Texas Supreme Court Will Travel to The Hilltop on Oct. 16
Posted: Mon Sep 01, 2008 2:02 amThe Texas Supreme Court finally has scheduled a date, Oct. 16 in Dallas, for reconsidering a personal injury decision that angered even some Republican legislators.
This was the unanimous decision, handed down last year, that gave refineries and other industrial plants a new shield against liability claims from contract workers injured on the job. It dismissed claims brought by an injured contract worker, John Summers, against Entergy Gulf States.
The all-Republican court took the unusual step of agreeing to rehear the case weeks ago, after strong protests to its original decision from lobbyists and legislators, as well as plaintiffs lawyers and labor unions.
The fact that three court members  Chief Justice Wallace Jefferson and Justices Dale Wainwright and Phil Johnson  are up for re-election with Democratic opponents also may have been a factor.
The court will hold the rehearing at Southern Methodist University on one of its occasional road trips outside Austin. Don't hold your breath for a decision before the Nov. 4 election, though.
Four legislators, including Wentworth, chairman of the Senate Jurisprudence Committee, took the rare step of filing a brief, arguing that the court had improperly expanded the Workers Compensation Act.
www.chron.com
This was the unanimous decision, handed down last year, that gave refineries and other industrial plants a new shield against liability claims from contract workers injured on the job. It dismissed claims brought by an injured contract worker, John Summers, against Entergy Gulf States.
The all-Republican court took the unusual step of agreeing to rehear the case weeks ago, after strong protests to its original decision from lobbyists and legislators, as well as plaintiffs lawyers and labor unions.
The fact that three court members  Chief Justice Wallace Jefferson and Justices Dale Wainwright and Phil Johnson  are up for re-election with Democratic opponents also may have been a factor.
The court will hold the rehearing at Southern Methodist University on one of its occasional road trips outside Austin. Don't hold your breath for a decision before the Nov. 4 election, though.
Four legislators, including Wentworth, chairman of the Senate Jurisprudence Committee, took the rare step of filing a brief, arguing that the court had improperly expanded the Workers Compensation Act.
www.chron.com