On January 17, 2024, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in tandem cases Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo and Relentless, Inc., et al. v. Dept. of Commerce, et al., which ask whether the court should overrule one of its most frequently cited precedents: the Chevron doctrine. Hicks Johnson staff attorney Jennifer Cordell explains the doctrine’s history and application, then outlines one of the court’s available paths in addressing the issue of statutory silence.

Federal courts have long held that Title VII discrimination must consist of material harm or disadvantage. However, on December 6, 2023, the Supreme Court heard oral argument in a Title VII case out of the Eighth Circuit, Muldrow v. City of St. Louis, that could radically lower this threshold – and reshape the landscape of workplace discrimination law entirely. Hicks Johnson associate Dave Finkel analyzes the decision’s potential implications, including challenges to employer DEI programs.

On December 4, 2023, the Supreme Court will hear oral argument in a case that may have major implications for bankruptcy law in the Fifth Circuit. While the Fifth Circuit has held that bankruptcy courts may not incorporate third-party releases, this case, Harrington v. Purdue Pharma L.P., et. al., challenges the legality of Purdue’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization plan on the grounds that the plan exceeds the Bankruptcy Code’s authorization by releasing claims held by non-debtors against other non-debtor third parties without the claimants’ consent. Partner Marc Tabolsky and associate Adam Greiner discuss the case’s background as well as its potential to reverse current Fifth Circuit precedent that denies the use of releases between non-debtors in Chapter 11 reorganization plans.

On June 2, 2023, the Texas Supreme Court agreed to hear Ammonite Oil & Gas Corp. v. Railroad Commission of Texas and EOG Resources, which concerns a state regulator’s rejection of 16 applications submitted by Ammonite to force pool its mineral estate with adjacent wells operated by EOG under the Texas Mineral Interest Pooling Act (MIPA). Now, the court is poised to weigh in on several points regarding the scope and interpretation of the MIPA. Partner Persis Dean and associate Kelly Swanson provide key details of the case as well as its potential implications.

The Texas Supreme Court recently clarified an issue that has been the source of extensive litigation for decades: the so-called “double fraction dilemma.” In a landmark victory, Hicks Johnson partner Marc Tabolsky successfully argued a dispute over a century-old deed containing a reservation of mineral rights that used a double fraction.

On Friday, May 12, the Texas Senate passed  a bill that would create a specialized business court to oversee complex civil litigation. Hicks Johnson senior counsel Katherine Ring provides an overview of key changes proposed by the bill, which aims to streamline the resolution of high-stakes business disputes statewide.

On July 9, 2021, President Joe Biden signed an executive order calling for stronger enforcement of antitrust laws to promote competition and curtail the consolidation of American industries. Since then, the DOJ has pursued a vigorous campaign of antitrust enforcement, including blocking purportedly anti-competitive mergers and addressing non-merger anti-competitive conduct. Hicks Johnson senior counsel Brandon Winchester and associate Kelly Swanson discuss the DOJ’s recent efforts and offer guidance for companies considering a merger in the current antitrust landscape.

Like any other type of litigation, trade secret cases rise or fall on the strength of the evidence that can be put before the factfinder. Yet before a lawyer can focus on what evidence they have to make or defend their case, they must first collect that evidence. With information technology being incorporated into every business at a lightning-fast pace, evidence has accordingly become increasingly complicated to source. The final part of this series outlines best practices for the identification, collection, and preservation of evidence for use in a trade secrets case.

As discussed in part one of this series, trade secret litigation presents a minefield of evidentiary challenges. But while the act of misappropriation is often simple enough to demonstrate, calculating the precise value of damages can be extremely difficult. This second article outlines the evidence needed to articulate a legally cognizable damages model.