Our office enjoys handling a wide variety of legal matters including:
- Commercial / Business litigation (including breach of contract).
- Mediation services.
- Complex multi-party litigation.
- Business and Real Estate Disputes.
- Construction litigation.
- Landlord / Tenant disputes.
- Business torts including fraud and misrepresentation.
- Personal Injury Litigation.
- Appellate brief writing and appellate argument.
- Alternative Dispute Resolution.
- Medical Malpractice (prosecution and defense).
- Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act claims.
- Negligence.
- Breach of fiduciary duty.
- Administrative Law (including representing health care professionals before boards and the State Office of Administrative Hearings “SOAH”).
- Criminal law defense (federal court).
- Ad valorem (property) tax disputes.
- Insurance / Disability disputes and litigation.
- Real estate title examination and related issues.
- Real estate contracts and leases.
- Foreclosures.
- Will preparation.
- Creditor's rights.
Ice does not pose an unreasonable risk of harm
The morning after a winter storm Mr. Fair drove his wife to a doctor’s appointment at Scott and White Memorial Hospital in Temple, Texas. After the appointment Mr. Fair went to get his car from the hospital parking lot and he slipped and fell due to ice on the road (between the hospital and the parking lot). Fair then sued the hospital for negligence in relation to his slip and fall. The Texas Supreme Court however found in favor of the hospital in the May 10, 2010 opinion in Scott and White Memorial Hospital v. Fair. The court said that the hospital owned a duty to exercise reasonable care to protect against danger from a condition that creates an unreasonable risk of harm, which the owner knew or should have discovered. However the court stated that in previous decisions the court had held that dirt and mud in their natural state has been held to not pose an unreasonable risk of harm and the court in this case concluded that naturally accumulated ice on premises also does not pose an unreasonable risk of harm to business invitees. The court also said in relevant part that a business invitee is at least as aware as a landowner, of the existence of ice or snow that has accumulated naturally outdoors, and that the invitee is often in a better position to take immediate precautions against an injury.