03/07/2013 - Fifth Circuit Civil Appellate Update
As seen in The Appellate Advocate, State Bar of Texas Appellate Section Report, Winter 2012, Vol. 25, No. 2, March 7, 2013.

03/07/2013 - The 2012 Amendments to the Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure: An Overview of the Changes and What They Mean for Appellate Practitioners
As seen in The Appellate Advocate, State Bar of Texas Appellate Section Report, Winter 2012, Vol. 25, No. 2.

12/31/2012 - Federal Update
As seen in State Bar Litigation Section News for the Bar, State Bar of Texas, Winter 2012.

12/07/2012 - Fifth Circuit Civil Appellate Update
As seen in The Appellate Advocate, State Bar of Texas Appellate Section Report, Fall 2012, Vol. 25, No. 1.

09/13/2012 - Bankruptcy Appeals
An appeal of a bankruptcy court order or judgment involves unique procedural and jurisdictional considerations. Bankruptcy appeals are different from an ordinary federal court appeal because of the unusually quick time frame for perfecting and briefing the appeal and the likelihood that such an appeal may be subject to substantive review by two appellate courts (the district court or Bankruptcy Appellate Panel and the court of appeals).

09/01/2012 - Fifth Circuit Civil Appellate Update
As seen in The Appellate Advocate, State Bar of Texas Appellate Section Report, Summer 2012, Vol. 24, No. 4.

06/14/2012 - Fifth Circuit Civil Appellate Update
As seen in The Appellate Advocate, State Bar of Texas Appellate Section Report, Spring 2012, Vol. 24, No. 3.

06/01/2012 - Fifth Circuit Update
Presented at the 2012 Conference on State and Federal Appeals, UTCLE, The University of Texas School of Law.

02/29/2012 - Fifth Circuit Civil Appellate Update
As seen in The Appellate Advocate, State Bar of Texas Appellate Section Report, Winter 2011, Vol. 24, No. 2.

09/02/2010 - Federal Jury Charge Practice: Preservation, Instructions, Verdict Forms, and Comparisons to State Court Practice
This paper addresses a topic about which Texas appellate practitioners are well-versed - submission of the jury charge - but from a federal perspective.

04/15/2010 - Texas Supreme Court Update
Presented to the Energy Symposium hosted by The Texas Wesleyan Law Review.

07/20/2009 - The 2008 Term of the United States Supreme Court: The Decisions Most Important to the Business Community
The United States Supreme Court recently issued several significant decisions affecting businesses and the nature of business litigation in federal court. The most important of these decisions are summarized in this alert.

04/17/2009 - Framing Issues in Your Petition for Review
Based on statistics over the last several years, a petition for review stands a 10-14% change of being granted. One of the most important factors in bringing your case within this 10-14% range is framing the issues in the petition for review. This paper will explore several strategies (and pitfalls) in framing issues in a petition for review at the Texas Supreme Court. 

04/01/2009 - A Guide to Web Sites & Blogs Related to Appellate Law
This article includes a sampling of Web sites and blogs focused on appellate practice and tracking appellate court decisions and brief descriptions of their content.

10/01/2008 - Direct Bankruptcy Appeals: Three Years Later
Reprinted with permission from the American Bar Association's "Appellate Issues," Council of Appellate Lawyers, October 2008.

05/31/2007 - Federal Discretionary Appeals
This paper explores three types of permissive, discretionary appeals authorized by statute and federal procedural rules: (i) appeals of interlocutory orders under 28 U.S.C. § 1292(b); (ii) appeals of class certification orders under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(f); and (iii) direct and interlocutory bankruptcy appeals.

05/18/2007 - An Introduction to E-Claims
A presentation to the Tarrant County Bar Association Brown Bag Seminar Series: Trade Secrets, Confidential Information and Privileges in a Digital Age on May 18, 2007

06/01/2006 - Bankruptcy Appeals
An appeal of a bankruptcy court order or judgment involves unique procedural and jurisdictional considerations.

09/15/2005 - Handling a Bankruptcy Appeal: Practice Tips for Appeals to the District Court & the Court of Appeals
An appeal of a bankruptcy court order involves unique procedural and jurisdictional considerations.

09/07/2005 - Preserving Error Before Trial
“To preserve a complaint for appellate review, a party must present to the trial court a timely request, motion, or objection, state the specific grounds therefore, and obtain a ruling.”

09/30/2004 - An Overview of Selected Issues in Punitive Damages
In 1987, the Texas Legislature first codified the law governing punitive damages. See Act of June 3, 1987, 70th Leg., 1st C.S., ch. 2, § 2.12, 987 Tex. Gen. Laws 37, 44-46 (amended 1989, 1995, 1997 & 2001) (current version at TEX. CIV. PRAC. & REM CODE § 41.001-.013 (Vernon 1997 & Supp. 2003)). Then, in 1988, the Texas Supreme Court held that the defendant’s net worth is relevant to punitive damages and thus discoverable.

09/10/2004 - Post-Verdict Landmines: A Survival Guide
This paper attempts to provide a guide for handling that intense period of time between verdict and the expiration of jurisdiction in the trial court, from the perspective of the losing defendant.