Inspiring dismay in litigators nationwide, in the now-infamous case of Mata v. Avianca, two New York lawyers submitted “non-existent judicial opinions with fake quotes and citations created by the artificial intelligence tool ChatGPT” to the federal district court and continued to “to stand by the fake opinions after judicial orders called their existence into question.”1 The public release of ChatGPT …
The following is a summary of a selected criminal opinion issued by the Third Court of Appeals from May 2023. The summary is an overview; please review the entire opinion. The subsequent history is current as of Oct. 1, 2023. PUNISHMENT ENHANCEMENTS – OUT-OF-STATE CONVICTIONS: Enhancement of defendant’s sentence using out-of-state conviction was legal. Smith v. State, No. 03-21-00368-CR (Tex. App.—Austin May …
The following are summaries of selected civil opinions issued by the Third Court of Appeals during September 2023. The summaries are overviews; please review the entire opinions. Subsequent histories are current as of Oct. 9, 2023. FAMILY LAW: Court holds fit-parent presumption did not apply in challenged modification proceeding. Johnson v. Kimbrough, No. 03-22-00100-CV (Tex. App.—Austin Sept. 20, 2023, no …
The following are summaries of opinions issued by the Fifth Circuit in September 2023. The summaries are overviews of particular aspects of the opinions; please review the entire opinions. MAGISTRATE JUDGE REFERRALS: Undisclosed relationship between magistrate judge and plaintiff’s lead counsel may vitiate defendant’s consent to trial before the magistrate. IFG Port Holdings, LLC v. Lake Charles Harbor & Terminal …
The Austin Bar/AYLA Law-Related Education Committee invites you to volunteer your time and voice to make a difference with middle-school students! In partnership with Austin-area middle-school districts, the committee is seeking judges and attorneys to present one-hour lessons based on the book series Taming Texas. The lessons teach seventh-grade students how the state’s court system fits into the larger picture …
The Austin Young Lawyers Association held its 24th annual Evening with the Judiciary at the Austin Club on Thursday, Sept. 21, 2023. Each year, this reception provides AYLA members with an opportunity to share an evening of great food and even better conversation with local, state, and federal judges. AYLA members who took advantage of this opportunity were treated to …
BY BONNIE NEEL, CANOPY MORTGAGE LLC Bonnie Neel is a licensed Residential Mortgage Loan Officer in California, Colorado, Georgia, Nevada, New Mexico, and Texas. NMLS# 1613742. I tell all my first-time homebuyers that a mortgage is essentially made up of four categories. If you play video games, it’s helpful to think of these categories as your player stats: How you …
This column summarizes two kinds of legal-writing plagiarism and then presents a recent article that proposes a new view of plagiarism in law practice. Law-School Plagiarism In In re Zbiegien, a student who committed plagiarism in a law-school seminar paper was confronted, admitted the plagiarism, and accepted the law school’s penalty: a grade of F. Although he disclosed the plagiarism …
Congratulations to Ali Andrews, who has joined as senior counsel in Jackson Walker’s Austin tax practice. Andrews was previously chief of the Tax Litigation Division of the Office of the Texas Attorney General. Andrews’ practice focuses on state and local tax disputes, state tax audits, unemployment taxes, equal taxation, multi-state tax planning, as well as litigation regarding tax liabilities, unemployment …
After this year’s impeachment trial, you may find yourself sitting around the Thanksgiving table being peppered with questions from your family about the Texas Rules of Evidence. While you can’t be expected to explain all the nuances of hearsay over pumpkin pie, here are a few quick refreshers that you can use for Great-Aunt Clara’s questions and your own trial …