enforcement’s response to the Uvalde school shooting, granting a request by The Texas … Continue reading →

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Anti-gay Waco JP’s lawsuit to be considered by SCOTx

Posted on June 29, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

The end of the line one way or the other. The Texas Supreme Court will review a case involving a Waco justice of the peace’s refusal to perform same-sex weddings. McLennan County Justice of the Peace Dianne Hensley sued the … Continue reading →

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City to sue over mandatory arbitration law

Posted on June 28, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Add it to what is likely to be a substantive list. Houston city attorneys said Monday they plan to challenge the constitutionality of a new Texas law that gives Houston firefighters mandatory arbitration in their long-running contract stalemate. Lowell Denton, … Continue reading →

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Louisiana’s turn to (maybe) fix its racial gerrymander

Posted on June 27, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

They’re on the clock. The Supreme Court on Monday denied Louisiana’s attempt to block a lower court’s order that it redraw its congressional maps. That court found that the state had likely diluted the power of Black voters in violation … Continue reading →

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SCOTx rules ERCOT can’t be sued over the 2021 freeze

Posted on June 25, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

A split ruling, which in my kind could have gone either way. The Texas Supreme Court ruled Friday that ERCOT, the operator of Texas’ power grid, is a government entity, granting the organization immunity to lawsuits stemming from 2021′s deadly … Continue reading →

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Another look at Texas redistricting litigation after the Alabama SCOTUS ruling

Posted on June 24, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

An explainer from the Trib. The state faces an assortment of legal challenges to its congressional and statehouse maps, including allegations of intentional discrimination, vote dilution and racial gerrymandering. For example: In the Rio Grande Valley, the plaintiffs allege map-drawers … Continue reading →

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A long look at Spring Branch ISD

Posted on June 23, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Houston Landing goes deep. With only a week left before the May 6 election, school-board candidate David Lopez and a team of volunteers set out to block walk in the Spring Branch neighborhoods north of Interstate 10, trying to accomplish … Continue reading →

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Arkansas law banning gender affirming care ruled unconstitutional

Posted on June 22, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

This is a big deal. A federal judge struck down Arkansas’ first-in-the-nation ban on gender-affirming care for children as unconstitutional Tuesday, the first ruling to overturn such a prohibition as a growing number of Republican-led states adopt similar restrictions. U.S. … Continue reading →

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Paxton’s securities trial will be in Harris County

Posted on June 15, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Hey, remember all those years ago when Ken Paxton was indicted on securities fraud charges, and how he’s been able to avoid seeing the inside of a courtroom because of a barrage of appeals and other legal maneuvers? Well, we … Continue reading →

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Oligarch nuisance lawsuit against Beto finally tossed

Posted on June 14, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Sure took long enough. A state appeals court dismissed Republican megadonor Kelcy Warren’s defamation lawsuit against Beto O’Rourke, ruling Friday that statements by the 2022 Democratic nominee for governor were protected by the First Amendment. The Austin-based 3rd Court of … Continue reading →

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Here’s another lawsuit filed by Uvalde parents

Posted on June 13, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

That’s at least four, by my count. In the latest lawsuit over the Uvalde school shooting, 30 family members, teachers and others are suing the manufacturer of the rifle the gunman used, the gun store where he collected it and … Continue reading →

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Will the SCOTUS ruling on Alabama redistricting affect Texas?

Posted on June 11, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Let’s start here. In a surprise win for voting rights activists, the U.S. Supreme Court breathed new life into the Civil Rights Act and may have paved the way to end Texas’s gerrymandered district. The case, Allen v. Milligan, came … Continue reading →

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IRS complaint filed against True the Vote

Posted on June 11, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Let’s go! Conservative activists Catherine Engelbrecht and Gregg Phillips used the nonprofit True the Vote to enrich themselves, according to a complaint filed to the IRS. On Monday, the nonprofit watchdog group Campaign for Accountability called for an investigation into True … Continue reading →

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City settles dumping complaint with Justice Department

Posted on June 9, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Houston will not face punishment after settling a Justice Department probe into whether the city’s system of responding to illegal dumping calls violated the Civil Rights Act by disregarding Black and Latino neighborhoods. Mayor Sylvester Turner’s administration reached a three-year voluntary resolution with … Continue reading →

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Federal judge halts Florida’s ban on gender affirming care

Posted on June 8, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Hopefully, a preview of our future. A federal judge delivered a stinging rebuke to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Republican-controlled Legislature over rules and a new state law that banned minors from receiving “puberty blockers” and other types of … Continue reading →

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Ashby 2.0 gets sued

Posted on June 7, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Let’s party like it’s 2007, baby! Just when the 16-year battle over the proposed Ashby high-rise site in Boulevard Oaks appeared to drawing to a close, opponents have filed a lawsuit that again puts the fate of the project into … Continue reading →

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TikTok sues Montana over its ban

Posted on May 30, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Worth keeping an eye on. TikTok sued the state of Montana Monday in an effort to overturn a first-of-its-kind law banning downloads of the app in the state. The lawsuit, which comes on the heels of other suits filed by Montanan TikTok creators, alleges the … Continue reading →

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Harris County to sue over those two new election laws

Posted on May 26, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I wish I felt more optimistic about this. Harris County will file a lawsuit challenging two Republican-backed election bills headed to Gov. Greg Abbott’s desk, County Attorney Christian Menefee announced Wednesday. At issue are two measures that apply only to Harris County, including one that abolishes … Continue reading →

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More plaintiffs join lawsuit against Texas over abortion restrictions

Posted on May 23, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Good. One woman had to carry her baby, missing much of her skull, for months knowing she’d bury her daughter soon after she was born. Another started mirroring the life-threatening symptoms that her baby was displaying while in the womb. … Continue reading →

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Bill to ban gender-affirming care sent to Abbott, lawsuit to follow

Posted on May 19, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

The next fight will begin immediately. Texas is on the brink of banning transgender minors from getting puberty blockers and hormone therapies, treatments that leading medical groups say are important to supporting their mental health. The Senate has voted 19-12 Wednesday … Continue reading →

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Fifth Circuit hears mifepristone appeal

Posted on May 18, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

It went more or less as you’d expect from this dumpster fire of a court. I’ll link to a bunch of straight news coverage in a bit, but what you need is the news with some analysis and snark, so … Continue reading →

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No Paxton settlement money in the budget

Posted on May 18, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

The Lege takes a stand. Texas budget negotiators want to ban Attorney General Ken Paxton from using state funds to pay a $3.3 million whistleblower settlement. This week, they adopted a provision that would bar the Office of the Attorney General from using … Continue reading →

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Lawsuit filed against FAA over SpaceX launch and explosion

Posted on May 8, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I can only imagine how Elno feels right now. Conservation groups sued the Federal Aviation Administration [last] Monday, challenging its approval of expanded rocket launch operations by Elon Musk’s SpaceX next to a national wildlife refuge in South Texas without … Continue reading →

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The sore loser election contest lawsuits have been delayed

Posted on May 8, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

This obituary of local Republican activist and professional election denier/vote suppressor Alan Vera was far too kind to him – Votebeat did a better job of accurately capturing his “achievements” – but it did contain one useful piece of information, … Continue reading →

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An example of how a pro-abortion rights campaign could go

Posted on May 7, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

This was from last week, and I’ve been thinking about it since. In testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday, one of the five women suing Texas for abortion access blamed the state’s Republican senators for her near-death experience … Continue reading →

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Countersuit in the “wrongful death” abortion saga

Posted on May 3, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Wild. A man who is suing his ex-wife’s friends for allegedly helping her get an abortion may have known about her plans and done nothing to stop her, according to a new legal filing. Marcus Silva brought a wrongful-death lawsuit … Continue reading →

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Two “Trump Train” defendants settle

Posted on April 30, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Interesting. Two of the eight Trump supporters accused of participating in a “politically-motivated conspiracy” by closely following, honking at and slowing down a campaign bus for President Joe Biden on a Texas highway in the weeks leading up to the … Continue reading →

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