Coach Briles has been sued along with Baylor University. Various female plaintiffs allege the school did not protect them from sexual assaults. The lawsuit is based on Title IX which requires equal facilities for female students. This week, Coach Briles filed a motion asking to be dismissed from the lawsuit. Among the reasons why he
Litigation and trial practice
Fifth Circuit Finds Texas has Standing to Challenge EEOC Guidance
Well, I previously wrote about yet another frivolous lawsuit by the former Attorney General, Greg Abbott. But, then he actually won the suit on appeal. See my prior post here. The former AG sued the EEOC regarding enforcement guidance issued by the agency on criminal background checks. The case is State of Texas v.
Trump University Narrowly Avoided a Lawsuit in Texas
The business plan for Trump University calls for the salesmen to up-sell to more expensive products and ask to see any search warrants. That plan alone suggests Trump University is not what it purports to be. The “university” came to Texas in 2009. Some 30 complaints were lodged with the Better Business Bureau. The Attorney…
Trump Criticizes Mexican-American Judge
Donald Trump, as if to insist that he is indeed racist, attacks the judge in his case for being “Mexican.” One of the lawsuits against the now defunct Trump University was filed in California. The federal judge presiding over the case is Gonzalo Curiel, a Mexican-American judge in San Diego. Don Trump described the Judge…
Church of Scientology Lawsuit to be Dismissed
Well, it looks like Monique Rathbun is dropping her lawsuit against the Church of Scientology. See San Antonio Express News report. I first wrote about that strange lawsuit here. Ms. Rathbun filed a motion asking that her suit be dropped. She did not provide a reason for the dismissal. She fired her lawyers…
Unintended Consequences of Arbitration
One of the unintended consequences of arbitration is what to do when arbitration is invoked? Employment arbitrations typically start with an employment lawsuit. The employee often forgets s/he had even signed an arbitration agreement. So, the employee files the lawsuit, not anticipating a claim for arbitration. Then, the employer pulls out the arbitration agreement from…
Police Union and City Ordered to Mediation
The continuing saga of the San Antonio Police Officers Association lawsuit has lead to a court ordered mediation. The lawsuit is currently on appeal with the Fourth Court of Appeals here in San Antonio. The City filed a motion seeking that the parties be ordered to mediation. See San Antonio Express News report. Mediation…
Automatic Deletion of Video Recording is not Spoliation
We see a lot of discovery issues regarding electronic data, these days. For example, many employers use cameras inside the place of employment. What if those cameras record alleged conduct that leads to termination? The court in EEOC v. Chipotle Mexican Grill, 98 F.Supp.3d 198, 2015 US LEXIS 42187 (D. Mass. 3/30/2015) addressed such…
Employer Sought to Rummage Through Plaintiff’s Former Jobs
One recurring issue in employment cases is the breadth of discovery that is allowable. Many employers want to seek the records of the plaintiff’s former jobs. That means the employer can possibly rummage around the employee’s former jobs and see if there is any dirt that will help the employer. Unfortunately, some plaintiff attorneys do…