Austin Lawyer Jargon

Wife Wins $9 Million From Husband's Alleged Mistress

An affair became very costly for a NC mistress today.  North Carolina has a rarely used alienation of affection law that allows a spouse to file a civil suit against a person who breaks up their marriage, read the full story here

Texas tour bus crash kills 2, injures 18

Another tragedy occurred on Texas roadways today.  Two people were killed and 18 were injured when a tour bus crashed in Campbellton, Texas.  The full story can be found here. 

Business Law - Fee Arrangements

Please check out our video describing the different types of fee arrangements in business law cases:

Agreed Divorces In Austin Texas - Step by Step

Arrest Made in Death of 12 Year Old in Round Rock

by Jack Zinda

This is an update to a story that I blogged about next week, apparently one of the drivers has been arrested for driving with a suspended license.  The full story can be found here:

Fox News Austin

Child killed, 12 year old Girl, hit by vehicle in Round Rock

by Jack ZInda

A tragedy occurred yesterday when a young girl was hit by a vehicle while crossing the road in Round Rock, Texas.  The full story can be found here:

Statesman.com

US Bans Texting for Truckers and Bus Drivers

by Jack Zinda

In what seems like the biggest no brainer of all time United States Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood has banned texting by commercial truck drivers and bus drivers.  I am sure most Americans are going to be shocked to realize that this was not previously banned.  

The full story can be found here on Bloomberg News:

Bloomberg News

Baby saved by man after school bus collision

Baby pulled out of car after school bus collision

By Jack Zinda,

	Police said 26 Casey Elementary students were aboard the bus.

In a story that is very frightening for all parents the police are looking into a collision between a car and an Austin ISD school bus that occurred this morning. 

Some witnesses of the collision claim that the school bus driver made a left-hand turn on an unprotected green light.

The whole story can be found at News8 Austin:

News 8 Austin

Nissan accused of “destroying” one of its top dealers

by D. Scott Heselmeyer, Attorney at Law, Heselmeyer ZInda, PLLC

On January 5, 2010, one of Nissan’s largest and most successful dealers from 2001-2008 filed a $250 million fraud and breach of contract suit against three entities controlling the Nissan automotive empire – Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., Nissan North America Inc. and Nissan Motor Acceptance Corp.

Filed in Los Angeles, the plaintiff was Orange County businessman Michael A. Kahn and Superior Automotive Group, LLC and in his lawsuit, he charged that Nissan had “destroyed” his business, which by 2007 had become the 73^rd largest auto dealership group in the United States – generating more than $500 million in revenues and employing approximately 800 people.

According to the lawsuit, “Kahn was Nissan’s ‘go-to’ dealer in California. At the behest of Nissan, he acquired troubled or underperforming dealerships and turned them around. When a large automotive company sought to buy out Kahn in 2004 and again in late 2006, Nissan insisted that he not sell and told Kahn he was a key component of Nissan’s future plans in California.”

The lawsuits pointed out that Kahn’s “dealerships were consistently awarded Nissan North America‘s Circle of Excellence Award,” a coveted honor given only to the nation’s top dealers. Kahn was flown to Tokyo, honored by Nissan and met with its top executives. The lawsuit also stated that “Nissan made millions and benefited greatly from Kahn’s success in selling cars, and made millions more from financing Kahn to buy Nissan vehicles, to operate his dealerships, and to borrow money to buy new dealerships.”

When the great recession hit in 2008, the auto industry was hit hard. Nissan saw its sales in the U.S. plummet. The company laid off tens of thousands of workers and drastically cut back vehicle production. In February 2009, according to Kahn’s lawsuit, “despite Nissan agreeing to a debt forbearance period through March 31, 2009, and despite Kahn’s long history of profitability and success with Nissan, Nissan precipitously cut off financing to Kahn, and forced all his dealerships out of business.”

According to the lawsuit, Kahn and the relevant dealerships have suffered damages in excess of $250 million, with the exact amount to be proven at trial. 

US Raises Questions about Toyota Prius' Brake

by Jack Zinda

Toyota is facing very serious questions about the quality of the breaks in its popular Prius model.  The full story can be read here:

AFP

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