Texas Appellate Law Blog : Texas Appellate Lawyer & Attorney : D. Todd Smith Law Firm : Appeals, Sanctions, Summary Judgment : Austin, Texas

The lineup is set for the free CLE seminar the State Bar of Texas Appellate Section is sponsoring on the role of appellate counsel in civil litigation.  An e-brochure with details is available here.

This seminar is specifically geared to in-house lawyers and will cover some very timely topics (for example, appellate attorney's fee structures).   We have lined up an outstanding group of panelists, including several sitting judges.

Please consider distributing the e-brochure to your in-house contacts and encouraging them to come.  Better yet, if you're an appellate lawyer, plan on attending yourself and bringing a client or two with you.  The more educated in-house counsel are about what we do and how we can add value, the better for all our practices.

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The State Bar of Texas Appellate Law Section is sponsoring a CLE seminar to be held in Austin geared toward in-house lawyers and the role of appellate counsel.  The event is scheduled for the afternoon of June 24, 2010 at the AT&T Executive Education and Conference Center and will be followed by a cocktail reception.  Admission will be free to all in-house counsel and a limited number of outside lawyers.

Panels composed of appellate lawyers, in-house attorneys, and judges will address the following topics:

• Introducing clients to the appellate process
• Do I really need appellate counsel, and how do I select the right one?
• Role of appellate counsel in case management and trial
• Technology issues and their impact on appellate practice and briefing
• Fee arrangements for appellate counsel
• Open forum on trial and appellate issues

The program will run from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. and should be worth three hours of CLE credit.  Invitees will receive additional details and speaker/panelist information when finalized.

As co-chair of this event (along with Kimberly Phillips from Shell Oil Company), I invite you to contact me if you, a client, or a colleague would like to be included on the invitation list.  Limited co-sponsorship opportunities are available.

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The Summer issue of The Appellate Advocate has been posted to the State Bar Appellate Section's website.  Section members will receive hard copies in the mail within the next few weeks.

This issue is dedicated to the memory of Rusty McMains, a cornerstone of the Section, who died in late June.  In Rusty's honor, we have published a version of the eulogy Bill Chriss presented at his funeral, along with an interview Rusty gave as part of the Section History Project.  Both are compelling reads.

In addition to the usual case summaries, the publication also contains an article by Lee Parsley on recent legislation aimed at the Texas Supreme Court and a sneak preview of Kent Rutter and JoAnn Storey's presentation on the Section's survey of sitting appellate justices at the upcoming Advanced Appellate Seminar.

I have been honored to serve as editor of The Appellate Advocate for the past three years.  Under the Section bylaws, however, the time has come to pass the torch to someone else.

As announced in the Summer issue, the Section Council has chosen Dylan Drummond and Brandy Wingate to succeed me as co-editors.  Both Dylan and Brandy have contributed to the publication substantially as associate editors and as authors.  Please join me in congratulating them.

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The Spring issue of The Appellate Advocate has been posted to the Appellate Section's website.  In addition to the usual features, this issue contains announcements seeking applications for the position of editor (due June 30) and entries for the Section's annual songwriting contest (due August 15).  See the publication for details.

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Because of a communication error between the State Bar and printer, a significant number of Appellate Section members did not receive hard copies of the Winter Appellate Advocate (vol. 21, no. 2) in the mail.

The issue is available electronically here.  Section members wishing to obtain a print version may send a request to the printer's representative, Tina Adams, at tina@theovernightpress.com.

As editor of the publication, and on behalf of the Appellate Section, I apologize for the inconvenience.

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Following up on this post, I am pleased to announce that Hein Online has finished archiving past volumes of The Appellate Advocate.  The 1987 inaugural issue through volume 20, number 4 are now available by following the "Appellate Advocate" button and the "Archives" link on the State Bar Appellate Section's website.

The newly posted current issue is available on the Section's website as well.  In addition to the regular case summaries, it features Texas Solicitor General Jim Ho's essay in honor of his office's tenth anniversary and Justice Terrie Livingston's interview of now-retired Justice Dixon Holman.  As a special treat, we have also included some of David Mills's excellent Courtoons.

I have had the privilege of serving as the publication's editor for nearly three years, and my time in that role is drawing to a close.  Watch for an announcement in the Spring issue seeking applications for my replacement.

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The Fall 2008 issue of The Appellate Advocate is now available through the State Bar Appellate Section's newly revamped website.  As usual, the publication is packed with interesting articles and useful case updates.

As a service to its members and the public, the Section has elected to post the electronic version before the print edition is mailed.  The Section has also undertaken an archiving project that will make all previous issues available to members online.  When that service rolls out, I'll be sure to announce it here.

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