Articles

When Alan Petrie was assaulted and robbed in a Houston apartment complex visitors’ parking lot at 2:00 a.m., he sued the apartment management companies for their failure to protect him. The trial court rejected his lawsuit on the grounds that the management companies owed no duty to protect him from the criminal acts of third … ...

Kesner v. Superior Court and Haver v. Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad are consolidated cases resulting in a single decision by the California Supreme Court holding that California tort law recognizes “take-home” liability in asbestos cases. “Take-home” cases arise when an employee worked with asbestos on the job 30-50 ...

Today, the Texas Supreme Court held oral argument in UDR Texas Properties, L.P. v. Petrie. Unfortunately, Justice Willett did not ask any questions. Nevertheless, at issue in the case is whether a Houston apartment complex can be held liable for failing to protect a man who was robbed and shot in the knee after parking in … ...

Alan Petrie got off work as a waiter at a Houston nightclub in the wee hours of the morning, and then went to a co-worker’s birthday party at an apartment complex near the club. Houston is well known for its lack of zoning, and residential and commercial establishments are intermingled. Unfortunately, Mr. Petrie never made … ...

We’re from the Government and we’re doing you a favor That is essentially the government’s theme in its opening brief in Hawkes v. United States, our wetlands jurisdiction case at the Supreme Court. Our case is all about whether a property owner has a right to appeal a “wetlands jurisdictional determination” by the Co ...

The physical invasion of the raisin snatchers — a property rights victory at the Supreme Court  In a week marked by several major Supreme Court decisions that were quite disappointing to advocates of limited government and the rule of law, there was one very bright spot: this decision in Horne v. United States Department of Agriculture. T ...

At a youth hockey game in Rome, New York, families of the 13-year-old players rooted for their teams with increasing intensity. Some spectators turned belligerent, and after the game ended, one player’s mother confronted another player’s mother. The provocation blew up into a full-scale melee involving multiple family members and specta ...

Competitor’s veto law — One down, one on its way down The notion that existing players in a transportation business (taxis, movers and limo companies) should be able to veto new entrants into a market in order to reduce competition is absurd and opposite the economic liberty that is a hallmark of America.  Thus we have … ...

Businesses make permanent premise improvements all the time. These improvements, called “fixtures,” include manufacturing equipment, storage tanks, and the like. These fixtures improve business efficiency and workplace safety. But, because fixtures are permanent, a business cannot remove them (after it sells the property) without seve ...