Texas Appellate Law Podcast

Over the last several decades, appellate practice has transitioned from a part of general legal practice into its own discrete specialty. Luther T. Munford, an attorney in Butler Snow LLP’s appellate and written advocacy group, has been a part of that specialization and has directly influenced its development over the last 40 years, including a term as the President of the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers. From clerkships on the Fifth Circuit and the US Supreme Court, Luther has seen appellate practice change and develop. He’s taken that experience to carve his niche in an appellate practice that has included media law, constitutional law, professional liability, and product liability defense. Luther joins Todd Smith and Jody Sanders to share his experiences and discuss his work, including his development of the Mississippi Appellate Practice guide. Join us for Luther’s insights and anecdotes!Love the show? Subscribe, rate, review, and share!Here’s How »Join the Texas Appellate Law Podcast Community today:texapplawpod.comTwitterFacebookLinkedInYouTube

In this week's episode, co-hosts Todd Smith and Jody Sanders visit about ways in which the podcast has helped them engage with other media, including hosting Twitter Spaces with previous guests, appearances on other podcasts, and interviews for online publications. They also discuss their upcoming live oral arguments and try out a "mailbag" segment by answering a question posed over Twitter.Love the show? Subscribe, rate, review, and share!Here’s How »Join the Texas Appellate Law Podcast Community today:texapplawpod.comTwitterFacebookLinkedInYouTube

As technology improves, it opens new opportunities to change the way attorneys practice. From rethinking roles, tasks, and strategies to providing assistance in ways we’ve never contemplated, each year brings new opportunities for change. In this episode, Todd Smith and Jody Sanders talk to one of the people leading the technological revolution in law, Jake Heller, co-founder and CEO of CaseText. Jake explains his background in technology and law and how it led him and others to develop CaseText to make legal research better and more efficient. He also shares his thoughts on how legal technology is reshaping the industry and where it may go in the future.Love the show? Subscribe, rate, review, and share!Here’s How »Join the Texas Appellate Law Podcast Community today:texapplawpod.comTwitterFacebookLinkedInYouTubeCall for GuestsIf you’re interested in being a guest on the Texas Appellate Law Podcast, please let us know by visiting https://bit.ly/3zapfoG.

For more than a century, oil and gas has remained the backbone of Texas’s economic growth. Despite repeated rumors that oil and gas is on the way out as an energy source, the industry continues to adapt and grow to meet new economic and technological developments. As a result, disputes over oil and gas remain an important part of Texas jurisprudence, something that today’s guest, Wesley Lloyd of Freeman Mills, PC, follows closely. Wesley’s practice focuses on litigation and appeals in energy, water, and real estate matters. Having handled both trials and appeals in oil-and-gas cases, Wesley explains the value in learning about how energy law impacts Texas practice. He also offers his personal story about taking a unique route to finding his current practice setting and the mentors that helped him along the way. Wesley also shares thoughts on remote work and adapting a practice to new technological realities.  Love the show? Subscribe, rate, review, and share!Here’s How »Join the Texas Appellate Law Podcast Community today:texapplawpod.comTwitterFacebookLinkedInYouTubeCALL FOR GUESTS: If you're interested in being a guest on the Texas Appellate Law Podcast, please let us know by visiting https://bit.ly/3zapfoG.

Love the show? Subscribe, rate, review, and share!Here’s How »Join the Texas Appellate Law Podcast Community today:texapplawpod.comTwitterFacebookLinkedInYouTube

While emerging technology has created new opportunities for the way both lawyers and the public interact with the judicial system, judges haven’t been left behind. On today’s show, Judge John Owens of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals joins Todd Smith and Jody Sanders, along with special guest co-host M.C. Sungaila, to discuss just how technology has helped from a judicial perspective. Judge Owens discusses how judges can embrace technology to better engage with attorneys at oral argument and prepare more efficiently to decide cases. He also offers tips to attorneys who are faced with tough oral argument questions and stresses the importance of preparation. Finally, he shares stories about his federal appointment process and, with M.C. Sungaila, provides a behind-the-scenes look at how the 9th Circuit operates.Love the show? Subscribe, rate, review, and share!Here’s How »Join the Texas Appellate Law Podcast Community today:texapplawpod.comTwitterFacebookLinkedInYouTube

While trial and appellate practice are different in many ways, attorneys who understand each one are better at both. On the criminal side, Jim Huggler has managed to balance both a trial and appellate practice representing criminal defendants in state and federal courts. This week, he joins Todd Smith and Jody Sanders to discuss his practice in the different forums, his experience as course director for TexasBarCLE’s Handling Your First (or Next) Criminal Appeal program, and his study of the reasons for reversal in criminal cases. He also offers resources advice for attorneys who might want to try their hand at criminal appeals.Love the show? Subscribe, rate, review, and share!Here’s How »Join the Texas Appellate Law Podcast Community today:texapplawpod.comTwitterFacebookLinkedInYouTube

When faced with a new legal issue, having a reliable resource to provide background information and a starting point for research is key. These resources create efficiency for clients and allow attorneys to get up to speed quickly in fast-moving matters. But, legal publishing companies have to ensure that the information they provide is trustworthy, user-friendly, and up-to-date in an ever-evolving legal world. Todd Smith and Jody Sanders address the process of writing and compiling legal reference materials by sitting down with Jason Wilson, co-founder of Bearings Legal Resources. Jason discusses his background as an appellate lawyer and staff attorney before transitioning into the legal-publishing world with the O’Connor’s practice manuals. He explains how this experience inspired him to launch a new legal publishing company to fill needs in the market that were not being served by existing publications. Jason also shares how these materials can help attorneys provide better representation in particular cases and sharpen legal expertise in new areas.Love the show? Subscribe, rate, review, and share!Here’s How »Join the Texas Appellate Law Podcast Community today:texapplawpod.comTwitterFacebookLinkedInYouTube

Any serious Texas Supreme Court follower knows that the Court isn’t the only institution in that courthouse. Osler McCarthy, the Court’s staff attorney for public information, is another one. Many court watchers wait eagerly on Friday mornings for Osler’s order summary email before reading the Court’s opinions for themselves. But, that position did not even exist before Osler took it on and shaped it into what it is today. In this week’s episode, Osler joins Todd Smith and Jody Sanders to discuss how he came to the job, what he has done in that role, and how he prepares his weekly summary email turning the Court’s orders and opinions into digestible information for even casual readers. He also discusses his background in journalism and how it helps with his writing, shares tips that attorneys can incorporate into their own legal writing, and reveals his future plans.Love the show? Subscribe, rate, review, and share!Here’s How »Join the Texas Appellate Law Podcast Community today:texapplawpod.comTwitterFacebookLinkedInYouTube

People often don’t realize the many nuances involved in criminal appeals. Direct appeals are only part of the process. Later writ applications can raise various issues, including ineffective assistance of counsel. This week, Judge Bert Richardson of the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals joins Todd Smith and Jody Sanders to talk about the many different paths criminal appeals and writs can take. Judge Richardson also discusses his role on Texas’s highest criminal court, the court’s pandemic response, and ways attorneys can be vigilant in criminal legal matters where the stakes are so high.Love the show? Subscribe, rate, review, and share!Here’s How »Join the Texas Appellate Law Podcast Community today:texapplawpod.comTwitterFacebookLinkedInYouTube