Dallas Austin

What does allegedly attempting to murder your boss (who happens to also be an attorney) and free speech have in common?  Apparently, not much according to the Austin Court of Appeals in Szymonek v. Guzman. At the time of the alleged attempted murder in 2019, Arturo Guzman, an attorney and solo practitioner, had employed Ashley Szymonek as his paralegal and “right-hand person” for about 10 years.  In that capacity, Szymonek acted as Guzman’s primary contact with the law firm’s bank, accountant, and insurance agent, using her personal email account for much of the firm’s electronic c

It has been a long two years since the pandemic began, but with COVID-19 transmission rates and hospitalizations dropping, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has begun to relax some of its guidance and protocol for COVID. What does that mean for the employer? And what’s next? While the intent of the guidelines is to encourage individuals and employers to return to more “normal” office environments, the CDC is still recommending vigilance, though at a much reduced level, as follows. 1.   Revised Isolation guidelines for Employees/Individuals who Test Positive for COVID

Last week, President Biden issued Executive Order 14063 (“EO 14063”), requiring Project Labor Agreements (“PLA”) for domestic federal construction projects with estimated construction costs of $35 million or more.  What are PLAs? How does this from President Obama’s prior executive order? And, are there exceptions to this requirement? A PLA is a form of collective bargaining that imposes wage and benefit requirements on construction firms competing for public contracts. The specific wages, benefits, and terms and conditions are imposed by local unions’ private collective bargainin

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted empanelment of jurors and the presentation of evidence at trials. Courts in many jurisdictions across Texas and the United States have attempted to implement virtual trials, with Zoom being the most commonly used platform. But, what happens when technology interferes with effective questioning and selection of a jury or the presentation of evidence at trial?  What can a party do? One case which demonstrates the problem with Zoom trials is the case of Kinder Morgan Production Co. v. Scurry County Appraisal District.  Kinder Morgan was a taxation case i

Since the ill-fated Fyre Festival, the federal as well as state governments have grappled with what liability, if any, to assign to internet influencers.  The Texas Attorney General has recently decided to better define that liability by filing suit against the now-disgraced influencer Brittany Dawn Davis for misrepresenting fitness and nutrition plans she promoted and sold to Texans. In its lawsuit against Davis, Texas claims that Davis’s fitness plans violated the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act (DTPA), a broad consumer protection statute, and misled individuals with eating disorders.

On January 13, 2022, the United States Supreme Court stayed the vaccine mandate requiring all employers with 100 or more employees to ensure that their employees are vaccinated against COVID-19.  The highly anticipated ruling came after the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals stayed enforcement of the mandate and the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals then lifted the stay, requiring so-called “large” employers to comply with the mandate or face significant penalties.  The Supreme Court’s opinion continued the stay, eviscerating the mandate. The Supreme Court found that  the Department of Labor

The Biden Administration has taken several steps in the past two weeks to increase availability of COVID-19 tests and masks.  Aside from the much publicized free COVID test kits available from the government and N95 masks now being made available from local pharmacies and centers, private insurers are also required to pay or reimburse insureds for the cost of at-home tests. A day earlier than announced, on January 18, 2022, the Biden administration launched COVIDtests.gov – providing Americans free access to at-home COVID tests. With ordering 1 billion tests for distribution, the roll-out i