Business Law Section of State Bar of Texas

Initial Judges Appointed to Five Divisions of the Texas Business Court

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Texas Business Courts by Byron F. Egan* Texas in 2023 created a new system of specialty trial courts (“Business Courts”) to hear significant business-related disputes and a special intermediate court of appeals  to hear appeals from Business Courts. Legislation to create such courts was passed by the 88th Texas Legislative Session which ended on May 29, 2023 and was signed on June 9, 2023 by Governor Greg Abbott. The Business Courts were created by House Bill 19 (“HB 19”) as a new chapter 25A (“§ 25A.001 et seq” or “Chapter 25A”) to the Texas Government Code (the “Government Code” or “Gov. Code”) with judges to be appointed by the Governor with the consent of the Senate. A separate bill (“SB 1045”) amended § 22.201 of the Government Code to create a Fifteenth Court of Appeals (“15th Court of Appeals”) to hear appeals from Business Courts.  Both HB 19 and SB 1045 became effective September 1, 2023, but will be operational only for actions commenced on or after September 1, 2024 to allow time for the appointment and confirmation of their judges and adopt procedural rules for the operation of the courts. The Business Courts will initially be in the major metropolitan areas (see map) with the expectation that the Texas Legislature will ultimately create Business Courts for the rest of Texas.  The creation of the Texas Business Courts has followed a long and winding road which commenced in 2015, has from the beginning been strongly supported by the Texas Business Law Foundation (“TBLF”), but prior efforts stalled in previous legislative sessions due largely to opposition from trial lawyer-focused organizations. HB 19, which ultimately garnered bipartisan support, addresses the growing need for specialized Texas state courts to handle complex business litigation. The Business Courts are designed to handle a wide range of commercial disputes, including contract disputes, fiduciary duty claims, and other corporate governance issues. By creating a dedicated venue for resolving commercial disputes, the Legislature sought to expedite proceedings, install judges with specialized expertise, deliver more predictable outcomes for business disputes, and ultimately attract more businesses to Texas.  Any challenges to the constitutionality of the Business Courts will be decided by the Texas Supreme Court, which has been given exclusive and original jurisdiction over any such disputes. Byron F. Egan is a partner of Jackson Walker L.L.P. in Dallas, Texas.  Mr. Egan is Senior Vice Chair and Chair of the Executive Council of the ABA Business Law Section’s Mergers & Acquisitions Committee and former Chair of its Asset Acquisition Agreement Task Force, and a member of the American Law Institute.  * Copyright © 2024 by Byron F. Egan.  All rights reserved.

Governor Abbott this week announced appointments of the initial judges of the Texas Business Court,  created by the 2023 Texas Legislature’s enactment of H.B. 19. Read the full article here: https://lnkd.in/ekinndms

Governor Abbott this week announced appointments of the initial judges of the Texas Business Court, created by the 2023 Texas Legislature’s enactment of H.B. 19.

Please click on the link to read the article "Texas Business Courts" by Byron F. Egan. https://lnkd.in/eyzk8BQR Byron Egan

This article is an excerpt of a paper is being presented at the TexasBarCLE’s 26th Annual Summer School in Galveston on July 11, 2024 and is in the process of being updated by the author.

https://lnkd.in/eBZyDqNk Law360, Washington (December 1, 2023, 10:07 AM EST) -- Retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, the court's first female member, died Friday at 93, according to the court. Justice O'Connor's position at the ideological center of the court gave her outsized influence in controversial cases during her 25-year tenure. O'Connor joined the Supreme Court in 1981 as the nation's first female justice. (AP Photo, File) Justice O'Connor, originally of El Paso, Texas, died from complications related to advanced dementia and a respiratory illness, the high court said in a press release. She is survived by her three sons, Scott, Brian and Jay; six grandchildren and her brother, Alan Day Sr. Her husband, John O'Connor, died in 2009. 

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https://lnkd.in/eBZyDqNk Earlier this month, Bloomberg News reported that JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon said in an interview that Texas risks hurting its business-friendly reputation with laws that seek to punish Wall Street banks for policies limiting work with the gun and fossil fuel industries. Earlier this year, West Virginia and Texas joined other states in boycotting several financial firms. "We don't discriminate or boycott anybody, neither for political affiliation nor for anything else," Dimon told Bloomberg. #BusinessLawSection #BusinessLaw #TexasBusiness #TexasAttorneys #TexasLawyers