Supreme Court of Texas

In this suit brought by a law firm against its former associate and another lawyer with whom that associate formed a partnership, the Court held that an associate owes a fiduciary duty to his or her employer not to personally profit or realize any financial or other gain or advantage from referring a matter to another law firm or lawyer, absent the employer's agreement otherwise.

Appellate Information

• Argued 10/04/2000
• Decided 03/21/2002
• Published 03/21/2002

Judges

• Justice OWEN delivered the opinion of the Court in which Chief Justice PHILLIPS, Justice HECHT, Justice ENOCH, Justice BAKER, Justice HANKINSON, Justice JEFFERSON and Justice RODRIGUEZ joined.

Court

• Supreme Court of Texas

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• William P. Maines,Thomas R. McDade, McDade Fogler Maines & Lohse, Robert Lee Galloway, Grant Cook, Thompson Knight Brown Parker & Leahy, Houston, for petitioners.


• For Appellees:
  
• Russell Starbird, Houston, G. Steven Ruprecht, Niewald, Waldeck & Brown, Kansas City, MO, Patrick E. Gaas, J. Mark Brewer, Brewer & Pritchard, Houston, for respondent.