Larry Lee Thweatt Jr.'s Legal Cases (3)

Intellectual property

$20,000,000 ARBITRATION AWARD FOR BREACH OF CONTRACT

Aug 13, 2010

OUTCOME: $20,000,000 Arbitration Award

Terry & Thweatt attorney Lee Thweatt teamed with Beck Redden Secrest attorneys Murray Fogler, Russell Post and Brad Coffey, and attorney Adib Eghterafi in representing a highly-respected chemist in arb ... itration against his former employer for breach of contract. The former employer failed to pay our client $20 million under a written agreement in exchange for relinquishment of his intellectual property rights in ground breaking technology involving the oxidative coupling of methane gas. On August 13, 2010, a three-member arbitration panel found in favor of our client on his breach of contract claim, awarding him $20 million plus attorneys’ fees and costs. The panel rejected all counterclaims pursued by our client’s former employer. The case was later settled with court approval in a Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceeding forced by the arbitration award for $5,800,000 in cash consideration and the assignment of numerous patents and patent applications to our client.

Personal injury

$8,091,600 JURY VERDICT FOR BURN VICTIM

N/A

OUTCOME: $8,091,600 Award

Terry & Thweatt attorneys Joe Terry and Lee Thweatt represented a 38 year old woman born with profound mental and physical disabilities who sustained 2nd and 3rd degree burns over nearly thirty percent ... of her body when the adult care facility she resided in negligently failed to ensure her safety in a house fire operated by her care facility, Four J’s Community Living Center, Inc. One of the other adult residents of the house, who had a long history of mental instability from decades of documented physical, sexual and mental abuse – all of which was known to Four J’s, was given a cigarette lighter by Four J’s staff for smoking. Four J’s failed to retrieve the cigarette lighter and later, while she was unsupervised, she used it to set her mattress on fire in her bedroom when she became upset at a Four J’s staff member. The fire eventually consumed the house, and destroyed it, badly burning our client. Suit was filed in the 269th District Court of Harris County, Texas. The case proceeded to trial in October 2011. Trial evidence demonstrated that the home was not equipped with overhead sprinklers, the Four J’s staff member made no attempt to use a fire extinguisher in the home after the fire started, and did not attempt to rescue our client (who was unable to see or walk because of her prior disabilities) from the fire. Further, one of the designated fire exits in the home was deadbolt locked from the inside, and the staff member on duty did not have a key to unlock it, thereby cutting off one avenue of escape from the fire for the residents of the home. Because of her injuries, our client was hospitalized in a burn trauma unit for over a month, and required repeated, painful debridement of her burn wounds, along with several skin graft procedures. The jury awarded $91,600 for past medical bills, and $8,000,000 for her permanent disfigurement, physical pain experienced, and mental anguish. The defendants are appealing the verdict.

Wrongful death

$1,007,500 SETTLEMENT FOR THE SURVIVING FAMILY OF MOTHER KILLED BY DRUNK DRIVER

N/A

OUTCOME: $1,007,500 Award

Terry & Thweatt attorneys Joe Terry and Lee Thweatt represented the minor children and adult siblings of an elementary school teacher in Collin County, Texas who was killed by a drunk driver. The drunk ... driver was served alcohol for nearly 12 consecutive hours at a sports bar. Although he was disruptive and started a fight that night in the bar, he was never asked to leave the premises, and the bar staff continued to serve him alcohol throughout, even serving drinks to him after the bar closed. An eye-witness leaving the bar reported that the manager of the bar walked the drunk driver to his car and put him behind the wheel. A few minutes later, our client was killed in automobile collision caused by the drunk driver when he turned into oncoming traffic. The police investigation established that the drunk driver was over-served to the point where his blood alcohol content was three times the legal limit in Texas. The settlement for the minor children was placed into a structured annuity that will ensure that their college educations are paid for in full, just as their mother was working to ensure before her tragic death.

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