Today the Texas Supreme Court held that when an employee is employed by two employers (a staff leasing company and client company in this case) and both employers have workers’ compensation insurance, the workers’ compensation exclusivity provisions apply to bar negligence claims asserted by the deceased employee’s parents. You can review a copy of the
Texas Supreme Court Agrees to Hear Age Discrimination Case
Last week the Supreme Court of Texas granted a Petition for Review to hear the case of Mission Independent School District v. Garcia. While the petition for review has three issues (issue four was not challenged by the respondent), only one is relevant to private employers. The school district argues for a bright line rule that
Supreme Court of Texas Hears Oral Argument in Two Employment Cases
Yesterday, the Supreme Court of Texas heard oral argument in two employment cases.
In El Apple I, Ltd. v. Olivas, (No. 10-0490), the Court is considering whether detailed lodestar attorney fee calculation is required with breakdowns for each specific task. Also under consideration is whether appellate fees should be calculated in advance or only
Texas Supreme Court Agrees to Hear Dispute over Employment Agreement to Waive Jury Trial of Disputes
The Supreme Court of Texas has agreed to hear the case of In re Frank Kent Motor Co. d/b/a Frank Kent Cadillac, No. 10-0687. In that case, the Fort Worth Court of Appeals denied the employer’s application for writ of mandamus and refused to overrule the trial court’s decision not to enforce/honor an agreement between the
Texas Supreme Court Holds that Arbitration Agreements Governed by State Law May Include Avenues for Appellate Review
I have written some of the disadvantages of arbitration over other procedural methods of resolving cases such as waivers of jury trial. (See post and post). However, in an opinion from the Supreme Court of Texas, one disadvantage of arbitration (i.e., the limited appellate review of arbitration awards that is available) can be minimized
Supreme Court of Texas to Determine if Punitive Damages Recoverable in Wrongful Termination Claim
Supreme Court of Texas Agrees to Hear Two Employment Cases
The Supreme Court of Texas has agreed to hear argument in two employment cases.
In Prairie View A&M University v. Diljit K. Chatha, (No. 10-353) the Court agreed to consider whether the 180-day statute of limitations for a government employee’s complaint about discriminatory pay begins from the date of the first paycheck reflecting the decision or the
Texas Supreme Court to Consider Validity of Arbitration Agreement in Employee Handbooks
Don Cruse at the Supreme Court of Texas Blog, wrote about the first case of the new term on which the Supreme Court of Texas requested full briefing —Hatton v. D.R. Horton, Inc. that case involves an issue of significant importance to Texas employers. According to Don, this case
concerns the enforceability of arbitration clauses in
Texas Supreme Court Holds State Agencies Immune from FMLA Self-Care Lawsuits
In its first FMLA opinion, the Texas Supreme Court held that agencies of the State of Texas cannot be sued for FMLA violations arising out of an employee’s FMLA leave taken for his own serious health condition. In University of Texas at El Paso v. Herrera, the Supreme Court of Texas held that, unlike the family care provisions of
Texas Supreme Court Serves Up Significant Victory for Texas Employers
The Supreme Court of Texas served up a significant victory for Waffle House in a case holding that a plaintiff alleging both a statutory sexual harassment claim and a negligent supervision and retention claim based on the same conduct is limited to recovering solely on the statutory remedy.
Here are the facts as reported by the