The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has once more addressed a reoccurrence in the federal court system where a Texas judge has been found to penalize lawyers or parties in a case too readily. This marks at least the third instance in which this issue has been raised.
The latest episode involves U.S. District Judge Mark Pittman, who was found to have abused his discretion by sanctioning a Texas lawyer. This sanctioning came as a result of the lawyer failing to comply precisely to an order in a sexual harassment lawsuit led by a former employee of Weatherford College against the institution’s president.
A five-page unpublished, per curiam opinion was released by the Fifth Circuit, addressing this issue in details. Relevant specifics of the incident can be reviewed in the per curiam document.
This is not the first time Judge Mark Pittman has come under scrutiny. Last year, he was accused of “overkill” for dismissing a case due to a missed filing deadline in the Northern District of Texas. As more details arise, further updates will follow.
For complete coverage of this ongoing story, an in-depth examination is available at The National Law Journal.