(Justice Guzman not sitting) 09-0005 Transcontinental Insurance Co. v. Joyce Crump from Fort Bend County and the 14th District Court of Appeals, Houston For petitioner: David Brenner, Austin For respondent: Peter M. Kelly, Houston A principal issue is whether "producing cause" in a workers compensation death-benefits determination must meet the definition for producing cause established in Ford Motor Co. v. Ledesma (a 2007 products-liability case) - a cause that, in a natural sequence, produces a result (in this case, death) and without which the result would not have occurred. Another issues is whether a treating physician's expert testimony based on "differential diagnosis" was reliable. In this case Crump won death benefits under workers compensation for her husband's death after Transcontinental contested her claim. Transcontinental argued that the work-related injury, a knee contusion, was not the producing cause of several complications that led to Mr. Crump's death because those complications related to Crump's being prone to infection following a kidney transplant 15 years before. A jury determined the knee injury was the producing cause of death. The court of appeals affirmed. The first argument begins at 9 a.m. in the courtroom in Austin. Each side will have 20 minutes for argument. This advisory serves only as an abbreviated guide to oral argument. Summaries are prepared by the Court's staff attorney for public information and reflect his judgment alone on facts and legal issues and in no way represent the Court's opinion about case merits. Texas Supreme Court advisory Contact: Osler McCarthy, Staff Attorney for Public Information (512) 463.1441 or email: osler.mccarthy@courts.state.tx.us

10-0615 Ashford Partners Ltd. v. ECO Resources Inc. from Fort Bend County and the First District Court of Appeals, Houston For petitioner: Charles Watson, Austin For respondent: Michael P. Cash, Houston Principal issues in this lease dispute over a construction defect are (1) whether Ashford, which took over ECO's building lease when it bought the building, had a duty to complete the construction "punch list" according to ECO's plans even though ECO had signed an estoppel agreement with the previous owner "accepting the premises without exception" and (2) whether the damages measure for the construction defect should be diminished lease value instead of repair costs. After the building's foundation cracked and tilted, Ashford sued the contractor and sued to declare it had not breached the lease with ECO. ECO countersued for breach, arguing that Ashford, as the landlord by assignment, assumed the original landlord's obligation to complete the building according to plans. The trial court awarded ECO damages for diminished lease value and attorneys fees. On review, the appeals court affirmed, holding in part that Ashford exclusively failed to complete a necessary punch-list item linked to the foundation problem after it assumed the lease but before the deadline for completing the punch list. The court of appeals also held diminution of the lease value was the proper damages measure because ECO leased the building and did not own it. This advisory serves only as an abbreviated guide to oral argument. Summaries are prepared by the Court's staff attorney for public information and reflect his judgment alone on facts and legal issues and in no way represent the Court's opinion about case merits. Texas Supreme Court advisory Contact: Osler McCarthy, Staff Attorney for Public Information (512) 463.1441 or email: osler.mccarthy@courts.state.tx.us

This and the related 12-0199 action involve a royalty-owners class suing for underpayment the issues are (1) whether interlocutory review or relief by mandamus or prohibition are proper to force the trial court to reconsider class certification by res judicata issues the Court arguably ordered be reconsidered on remand in the previous appeal, Bowden v. Phillips Petroleum Co.; (2) whether the Supreme Court has interlocutory jurisdiction to review the trial court's addition of implied-covenant-to-market claims on remand by the certified class and (3) whether the implied-covenant-to-market claims should be struck as matter of law. As to the first issue, Phillips and ConocoPhillips argue that Bowden required reconsideration of the class certification based on the res judicata issues. Yarbrough counters that Bowden confirmed class certification of the subclass in this appeal and ordered res judicata be considered only if the trial court certified a new class.

This and the related 12-0198 action involve a royalty-owners class suing for underpayment the issues are (1) whether interlocutory review or relief by mandamus or prohibition are proper to force the trial court to reconsider class certification by res judicata issues the Court arguably ordered be reconsidered on remand in the previous appeal, Bowden v. Phillips Petroleum Co.; (2) whether the Supreme Court has interlocutory jurisdiction to review the trial court's addition of implied-covenant-to-market claims on remand by the certified class and (3) whether the implied-covenant-to-market claims should be struck as matter of law. As to the first issue, Phillips and ConocoPhillips argue that Bowden required reconsideration of the class certification based on the res judicata issues. Yarbrough counters that Bowden confirmed class certification of the subclass in this appeal and ordered res judicata be considered only if the trial court certified a new class.

In this challenge to void a home-equity loan for constitutional defects, and to recover principal and interest, the issue is whether the borrowers' notice eight years later that the loan did not comply with constitutional requirements voids the loan or makes it voidable and subject to a four-year limitations. The Woods sued the bank and Ocwen, alleging fraud and contract breach based on alleged constitutional defects. The trial court denied the Woods' summary-judgment motion and granted the bank's and Ocwen's. The appeals court affirmed, holding a home-equity loan that does not comply with constitutional requirements is voidable, that as voidable a suit on it is subject to a four-year limitations and the Woods' suit was filed too late.

The issues in this defamation case are (1) whether the appeals court erred by holding a newspaper article addressed matters of public concern and (2) whether the court erred by legally sufficient evidence supported actual damages awarded.

In this case alleging a county commissioner improperly caused a county engineer to delay a plat application, a principal issue is whether the commissioner acted without authority - thus without government-immunity protection - when he instructed the engineer to hold up the plat application to get the developer to build a wider road.

In this appeal, from a jurisdictional plea denied in a breach-of-contract case against an development-development corporation, the issue is whether the economic-development agency is protected by governmental immunity.