Supreme Court of Texas

In a suit alleging that defendant defrauded plaintiffs of oil and gas royalties and other interests in Padre Island, judgments for plaintiffs are reversed as time-barred where: 1) plaintiffs could have discovered defendant's wrongdoing through reasonable diligence and were not entitled to tolling of the running of limitations on that basis; and 2) defendant was present in the state, by virtue of doing business there, during all of the alleged wrongdoing, and statutory tolling therefore did not apply. (Revised opinion)

Appellate Information

• Argued 04/22/2008
• Decided 08/29/2008
• Published 10/10/2008

Judges

• Justice O'NEILL delivered the opinion of the Court, in which Chief Justice JEFFERSON, Justice WAINWRIGHT, Justice MEDINA, Justice GREEN, and Justice JOHNSON joined.

Court

• Supreme Court of Texas

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Claudia Wilson Frost, Jeremy J. Gaston, Pillsbury Withrop Shaw Pittman LLP, Houston, TX, Andrew L. Frey, Mayer Brown LLP, New York, NY, Russell H. McMains, Law Offices of Russell H. McMains, Corpus Christi, M. Steve Smith, M. Steve Smith & Associates, Houston, Horacio L. Barrera, Martinez & Barrera, L.L.P., Brownsville, TX, for Petitioners., Esmeralda Carroll, San Antonio, Rebecca Gomez Sexton, Brownsville, Ramon Donato Garcia, San Benito, Rafael Garcia, Hortencia Garcia, Pedro Garcia, Brownsville, Sandra Dale Pappagiorgio, Houston, George Butcher, San Antonio, TX, pro se for person interested in case., Jules L. Laird Jr., Houston, E. Lawrence Vincent Jr., Attorney At Law, Plano, Alberto T. Garcia III, Law Offices of Alberto T. Garcia III, McAllen, TX, Attorneys for person interested in case., Rance L. Craft, Office of Attorney General, Austin, TX, for Amicus Curiae.


• For Appellees:
  
• Tom C. McCall, David B. McCall, The McCall Firm, Austin, Britton D. Monts, Monts & Ware, L.L.P., Dallas, Hector H. Cardenas, Robert Francis Johnson III, Assistant Attorney General, Austin, Frank Costilla, Law Offices of Frank Costilla, Brownsville, Alberto T. Garcia III, Law Offices of Alberto T. Garcia III, McAllen, TX, for Respondents.