Recent Articles

The Importance of Trial by Jury

Dwayne Newton
September 14, 2007 03:21

I recently read a speech given by Federal Judge William Young on the importance of our country's jury system.  No where in the world does the citizenry  have the right to play such a vital role in government.  Unfortunately, our jury system is under attack from many different...

Victory for the Construction Industry

Dwayne Newton
September 04, 2007 05:08

Pending for almost two years, the Texas Supreme Court has finally issued an opinion in Lamar Homes v. Mid-Continent Insurance.  A copy of the opinion can be found here.  This case involves two important questions to the construction and insurance industries. The first is whether a...

Are Doctors Really Mistreated by Juries?

Dwayne Newton
July 27, 2007 04:13

Here is a link to an interesting article published by the Michigan Law Review. www.michiganlawreview.org/archive/105/7/peters.pdf   This article explores the widely held public view that jury verdicts in medical malpractice cases are unfair to doctors. ...

Dwayne Newton is Elected to Membership in ABOTA

Dwayne Newton
July 26, 2007 01:33

We are pleased and proud to announce that Dwayne Newton has been elected to membership in the American Board of Trial Advocates.  Membership in ABOTA is extended by invitation only in recognition of an individuals high personal character, honorable reputation and proficiency as a trial...

Witness Preparation from Another Perspective

Dwayne Newton
June 14, 2007 06:07

The importance of witness preparation applies whether you are the Defendant in the litigation or the Plaintiff.  Here is a link to a good article on witness preparation from the perspective of the Plaintiff....

The Continuing Saga of Lord Browne's Deposition

Dwayne Newton
February 25, 2007 04:33

This week, the Texas Supreme Court issued a stay order, staying the deposition of Lord Browne, the former CEO of British Petroleum. This was issued in response to the February 9, 2007 order of a lower appellate court that denied BP’s Petition for Writ of Mandamus to Quash the deposition....

More on Preparing Witnesses for Depositions

Dwayne Newton
February 22, 2007 04:51

My recent post on Presenting Witnesses for their Deposition has been one of the more popular posts on this blog.  From the looks of the hits to this post, there are a lot of people out there looking for information on how to get ready for depositions.  Here is a link to a video that I...

What Should You Do If You Are Sued?

Dwayne Newton
January 14, 2007 04:06

I was recently asked by a business acquaintance what he should do in the event he is sued.  I gave him a copy of our firm's pamphlet called The Legal Survival Guide which answers a number of basic legal questions  If you would like a copy of this pamphlet send me an e-mail with your name...

Victory in the Tort Reform War

Dwayne Newton
December 29, 2006 04:57

The tort reform war is over and business has won. Here is a link to an article from Business Week on-line declaring victory in the tort reform movement.  www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/07_02/b4016001.htm The article is an interesting read.  It is consistent with my post...

Presenting Witnesses for Deposition

Dwayne Newton
December 22, 2006 06:27

I continue to be amazed at the number of lawyers who fail to properly prepare their witnesses to give a deposition.  Over the last 20 years, I have frequently seen large settlements generated in otherwise defensible cases because a lawyer failed to properly prepare his corporate witness to...