Latest News
Congratulations to our 2021 Texas “Super Lawyers”!
DP&S is proud to announce that Kirk Pittard, Leighton Durham, Rick Thompson, and Thad Spalding have all been named “Super Lawyers” in the Appellate category by by Super Lawyers Magazine, a Thomson Reuters publication, for 2021.
Kirk Pittard speaks about being the appellate counsel on the trial team!
Last week, Kirk Pittard appeared on D. Todd Smith and Jody Sanders‘s Texas Appellate Law podcast to discuss serving as the appellate counsel on the trial team, and was invited to speak on this topic by the Dallas Bar Association’s Appellate Law Section. You can listen to Kirk’s podcast here.
Roz Bienvenu wins jurisdictional challenge in the San Antonio Court of Appeals!
Congratulations to DP&S partner, Roz Bienvenu, who worked with trial counsel William Angelley, Craig Schllapprizzi, and Tom Crosley, to successfully defend a Bexar County trial court’s order denying a special appearance by an aircraft manufacturer, Cirrus Design Corp., in a wrongful death products liability case. The plaintiff’s husband, an Air Force major stationed in Texas, was killed when the Cirrus aircraft he was piloting crashed in Bexar County. Cirrus argued that it should not be subject to suit in Texas because the plaintiff’s claims did not arise from or relate to any purposeful activity it conducted in Texas.
Kirk Pittard and Rick Thompson are Best Lawyers for 2022!
DP&S is proud to announce that Kirk Pittard and Rick Thompson are, once again, selected to be among the Best Lawyers in America, in the Appellate Practice category.
DP&S promotes Roz Bienvenu to partner!
DP&S is proud to announce that it has elevated Roz Bienvenu to the position of partner! Roz, now a partner in DP&S’s Santa Fe office, has worked with Justin Kaufman since 2015 and has been an instrumental part of not just the Santa Fe office, but the firm’s entire practice since 2018. We are so appreciative of all of Roz’s hard work and dedication to our clients, and we look forward to her continued success in her new role.
DP&S welcomes its newest attorney, Shelby White!
DP&S is pleased to announce that, beginning January 3, 2022, Shelby White joined the firm’s Dallas office. Shelby brings a wealth of appellate experience to the firm, having spent three years with the Tarrant County District Attorney’s Appellate Section where she served as lead attorney in over 50 appeals. Before that, Shelby was with the appellate and litigation section of Harris, Finley & Bogle, PC in Fort Worth where she worked on commercial cases at the state and federal level in Texas, Oklahoma, and Pennsylvania, and briefed appeals to the Texas Supreme Court, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, and numerous intermediate appellate courts. Shelby is a graduate of Baylor undergraduate and law schools, a past board member of the Tarrant County Young Lawyers Association, a past president of the Tarrant County Bar Association’s Appellate Section, where she still serves on the section committee, and a top attorney according to Fort Worth Magazine since 2015. Shelby will be an excellent addition to our team.
DP&S attorneys involved in case that recently settled for $19 Million
Congratulations to DP&S lawyers Kirk Pittard and Tammy Holt who were part of a trial team lead by Steve Laird, Robert Collins, Seth McCloskey, and Bracken Millar, that recently settled a double-fatality trucking case for $19 Million (for non-economic damages only) the day before the case was set to go to trial in Tarrant County.
Kirk Pittard named “Best Lawyer” by D Magazine for 2021!
Congratulations to Kirk Pittard who was named “Best Lawyer” in the Appellate category by D Magazine for 2021. This is Kirk’s 11th year to be named to the list.
Thad Spalding wins in the El Paso Court of Appeals!
Congratulations to Thad Spalding and trial counsel Jon Hanna, Robert White, and Greta Braker, who successfully convinced the El Paso Court of Appeals that summary judgment based on the Workers’ Compensation Act’s exclusive remedy provision was not proper because of fact issues as to whether killed and injured passengers’ travel from a drilling site to a bunkhouse originated in or related to Amerimex’s business. Amerimex, who previously argued that its driver who caused the crash was not in the course and scope of his employment with them, claimed that the passengers—also Amerimex employees—were in the course and scope of their employment with the company. The El Paso Court of Appeals determined that even if the driver may have been in the course and scope of his employment, that did not mean the passengers were too, given that the passengers were not paid for their travel time to the bunkhouse, were not even required to stay in the bunkhouse, and were not on the clock after they left the drill site.
Congratulations to our 2021 New Mexico “Super Lawyers”!
DP&S is proud to announce that every lawyer in our Santa Fe office has been named Southwest (Arizona and New Mexico) “Super Lawyers” for 2021, an honor based on professional achievement and peer recognition.
Dana Levy wins in the El Paso Court of Appeals!
Congratulations to Dana Levy who convinced the El Paso Court of Appeals to reverse a summary judgment granted in favor of an oil well services company and against our injured client. The court found fact issues as to the company’s liability for a collision caused by one of its workers, who was returning to remote well site after purchasing necessary supplies. Specifically, the court found that the existence of an employment relationship and whether the worker was acting in the course and scope of his employment were questions that needed to be answered by a jury.
Tammy Holt wins medical expense discovery fight in the 13th Court of Appeals!
Congratulations to Tammy Holt who successfully defeated a Mandamus Petition filed by a Defendant claiming that In re North Cypress entitled him to broad medical expense discovery and claiming that the doctor’s objections should be overruled because (1) he sought the amounts actually reflected as payment in full on the doctors’ books (as opposed to seeking insurance reimbursement rates), and (2) the parties subpoenaed were experts because they were testifying regarding future medical expenses. In denying the petition, the court held that In Re North Cypress was “readily distinguishable” did not allow discovery “of the fees charged and accepted from other patients for the same medical services that were provided or recommended to the plaintiff.”
Welcome to the firm, Lauren Harbour!
We are proud to announce that, on June 1, 2021, Lauren Harbour joined DP&S’s Houston office. Lauren brings significant appellate and litigation experience, having first clerked for the Texas Supreme Court before focusing on complex commercial and insurance litigation, and appeals. Lauren was named a Texas Monthly “Rising Star” from 2017-2019.
Back-to-Back Arguments in the Texas Supreme Court!
DP&S was in the Texas Supreme Court twice this week! Thad Spalding, along with co-counsel, Tex Quesada, argued Tuesday on behalf of an injured worker in a case dealing with a general contractor’s right of control over a worksite. The next day, Kirk Pittard argued a case addressing medical record affidavits and the standards applicable to counter-affidavits under a Texas statute.
Caren Friedman wins family law appeal in the New Mexico Court of Appeals!
Congratulations to DP&S’s Santa Fe partner, Caren Friedman, on her victory in the New Mexico Court of Appeals in a domestic relations appeal arising under the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act. The appeal raised six issues, and the Court unanimously affirmed the judgment, including an attorney fee award.
Caren Friedman returns to the New Mexico Supreme Court!
Congratulations to DP&S’s Santa Fe partner, Caren Friedman, who presented argument on behalf of the Appellant in the New Mexico Supreme Court on January 15, 2021. The case is a direct appeal to the Supreme Court under the New Mexico Constitution because the Appellant was sentenced to life imprisonment. Caren argued for the reversal of a first-degree murder conviction on constitutional and evidentiary grounds.
Caren Friedman wins in the New Mexico Supreme Court!
Congratulations to DP&S partner, Caren Friedman, who prevailed before the New Mexico Supreme Court! Caren represented individuals whose appeal was dismissed by the New Mexico Court of Appeals as untimely. Caren successfully convinced the New Mexico Supreme Court to reinstate Plaintiffs’ appeal. The Supreme Court held that the Court of Appeals improperly gave “greater weight to procedural formalities than to basic rights of appeal” and should have deferred to the district court’s decision to grant an extension of the Plaintiffs’ notice of appeal deadline based on excusable neglect.
Tammy Holt wins rehearing motion in the Dallas Court of Appeals!
Congratulations to Tammy Holt, who–on a motion for rehearing–convinced a panel of the Dallas Court of Appeals to reverse itself and award Plaintiffs the total damages ($1,070,050) awarded by jury, rather than a drastically reduced amount ($200,000) based on the amount originally pled. Rejecting its original position that the Plaintiffs’ attempt to amend its petition to be consistent with the jury’s verdict was an impermissible attempt to amend the pleadings “post-judgment,” the court of appeals adopted “the more reasonable view” that, because Plaintiffs sought leave to amend their petition before the Amended Final Judgment was signed, the amended pleading was timely.
Caren Friedman wins in the New Mexico Court of Appeals!
Congratulations to DP&S’s New Mexico partner, Caren Friedman, on her victory in the New Mexico Court of Appeals in a domestic relations appeal. The Court of Appeals unanimously affirmed the district court’s method of calculating the community’s interest in Husband’s retirement benefits and valuing Wife’s share. The Court of Appeals also affirmed the district court’s refusal to allow Wife’s late-disclosed expert to testify, where Wife offered her expert report months after the evidentiary hearing.
Congratulations to our 2020 Texas and New Mexico “Super Lawyers”!
DP&S is pleased to announce that partners Kirk Pittard, Leighton Durham, Thad Spalding, Caren Friedman and Rick Thompson have been named “Super Lawyers” in the Appellate category by Super Lawyers Magazine.