Partners Eileen O’Neill and Michelle Blair secured an appellate victory for a common carrier that had been sued for negligence when a passenger committed a crime after disembarking. The Eleventh Court of Appeals in Eastland affirmed summary judgment for the carrier, holding that common carriers do not have a duty to protect the general public from passengers and that there was an insufficient causal nexus between the carrier’s decision to remove its passenger and the crime committed by the passenger hours later. The opinion is Garrett v. Wal-Mart Stores Tex., LLC, No. 11-24-00058-CV, 2026 WL 842979 (Tex. App.—Eastland Mar. 26, 2026, no pet. h.).

A Houston trial court has granted summary judgment in favor of Ware Jackson’s client, a major international energy company. The plaintiff company had claimed the client breached a settlement agreement from a prior patent infringement suit, which it asked the court to rescind, and sought over $11 million in alleged lost profits and expenses, as well as attorneys’ fees. Ware Jackson successfully argued on summary judgment that the client did not cause any injury to the plaintiff and that the plaintiff’s contract claim was barred by res judicata and the statute of limitations. The litigation team included Eileen O’Neill, Paul Smith, Michelle Blair, Tyler Henkel, and Jordan Parker.

Ware Jackson is proud to announce that six of our partners have been recognized by Super Lawyers, a Thomson Reuters publication as Texas Super Lawyers in 2025. Only 5% of Texas attorneys are selected in a multi-phase process based on peer recognition and professional achievement. This year’s Super Lawyer honorees are Don Jackson, Tim Lee, Eileen O’Neill, Paul Smith, Dennis Barrow, and Ferg McNiel.

Additionally, Ware Jackson is excited to announce that partner, Avery Sheppard, has been recognized as one of the 2025 Texas Rising Stars by Super Lawyers, a Thomson Reuters publication. Less than 2.5% of Texas attorneys are selected for this honor, which is based on peer nomination, independent research, and peer evaluation.