The following are summaries of selected civil opinions issued by the Fifth Circuit in March 2025. The summaries are overviews of particular aspects of the opinions; please review the entire opinions. 

The following are summaries of selected civil opinions issued by the Fifth Circuit in February 2025. The summaries are overviews of particular aspects of the opinions; please review the entire opinions.  Editor’s Note: This is Jason LaFond’s final Federal Civil Update for Austin Lawyer. We sincerely appreciate his insight and tireless work in keeping our members updated on federal issues.

The following are summaries of selected civil opinions issued by the Fifth Circuit in January 2025. The summaries are overviews of particular aspects of the opinions; please review the entire opinions. APPELLATE PROCEDURE: 28 U.S.C. § 1292(b) did not permit interlocutory review of pretrial ruling on proper measure of damages. Silverthorne Seismic v. Sterling Seismic Services, 125 F.4th 593 (5th Cir.

The following are summaries of selected civil opinions issued by the Fifth Circuit in November and December 2024. The summaries are overviews of particular aspects of the opinions; please review the entire opinions. COMMERCIAL SPEECH: How to apply the Central Hudson test when an activity is legal under state law but prohibited under supreme federal law. Cocroft v. Graham, 2024

The following are summaries of selected civil opinions issued by the Fifth Circuit in October 2024. The summaries are overviews of particular aspects of the opinions; please review the entire opinions. TAX: Ordering taxable articles to be shipped to the United States for resale makes one an “importer” under the Internal Revenue Code. Tex. Truck Parts & Tire, Inc. v.

The following are summaries of selected civil opinions issued by the Fifth Circuit in September 2024. The summaries are overviews of particular aspects of the opinions; please review the entire opinions. ADMINISTRATIVE LAW: Department of Labor’s minimum salary requirement did not exceed its delegated power to interpret the Fair Labor Standards Act’s “White Collar Exemption.” Mayfield v. United States Department

The following are summaries of selected civil opinions issued by the Fifth Circuit in August 2024. The summaries are overviews of particular aspects of the opinions; please review the entire opinions. ADMINISTRATIVE LAW: Federal agency lacked statutory authority to promulgate decisional rules for insurance rate arbitrators. Tex. Med. Ass’n v. U.S. Dep’t of Health & Hum. Servs., 110 F.4th 762

The following are summaries of selected civil opinions issued by the Fifth Circuit in June 2024. The summaries are overviews of particular aspects of the opinions; please review the entire opinions. CONTRACTS: Force majeure provision in natural gas supply contract did not require showing that performance is impossible. MIECO, LLC v. Pioneer Nat. Res. USA, 2024 WL 3418718 (5th Cir.

The following are summaries of selected civil opinions issued by the Fifth Circuit in May 2024. The summaries are overviews of particular aspects of the opinions; please review the entire opinions. JURISDICTION: Upon removal on the basis of improper joinder, plaintiff may clarify allegations to satisfy federal pleading standards; erroneous finding of improper joinder was not cured prior to judgment,

The following are summaries of selected civil opinions issued by the Fifth Circuit in April 2024. The summaries are overviews of particular aspects of the opinions; please review the entire opinions. PROPERTY DAMAGE: Reasonable juror could conclude that impounded groundwater that escaped and flowed over river onto plaintiff’s property remained “surface water” under Texas statute, and that defendant’s negligence proximately