Tag Archives: Third Court of Appeals

Whistleblowers respond to Paxton’s appeal brief

Posted on June 24, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

That title is a dry way of saying that they basically accused him of lying in his filing to the 3rd Court of Appeals. A group of former top aides to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton reiterated in a court … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged Attorney General, Brandon Cammack, Brent Webster, bribery, Election 2022, FBI, George P. Bush, Jeff Mateer, Ken Paxton, lawsuit, Nate Paul, Ryan Vassar, Texas, Texas Whistleblower Act, Third Court of Appeals | Comments Off

Paxton appeals to 3rd Court to dismiss whistleblower lawsuit

Posted on June 3, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Next stop on the train. In an 85-page brief filed Tuesday with the 3rd Court of Appeals, Paxton’s lawyers argue that under state law, a whistleblower must believe someone has broken the law, but the aides only reported that “they … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged Attorney General, Brandon Cammack, Brent Webster, bribery, FBI, Jeff Mateer, Ken Paxton, lawsuit, Nate Paul, Ryan Vassar, Texas, Texas Whistleblower Act, Third Court of Appeals | 1 Comment

Senate approves pointless appeals court

Posted on April 16, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

There’s more than one way to attack Democratic appellate court justices. The Texas Senate passed a bill Wednesday to create a new statewide court of appeals that would hear cases that have statewide significance — including ones that challenge state … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged Joan Huffman, judicial races, lawsuit, Nathan Johnson, Senate, Supreme Court, Texas, Texas Court of Appeals, The Lege, Third Court of Appeals | 1 Comment

Appellate court redistricting bill withdrawn

Posted on April 10, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

I had a post all ready to go yesterday with more on the bill to redistrict the appellate courts, and then this happened on Thursday night: . #SB11 redistricting the Texas appellate courts from 14 to 7 has been withdrawn. … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged 14th Court of Appeals, Election 2018, Election 2020, First Court of Appeals, Joan Huffman, Juan Hinojosa, judicial races, Nathan Johnson, redistricting, Senate, Texas, The Lege, Third Court of Appeals | 5 Comments

Let’s get rid of Democratic appellate court justices

Posted on April 3, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

If that’s the Legislature’s goal, then this would be an effective way of accomplishing it. A Texas Senate committee [heard] public comment Thursday on a controversial proposal to consolidate the state’s 14 intermediate appellate courts into just seven, a move … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged 14th Court of Appeals, 4th Court of Appeals, 5th Court of Appeals, Election 2008, Election 2018, Election 2020, Election 2022, Election 2024, Elsa Alcala, First Court of Appeals, Joan Huffman, judicial races, Nathan Johnson, redistricting, Scott Brister, Senate, Texas, The Lege, Third Court of Appeals | 4 Comments

HISD Board wins again in court

Posted on March 21, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

They’re still a thing, and Mike Morath can’t do anything about it right now. The Houston ISD school board earned another win Friday in its effort to stave off Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath’s plan to replace it with an … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged Board of Managers, Election 2021, Harold Dutton, HISD, HISD Board of Trustees, Houston, lawsuit, Mike Morath, Supreme Court, Texas, Texas Education Agency, The Lege, Third Court of Appeals, Travis County | 1 Comment

Paxton whistleblower lawsuit can proceed

Posted on March 15, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

First step in a long road. The 3rd Court of Appeals on Friday denied a petition from Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s office to stop a trial court hearing in a suit filed by whistleblowers who claim they were wrongfully … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters, Scandalized! | Tagged Attorney General, Brandon Cammack, Brent Webster, bribery, FBI, Jeff Mateer, Ken Paxton, lawsuit, Nate Paul, Ryan Vassar, Supreme Court, Texas, Texas Whistleblower Act, Third Court of Appeals | 1 Comment

Dutton files bill to enable HISD takeover

Posted on March 12, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Whatever else you may say, this is true to his beliefs. Texas House Public Education Chairman Harold Dutton Jr. filed a bill Tuesday that, if it passes and withstands any legal challenge, would virtually guarantee the ouster of Houston ISD’s … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged Gene Wu, Harold Dutton, HISD, HISD Board of Trustees, lawsuit, Mike Morath, schools, Supreme Court, Texas, Texas Education Agency, The Lege, Third Court of Appeals | 1 Comment

TEA appeals HISD takeover ruling to Supreme Court

Posted on February 26, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

One way or the other, this should get a resolution. Lawyers representing the Texas Education Agency filed an appeal Wednesday asking the state Supreme Court to overturn a temporary injunction that has slowed Education Commissioner Mike Morath’s plans to strip … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged Board of Managers, Election 2021, HISD, HISD Board of Trustees, Houston, lawsuit, Mike Morath, Supreme Court, Texas, Texas Education Agency, Third Court of Appeals, Travis County | Comments Off

Appellate court redistricting

Posted on February 10, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

We’ll need to keep an eye on this. Justices on the state’s 14 intermediate appellate courts are talking—some are concerned—about a pair of bills filed in the Texas Legislature that propose redistricting the courts’ boundaries. House Bill 339 by Rep. … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged 14th Court of Appeals, Bonnie Sudderth, Election 2018, Election 2020, First Court of Appeals, Joan Huffman, Phil King, redistricting, Senate, Texans for Lawsuit Reform, Texas, Texas Office of Court Administration, The Lege, Third Court of Appeals | 6 Comments

SCOTx allows Inforwars lawsuits to proceed

Posted on January 26, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Good. The Texas Supreme Court on Friday rejected, without comment, conspiracy theorist Alex Jones’ attempt to toss out four defamation lawsuits by parents of children killed at Sandy Hook Elementary in 2012. The parents sued in Travis County, where Jones … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged Alex Jones, lawsuit, Supreme Court, Texas, Third Court of Appeals, Travis County | 1 Comment

HISD Superintendent search is back on

Posted on January 6, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

For now, anyway. Houston ISD trustees kicked off their long-delayed search for a permanent leader Monday, choosing three superintendent search firms to interview later this week. The initial move comes as the state’s largest district seeks to fill a position … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged Dani Hernandez, Doris Delaney, Grenita Lathan, HISD, HISD Board of Trustees, Holly Maria Flynn Vilaseca, Houston, lawsuit, Mike Morath, Richard Carranza, TASB, Texas Education Agency, Third Court of Appeals | Comments Off

TEA still barred from taking over HISD

Posted on January 1, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Still in a state of limbo. Texas is still temporarily barred from taking over Houston Independent School District, a state appellate court ruled Wednesday, upholding a lower court’s order. In a 2-1 ruling, the Texas Third Court of Appeals upheld … Continue reading →

Followup omnibus Election Day post

Posted on November 4, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Wanted to clear up some loose ends from the late night/early morning post and add a couple of things I’d missed the first time around. I’ll have a longer “thoughts and reactions” post probably tomorrow. – The district results from … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged 4th Court of Appeals, 5th Court of Appeals, absentee ballots, Amparo Guerra, Brazoria County, Chambers County, Congress, curbside voting, early voting, First Court of Appeals, Galveston, Harris County, HD132, HD134, HD135, Jane Robinson, President, provisional ballots, SBOE, SD19, Senate, Tamika Craft, Texas, The Lege, Third Court of Appeals, turnout, Veronica Rivas-Molloy | 4 Comments

SCOTX upholds Abbott’s limit on mail ballot dropoff locations

Posted on October 28, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I’m shocked, I tell you, shocked. In what’s expected to be the final ruling on the matter, the Texas Supreme Court has upheld Gov. Greg Abbott’s order limiting Texas counties to only one drop-off location for voters to hand deliver … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020, Legal matters | Tagged absentee ballots, Anti-Defamation League, Brennan Center, Common Cause, coronavirus, County Clerk, drop off boxes, early voting, Election 2020, Greg Abbott, Ken Paxton, lawsuit, Supreme Court, Texas, Third Court of Appeals, Travis County | 1 Comment

Try not to get sick before Election Day

Posted on October 27, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

If you suffer a late illness that prevents you from getting to a polling place, you will need a doctor’s note to get an absentee ballot. Texas voters who get sick shortly before Election Day and can’t go to the … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020, Legal matters | Tagged absentee ballots, early voting, Election 2020, lawsuit, MOVE Texas Civic Fund, Secretary of State, Texas, The Lege, Third Court of Appeals, Travis County | 2 Comments

SCOTX reinstates Abbott’s mail ballot dropoff location limit

Posted on October 25, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

They can move fast when they want to, that’s for sure. Gov. Greg Abbott’s controversial order to limit Texas counties to one mail-ballot drop-off site was allowed to remain in effect Saturday by the Texas Supreme Court. The court blocked … Continue reading →

Abbott’s order limiting mail ballot dropoff sites blocked again

Posted on October 24, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

But that’s not the end of the story, so hang on. A Texas appellate court on Friday stepped in to block Gov. Greg Abbott’s order limiting counties to just one mail-ballot dropoff site, but Harris County officials said they will … Continue reading →

State judge halts Abbott’s mail ballot dropoff limit order

Posted on October 16, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Remember there was a state lawsuit over the executive order that limited counties to one mail ballot dropoff location? That suit had a hearing this week, and the plaintiffs prevailed. For now, at least. A Travis County state district judge … Continue reading →

A matter of timing

Posted on September 20, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

That’s the stated reason why SCOTX overturned the earlier decision that booted three Green Party candidates off the ballot. The Texas Supreme Court in a new opinion Friday explained its decision to reinstate to the November ballot Green Party candidates … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020, Legal matters | Tagged 14th Court of Appeals, CD21, Charles Waterbury, Chrysta Castaneda, Congress, David Collins, Election 2020, filing fee, Green Party, Katija Gruene, Ken Paxton, lawsuit, Libertarian Party, MJ Hegar, Railroad Commission, Senate, Supreme Court, Texas, The Lege, Third Court of Appeals, Tom Wakely, Travis County, Wendy Davis | 2 Comments

The Green Party owes Ken Paxton a thank-you note

Posted on September 18, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

He did them a solid, that’s for sure. In the legal fight to exclude minor party candidates from the November ballot, Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton took a flexible view of time and deadlines. After the Texas GOP filed suit … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020, Legal matters | Tagged CD21, Charles Waterbury, Chrysta Castaneda, Congress, David Collins, DCCC, DSCC, Election 2010, Election 2020, filing fee, Green Party, Kat Swift, Katija Gruene, Ken Paxton, lawsuit, Libertarian Party, MJ Hegar, Railroad Commission, ranked choice voting, Senate, Supreme Court, Texas, The Lege, Third Court of Appeals, Tom Wakely, Travis County, Wendy Davis | 2 Comments

SCOTX puts Greens back on the ballot

Posted on September 16, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

That sound you hear is my head spinning. The Texas Supreme Court has ordered three Green Party candidates to be restored to the November ballot after Democrats successfully sued to remove them. Last month, a state appeals court sided with the … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020, Legal matters | Tagged CD21, Charles Waterbury, Chrysta Castaneda, Congress, David Collins, DCCC, DSCC, Election 2010, Election 2020, filing fee, Green Party, Kat Swift, Katija Gruene, lawsuit, Libertarian Party, MJ Hegar, Railroad Commission, Senate, Supreme Court, Texas, The Lege, Third Court of Appeals, Tom Wakely, Travis County, Wendy Davis | 23 Comments

Libertarians will stay on the ballot

Posted on September 6, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Sorry, Republicans. You were too late after all. The Texas Supreme Court on Saturday rejected an attempt by Republicans to kick 44 Libertarians off the ballot in the November elections. Several Republican Party candidates and organizations had sued to remove … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020, Legal matters | Tagged ballot application, Election 2020, filing fee, Green Party, Harris County, lawsuit, Libertarian Party, NRCC, Republican Party, Supreme Court, Tarrant County, TDP, Texas, Third Court of Appeals, Travis County | 6 Comments

More on the Republican attempt to defenestrate the Libertarians

Posted on September 3, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

From the Statesman: Republican candidates and organizations are asking the Texas Supreme Court to remove 41 members of the Libertarian Party from the November ballots. All of the Libertarians are ineligible to run, the GOP argues, because they failed to … Continue reading →

Republicans go to Supreme Court to remove Libertarian candidates

Posted on August 29, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

If at first you don’t succeed, make up a new statutory deadline that you claim is the real date that matters. About a week after Texas Democrats took several Green Party candidates to court and had them knocked off the … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020, Legal matters | Tagged ballot application, Election 2020, filing fee, Harris County, lawsuit, Libertarian Party, NRCC, Republican Party, Supreme Court, Tarrant County, Texas, Third Court of Appeals, Travis County | 3 Comments

Republicans try and fail to remove Libertarian candidates from the ballot

Posted on August 27, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

From Patrick Svitek: . Texas appeals court rejects last-minute lawsuits by @NRCC, @TravisGOP to kick Libertarian candidates off November ballot for not paying filing fees: http://search.txcourts.gov/SearchMedia.aspx?MediaVersionID=fee8c1fc-f70a-4d57-baf0-5775ccdea786&coa=coa03&DT=Opinion&MediaID=9242cd19-73c0-441c-bc1f-786be9ec000f — Patrick Svitek (@PatrickSvitek) 12:00 AM – 26 August 2020 The Third Court of … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020, Legal matters | Tagged CD03, CD21, Chrysta Castaneda, Congress, Election 2008, Election 2020, filing fee, Green Party, Kim Brimer, lawsuit, Libertarian Party, MJ Hegar, NRCC, Railroad Commission, SD10, Senate, Texas, The Lege, Third Court of Appeals, Travis County, Van Taylor, Wendy Davis | 12 Comments

Weekend voting litigation news

Posted on August 23, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I have two news items about voting-related lawsuits. Both of these come via the Daily Kos Voting Rights Roundup, which has been increasingly valuable to me lately, given the sheer number of such lawsuits and the fact that some news … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020, Legal matters | Tagged absentee ballots, Bryan Slaton, Cathie Adams, CD21, Chris Hollins, Chrysta Castaneda, Congress, coronavirus, David Collins, DCCC, DSCC, early voting, Election 2020, emergency powers, Emily Gilby, filing fee, Green Party, Greg Abbott, Harris County Clerk, Katija Gruene, lawsuit, Mi Familia Vota, MJ Hegar, NAACP, petitions, Railroad Commission, Rick Green, Ruth Hughs, Secretary of State, Senate, Steven Hotze, Terrell Blodgett, Texas, Texas College Democrats, Texas Young Democrats, The Lege, Third Court of Appeals, Tom Wakely, Travis County, voter suppression, Wendy Davis | 1 Comment

Further thoughts on the Dems defenestrating the Green candidates

Posted on August 21, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

But first, the Chron story about yesterday’s legal action. An appellate court on Wednesday blocked three Green Party candidates from the November ballot because they failed to pay candidate filing fees. The candidates are David Collins, who was running for … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020, Legal matters | Tagged CD21, Charles Waterbury, Chrysta Castaneda, Congress, David Collins, DCCC, DSCC, Election 2010, Election 2020, filing fee, Green Party, Kat Swift, Katija Gruene, lawsuit, Libertarian Party, MJ Hegar, Railroad Commission, Senate, Supreme Court, Texas, The Lege, Third Court of Appeals, Tom Wakely, Travis County, Wendy Davis | 18 Comments

More challenges to Green Party candidates

Posted on August 20, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

From Patrick Svitek: . @ChrystaForTexas, @wendydavis sue to remove their Green Party opponents from the ballot, saying they didn’t pay filing fees on time: http://search.txcourts.gov/SearchMedia.aspx?MediaVersionID=6f9426d1-7b86-4718-b99a-8356e5d806a6&coa=coa03&DT=Brief&MediaID=297d5426-ee45-4039-8bfc-dc8891686f76 The Green Party candidate in Davis’ race is @Wakely2020, who was the 2016 Democratic nominee … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020, Legal matters | Tagged Amy Clark Meachum, CD21, Charles Waterbury, Chrysta Castaneda, Congress, David Collins, DCCC, DSCC, Election 2020, filing fee, Green Party, Katija Gruene, lawsuit, Libertarian Party, MJ Hegar, Railroad Commission, Senate, Supreme Court, Texas, The Lege, Third Court of Appeals, Tom Wakely, Travis County, Wendy Davis | 5 Comments

Austin’s sick leave ordinance is officially dead

Posted on June 7, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Killed by the State Supreme Court, which should come as a surprise to no one. Austin still cannot enforce a mandatory paid sick leave ordinance its city council passed in February 2018 after the Texas Supreme Court on Friday declined to … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged Austin, coronavirus, Dallas, Houston, lawsuit, local control, San Antonio, sick leave, Supreme Court, Texas, The Lege, Third Court of Appeals | Comments Off

Supreme Court sticks its nose in

Posted on May 16, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I suppose this was to be expected. The Texas Supreme Court on Friday temporarily put on hold an expansion of voting by mail during the coronavirus pandemic. Siding with Attorney General Ken Paxton, the Supreme Court blocked a state appeals … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged 14th Court of Appeals, absentee ballots, Attorney General, Cameron County, coronavirus, early voting, El Paso, Election 2020, Harris County, Ken Paxton, lawsuit, primaries, runoff, Supreme Court, TDP, Texas, Third Court of Appeals, Travis County | 12 Comments

Appeals court upholds vote by mail order

Posted on May 15, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Second round goes to the plaintiffs. A state appeals court upheld a temporary order Thursday from a state district judge that could greatly expand the number of voters who qualify for mail-in ballots during the coronavirus pandemic, rebuffing Attorney General … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged 14th Court of Appeals, absentee ballots, Attorney General, Cameron County, coronavirus, El Paso, Election 2020, Harris County, Ken Paxton, lawsuit, primaries, runoff, Supreme Court, TDP, Texas, Third Court of Appeals, Travis County | 2 Comments

Paxton tries a Supreme shortcut

Posted on May 14, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

They sure are keeping busy. In a bit of judicial leapfrog, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is asking the Texas Supreme Court to weigh in on his interpretation of how voters can qualify for absentee ballots during the coronavirus pandemic. … Continue reading →

Criminal complaint filed against AG Ken Paxton

Posted on May 12, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I should say “another criminal complaint”, this one over his bullying tactics about vote by mail. Two voting rights advocates have filed a complaint with the Dallas County district attorney, alleging Attorney General Ken Paxton committed voter fraud in each … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged absentee ballots, Attorney General, Dallas County, John Creuzot, Ken Paxton, Kendall Scudder, lawsuit, Texas, Third Court of Appeals, Travis County, Woot Lervisit | 1 Comment

Tag Archives: Third Court of Appeals

Calendar

Categories

Archives

My linkage

Polling Texas 2020

Polling Texas 2018

Polling Texas 2016

Polling Texas 2014

Polling Texas 2012

Recent Posts

Recent Comments

Tags

Blogroll

Utilities