TEXAS SUPREME COURT IN EAST TEXAS
PRESS RELEASES
News Release: LeTourneau University, P.O. Box 7001, Longview, Texas 75607
Contact Janet Ragland 903.233.3282 office/903.241.5109 cell [email protected] January 24, 2017 LETU TO HOST ‘LAW AS CAREER’ DAY FEB. 16 (Longview, Texas) – LeTourneau University is hosting a free “Law as a Career” Day on Thursday, Feb. 16, to coincide with the visit by the Texas Supreme Court which will hear oral arguments in the Belcher Center from 9 to 11:30 that day. “Law as a Career” Day is sponsored by Nix Patterson and Roach Law Firm and is intended to encourage high school and college students to learn about and consider future careers in the legal profession. The event is a unique opportunity for students to see the court live without traveling to Austin. The entire day is free, including a sponsored lunch. Law as a Career Day is open to any high school or college student interested in learning about legal careers. The first case the court will hear that day is an inheritance rights case out of the Court of Appeals for the Seventh District of Texas at Amarillo, Texas: Virginia O. Kinsel v. Jane O. Lindsey and Keith Branyon and Jackson Walker LLP from Tarrant County and the Amarillo Court of Appeals. The second case is about medical malpractice and government immunity out of Houston’s First Court of Appeals: Leah Anne Gonski Marino, M.D. v. Shirley Lenoir from Haskell County and Houston’s First Court of Appeals. The cases will be followed by a question and answer session before a lunch break and breakout sessions led by court justices. Justice Don Willett will lead one for college students, and Justice John Devine will lead the other for high school students. High school students who attend also will be offered tours of the university and visits with faculty. LETU anticipates that local area high schools will send more than 500 high school students to hear the Texas Supreme Court oral arguments and attend the Law as a Career Day career fair. More schools are registering every week. School districts already confirmed as participating include: Overton ISD, Pine Tree ISD, Spring Hill ISD, Sabine ISD, Union Grove ISD, Union Hill ISD, Whitehouse ISD, Willowbend High School, East Texas Christian School, Grace Community School, Longview Christian School, Trinity Christian School, Trinity School of Texas, and Tyler Street Christian Academy. Other schools interested may contact Dr. John Barrett at [email protected] for details. Local colleges who are sending students to participate include Kilgore College, Panola College and University of Texas at Tyler. Other colleges interested in sending students can contact Dr. Larry Frazier at [email protected] for details. Institutions sending recruiting teams include UT School of Law, St. Mary’s School of Law, South Texas College of Law, UT Dallas School of Law, Arlington Career Institute, Baylor School of Law, Brightwood College (formerly known as Kaplan College). LeTourneau University is the Christian polytechnic university in the nation where educators engage students to nurture Christian virtue, develop competency and ingenuity in their professional fields, integrate faith and work, and serve the local and global community. LETU offers undergraduate and graduate degree programs across a range of disciplines and delivery models at LETU’s residential campus in Longview, Texas, and in hybrid and fully online options at centers in Dallas and Houston. ### 
GREGG COUNTY BAR ASSOCIATION
Contact: Mrs. Jessica LaRue, Email: [email protected] Jan. 18, 2017 LUNCHEON HONORING TEXAS SUPREME COURT SET FOR LETOURNEAU UNIVERSITY Luncheon Tickets Now Available To Members Of The Bar And General Public (Longview, Texas) – A luncheon honoring the Texas Supreme Court will be held at LeTourneau University’s Allen Family Student Center at 11:45 a.m., Thursday, Feb. 16, featuring remarks by Chief Justice Nathan Hecht, whose topic will be "The Texas Supreme Court—Past and Present." Tickets for the luncheon are $30 each and are available to the public on a first come/first served basis. Seating is limited. Tickets can only be purchased by mail, with checks made payable to LeTourneau University with the notation of “Supreme Court” on the check. Checks should be mailed to Texas Supreme Court in East Texas, 1725 FM 2751, Longview, Texas, 75605. The luncheon will follow the court’s hearing of two cases in the university’s Belcher Center as part of Texas Supreme Court Day on campus. The public is invited to attend the oral arguments from 9 to 11:30 a.m. free of charge. Those attending the oral arguments and/or the luncheon are advised to arrive early to secure parking and clear security screening. The Texas Supreme Court visit to LeTourneau University is expected to be an exciting opportunity to educate students and the public about Texas government and give them the opportunity to witness live oral arguments before the Court. A schedule of events, information about the two cases to be argued, the "Law as a Career Day" for students, and descriptions of the afternoon breakout sessions for the public, students, attorneys and judges are available on the Gregg County Bar Association website www.greggcountybar.com. For more information about this event, contact Gregg County Bar Association President Jessica LaRue at [email protected]. ### 
News Release: LeTourneau University, P.O. Box 7001, Longview, Texas 75607
Contact Janet Ragland 903.233.3282 office/903.241.5109 cell [email protected] January 10, 2017 TWO CASES SET FOR TEXAS SUPREME COURT VISIT FEB. 16 AT LETU (Longview, Texas)—The two cases that the Texas Supreme Court will hear in oral arguments on Thursday, Feb. 16, at LeTourneau University have been announced. The first case is an inheritance rights case out of the Court of Appeals for the Seventh District of Texas at Amarillo, Texas: Virginia O. Kinsel v. Jane O. Lindsey and Keith Branyon and Jackson Walker LLP from Tarrant County and the Amarillo Court of Appeals. The issues in this case are (1) whether Texas law recognizes tortious interference with inheritance rights; (2) whether sufficient evidence supports the jury’s fraud verdict and its damages award; (3) whether damages may be awarded based on the jury’s undue-influence finding; and (4) whether sufficient evidence supports the jury’s finding that a woman lacked mental capacity to amend her trust. “The Kinsel case is important because the Texas Supreme Court's decision will likely determine whether Texas legally recognizes a cause of action for tortious interference with inheritance rights, a claim that enables people to protect their beneficial interests in estates and trusts,” Scott Stevens, a local lawyer with the law firm of Stevens | Henry, PLLC in Longview. “This cause of action is currently recognized by a majority of the states in this country.” The second case is about medical malpractice and government immunity out of Houston’s First Court of Appeals: Leah Anne Gonski Marino, M.D. v. Shirley Lenoir from Haskell County and Houston’s First Court of Appeals. The principal issues in this case stem from this challenge to a medical resident’s dismissal from a malpractice claim are (1) whether the trial court’s dismissal order was interlocutory (issued before judgment) and (2) whether the resident is protected by governmental immunity if she is hired and paid by a separate foundation but supervised by employees of a medical school clinic. Appeals from interlocutory orders generally are not allowed except by limited statutory exceptions to avoid a case being appealed piecemeal. “The Marino case is important because the Texas Supreme Court's decision could impact circumstances under which governmental employees, including medical residents assigned to work at different clinics, are entitled to governmental employee immunity for acts caused by their own negligence, which could further have an impact on graduate medical education and patient care in Texas,” Stevens said. Jessica LaRue, president of the Gregg County Bar Association, said, the local bar association is looking forward to this historic visit from the Texas Supreme Court. “The issues being decided in these cases are significant and will be of great interest not only to the legal community but also the public at large,” she said. LeTourneau University is hosting the Supreme Court of Texas for oral arguments in these two cases from 9 to 11:30 a.m. in the Belcher Center at LETU’s main campus, 2100 S. Mobberly Ave. in Longview. The public is invited to attend the oral arguments, which will include a question-and-answer session, and see how the highest court in the state for civil appeals operates. People planning to attend are asked to arrive at least 45 minutes early to pass security screening before arguments begin and should not bring backpacks and purses. All cell phones will be required to be turned off. No flash photography will be permitted. Justices will also hold breakout sessions from 1:30 to 3 p.m., on campus for students and at the Gregg County Courthouse for attorneys and other legal professionals. Justice Jeffrey S. Boyd, an ordained minister, also will conduct a public afternoon session on “God, the Courts and the Law” in the Belcher Center. Concurrently, LETU is also hosting “Law as a Career Day” on campus to enable high school and college-age students to learn more about legal careers. Law schools, paralegal schools and court-reporter schools will have recruiting booths to provide information and answer questions about their programs. Justice Don Willett will lead a session for college students, and Justice John Devine will lead a session for high school students. High school students who attend also will be offered tours of the university and visits with faculty. Students who register will be provided a free lunch. Lawyers will be eligible for 2.5 hours of continuing legal-education credit for attending the oral arguments and the question-and-answer session with the Court. Each of seven afternoon breakout sessions at the Gregg County Courthouse will offer 1.5 hours of CLE credit. A schedule of events and descriptions of breakout sessions is available on the Gregg County Bar Association web page, www.greggcountybar.com. LeTourneau University is the Christian polytechnic university in the nation where educators engage students to nurture Christian virtue, develop competency and ingenuity in their professional fields, integrate faith and work, and serve the local and global community. LETU offers undergraduate and graduate degree programs across a range of disciplines and delivery models at LETU’s residential campus in Longview, Texas, and in hybrid and fully online options at centers in Dallas and Houston. ### 17002-nr-1/10/17 LeTourneau University news releases can be found online @LETUNews and at www.letu.edu. 
News Release: LeTourneau University, P.O. Box 7001, Longview, Texas 75607
Contact Janet Ragland 903.233.3282 office/903.241.5109 cell [email protected] December 19, 2016 LETU TO HOST TEXAS SUPREME COURT IN SESSION FEB. 16-17, 2017 (Longview, Texas)—LeTourneau University will host the Supreme Court of Texas for oral arguments in two cases Thursday, Feb. 16, in the Belcher Center at LETU’s main campus, 2100 S. Mobberly Ave. in Longview. The public is invited to attend the oral arguments, scheduled from 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., including a question-and-answer session. People planning to attend should arrive at least 45 minutes early to pass security screening before arguments begin and should not bring backpacks and purses. All cell phones will be required to be turned off . No flash photography is permitted. The two cases the Court will hear will be set in the next few weeks. The Texas Supreme Court’s visit to LeTourneau University, one of occasional court sessions outside Austin, is planned to educate students and the public about Texas government and how the Court – the highest court in the state for civil appeals – operates. Justices will hold breakout sessions from 1:30 p.m. to 3 p.m., on campus for students and at the Gregg County Courthouse for attorneys and other legal professionals. Justice Jeffrey S. Boyd, an ordained minister, also will conduct an afternoon session on “God, the Courts and the Law” in the Belcher Center. The public is invited. Concurrently, LETU is holding “Law as a Career Day” on campus. This legal-career fair is designed for the public, especially college and high school students, seeking to learn more about legal careers. Law schools, paralegal schools and court-reporter schools will have recruiting booths to provide information and answer questions about their programs. In the two sessions for students, Justice Don Willett will lead one for college students, and Justice John Devine will lead the other for high school students. High school students who attend also will be offered tours of the university and visits with faculty. Students who register will be provided a free lunch. Lawyers will be eligible for 2.5 hours of continuing legal-education credit for attending the oral arguments and the question-and-answer session with the Court. Each of seven afternoon breakout sessions at the Gregg County Courthouse will offer 1.5 hours of CLE credit. A schedule of events and descriptions of breakout sessions is available on the Gregg County Bar Association web page, www.greggcountybar.com. For more information, contact Gregg County Bar Association President Jessica LaRue at [email protected]. LeTourneau University is the Christian polytechnic university in the nation where educators engage students to nurture Christian virtue, develop competency and ingenuity in their professional fields, integrate faith and work, and serve the local and global community. LETU offers undergraduate and graduate degree programs across a range of disciplines and delivery models at LETU’s residential campus in Longview, Texas, and in hybrid and fully online options at centers in Dallas and Houston. ### 16074-nr-12/19/16 LeTourneau University news releases can be found online @LETUNews and at www.letu.edu. |