Malpractice-Cap Challenge Rebuffed

On last week’s order list, the Court noted that it was declining to exercise jurisdiction in the direct appeal McKeever, M.D. v. Cerny, No. 08-0555.

That unsuccessful direct appeal was a constitutional challenge to Texas’s medical-malpractice liability caps and was written up here: “Medical liability cap case declined” (Fort Worth Star-Telegram).

Garza v. Coastal Moves East

Seismic trucks — called thumper trucks because of the impact devices they use to send waves through the ground — have been gathering information from New York roadways for decades. But the stakes have grown as natural gas prices have risen, spawning a flurry of prospecting and lease deals for the Marcellus Shale Formation.

A procession of seismic trucks can be heard from a good distance away. They operate with synchronized precision, bumper to bumper, advancing in groups of three or four to an uncharted stretch of land.

“Landowners cry foul over seismic searches”

This image of “thumper” trucks reminds me of a scene out of Dune. How does this involve Texas law?

At least one of the companies involved is relying on the Texas Supreme Court’s recent decision in Garza Oil & Gas Corp. v. Coastal Energy Trust, No. 05-0466, to support its right to “capture” that seismic information from the road. (( A rehearing motion was filed last week in Coastal. ))