Thank you to the 29 writers who submitted entries to the Texas Bar Journal Short Story Contest this year. Author names were removed from entries before being submitted to judges in order to keep the contest fair and impartial. Two panels of judges faced the challenging task of selecting the winners, and for each round … Continue Reading
The Texas Bar Career Center provides tips for new lawyers and those attorneys seeking a new career on its webpage, texasbar.com/careercenter. In addition to being a resource for jobs, the career center also features helpful tips and offers users the option to upload anonymous résumés to be found by recruiters and employers. Job seekers can … Continue Reading
Four attorneys were honored for their exceptional contributions in 2018 to the State Bar of Texas’ continuing legal education efforts. TexasBarCLE gave Standing Ovation Awards to Joe R. Anderson, of Burns Anderson Jury & Brenner in Austin; John C. Grace, of the Lubbock City Attorney’s Office; Mark T. Murray, of Stevenson & Murray in Houston; … Continue Reading
The Texas Opportunity & Justice Incubator, or TOJI, is accepting applications for its fifth cohort, which begins in July. TOJI is a State Bar of Texas program that helps attorneys build solo law practices that serve low- and modest-income Texans. Participants receive training, coaching, and resources to move their businesses forward and meet the legal … Continue Reading
The American Bar Association is seeking licensed attorney volunteers to help with two projects to assist asylum-seekers and immigrant children along Texas’ southern border with Mexico. The ABA’s Commission on Immigration is leading week-long volunteer trips each month from April to October to direct-service projects along the Texas-Mexico border. Volunteers will work at the South Texas Pro … Continue Reading
Houston firm Abraham, Watkins, Nichols, Sorrels, Agosto & Aziz is sponsoring its 7th annual Text Free Texas Scholarship Contest this month. The contest is intended to raise awareness about the dangers of distracted driving, especially texting while driving, among teenagers.… Continue Reading
South Texas College of Law Houston named Michael F. Barry, assistant dean and practitioner in residence at St. Mary’s University School of Law, as its new dean and president. He will assume the new roles prior to the 2019-2020 school year and will replace Don Guter, who has served as dean since 2009.… Continue Reading
A litany of rule changes have been made and ethics opinions issued by bar associations across the country in order to catch up with the pace of social media. A South by Southwest panel covered changes regarding competence, unintentionally transmitted communications, and disappearing data.… Continue Reading
The State Bar of Texas’ Membership Department was informed in March 2019 of the deaths of these members. We join the officers and directors of the State Bar in expressing our deepest sympathy.… Continue Reading
Once again, after many months of hard work by attorney-authors and in-house staff, TexasBarBooks has successfully updated the civil series of the Texas Pattern Jury Charges. For 50 years, the Texas Pattern Jury Charges have been valued tools for both the bench and the bar for drafting questions, instructions, and definitions in a broad variety … Continue Reading
Spring is here and the April issue of the Texas Bar Journal is in bloom. If you’re looking for a head start before your copy arrives in the mail, we have you covered. Check out our editorial staff’s top picks for a deep dive on transportation issues, Q&As with State Bar and TYLA president-elect candidates, … Continue Reading
The Dallas Volunteer Attorney Program, an initiative of the Dallas Bar Association and Legal Aid of NorthWest Texas, is hosting 11 free legal clinics for county residents who meet financial guidelines. The clinics, which will be held throughout April, will offer legal advice and consultation in civil matters.… Continue Reading
This SXSW panel began with an exercise. Shutoff your phones, plant your feet flat on the floor, loosen up your shoulders, and keep your hands down at your sides, panelist Emily Doskow, a mediator from the San Francisco Bay Area, told the audience. We were about to meditate. For two minutes, the entire room was … Continue Reading
The Houston Lawyers Association, or HLA, will host its 2019 Scholarship & Awards Gala on May 4 at the Whitehall Houston Hotel in Houston. Honorary chairs for the event are State Bar of Texas President-elect Randy Sorrels and his wife, Alexandra Farias-Sorrels.… Continue Reading
As demand for augmented reality and virtual reality continues to rapidly expand, inevitable legal issues abound. For example, are companies in the clear for using in a VR short Ryan Gosling’s voice, taken from content from the movie First Man? The panelists of “Virtually Legal: Insights on AR, VR, and the Law”—Mary Innis, managing partner … Continue Reading
The Music Modernization Act, signed into law on October 11, 2018, was designed to update U.S. copyright law to make sure artists and publishers were getting proper credit for their music running on streaming services. Publishing experts during the SXSW panel “The MMA Passed: Now What? Navigating the New Licensing Landscape” said the law comes … Continue Reading
The free clinic, which takes place December 8 at the Katy VA Outpatient Clinic, will offer veterans, or spouses of deceased veterans, one-on-one advice and counsel from volunteer attorneys in areas of law including family law, wills and probate, consumer law, and real estate and tax law, as well as disability and veterans benefits.… Continue Reading
Editor’s note: TLAP offers confidential assistance for lawyers, law students, and judges with substance abuse or mental health issues. Call TLAP at 1-800-343-8527 (TLAP) or find more information at tlaphelps.org. On the good days, I just felt like I was going to throw up at the courthouse. On the bad days, I would excuse myself … Continue Reading
The State Bar of Texas seeks to remind the public that in many cases it is a crime in Texas for a lawyer or someone representing a lawyer to contact a person for purposes of legal representation if the person has not first requested the call or personal visit. The contact is not illegal if … Continue Reading
A recent panel at South by Southwest examined some prominent copyright cases from the last year and delved into the changes in effect and coming into effect from the Music Modernization Act, or MMA. The panel started with a focus on the 2019 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court in the 4th Estate Public Benefit … Continue Reading
For filmmakers and creatives living in the Live Music Capital of the World, it may seem attractive to make a documentary about a band or a singer amid the music struggle. But experts on a recent South by Southwest panel warned that while music documentaries are surging in popularity and profitability, they are laden with … Continue Reading
A panel of attorneys discussed the ever-evolving galaxy of space law, including disabusing the notion that space law is “unregulated,” during a panel session at South By Southwest. Franceska Schroeder, a principal in Fish Richardson, provided an overview of the laws governing space and space exploration including the Commercial Space Launch Act, or CSLA; the … Continue Reading
On the flight from Austin, I’m already running into techie-peeps all around. LawPay is a major sponsor this year and two out of the ten are on the flight. Happened to look across the shuttle aisle from airport parking lot to catch one of these folks sporting his very cool LawPay vest. And it’s game … Continue Reading
Myth No. 1 of music licensing: Just because you are not making money on a project, does not mean you can use music for free. Austin lawyer Amy E. Mitchell, of Amy E. Mitchell PLLC, and Roanna Gillespie, a music supervisor at WOW Sounds, educated the South By Southwest audience during a panel titled “Music … Continue Reading
