Author Archives: Jay Butchko
Liability Immunity for Healthcare Providers in the Age of COVID-19
Across the country, states are taking the unprecedented step of creating tort immunity from COVID-19 related lawsuits against healthcare providers. The idea behind these laws is to protect medical providers who are acting under significant stress and in the midst of a novel health pandemic. Critics say that these laws will leave the public… Read More »
3 Tips to Protect Yourself Against Product Liability Lawsuits
You might think that you have nothing in common with the companies that paid out product liability settlements after their products caused catastrophic damage. Your product is not Thalidomide, Roundup, those Toyota brakes that made the cars keep accelerating, or the prescription painkillers that helped fuel the opioid epidemic. Even if it seems to… Read More »
Force Majeure in Business Disputes in the Age of COVID-19
One of the six flags that has flown over Texas was that of France, from 1685 to 1690. Another brief period of French history that has made an impression on the history of Texas was the reign of Napoleon Bonaparte in the early 19th century. Napoleon’s legal reforms, with their emphasis on a clearly… Read More »
The Daubert Standard Is a Defendant’s Best Friend in Product Liability Lawsuits
If you had a penny for every time you had ever seen that clickbait headline that “gut doctors” allegedly tell you to avoid, you would have enough money to pay a six-figure judgment to every dissatisfied customer who had ever done business with your company. Misinformation, especially about medicine and science, has a way… Read More »
The Standard of Evidence for Lawsuits Involving Insurance Companies
There are many types of lawsuits, but what they all have in common is that the judge or jury bases their decision on evidence. Before the case makes it to trial (if it ever does; most cases do not go to trial), the parties in the lawsuit engage in discovery, where they send each… Read More »
Addressing Alcohol Abuse in Custody & Visitation Determinations During the Pandemic
At least half of all US children are currently participating in distance learning programs, where they are participating in school from home all day. For many (typically) younger-aged children, this means that at least one parent has to be home with them in order to guide their instruction, and if that parent is working… Read More »
Texas Modernizes and Amends Rules of Civil Procedure
In almost all litigation in the modern age, electronic evidence is becoming a huge source of contention, and much of the fighting in lengthy and protracted civil litigation can be avoided when the defense can locate substantially incriminating or even exculpatory evidence early on in the process. Likewise, locating litigants can be challenging and… Read More »
Toxic Tort Lawsuit Filed Against Texas City, Leading to $1.1 Million in Penalties
In late September, a toxic tort lawsuit was filed against the City of Corpus Christi, Texas for violations of the Clean Water Act and Texas Water Code in connection with alleged illegal discharges of pollutants in the form of untreated sewage into federal and state waters. According to the complaint, the city has been… Read More »
Amazon Comes Under Fire for Selling Allegedly Hazardous Products Through Its Own AmazonBasics Product Line & Price Gouging During Pandemic
In September, several senators demanded that Amazon recall a number of its own “Amazonbasics” products that have been reported by consumers to be fire hazards. Specifically, the senators accused the company of ignoring consumer safety complaints and continuing to sell products that have already been linked to explosions, fires, melting, physical harm, smoking, and… Read More »
How Child Sexual Abuse Allegations Are Treated in Texas Custody Cases
As family law litigators who practice here in Texas, one of the most difficult topics we come across in some of our cases involves allegations of child sexual abuse in custody battles. These issues inevitably cause a significant amount of pain and concerns for families who have to deal with them, regardless of the… Read More »