Ryan Patrick, a former Haynes Boone attorney, will now lead Texans for Lawsuit Reform
Photo courtesy of Texans for Lawsuit Reform
It’s a time of renewal for Texans for Lawsuit Reform, says its new CEO, Ryan Patrick.
The Haynes Boone alum and former criminal court judge has taken the reins of a group that has played an influential role in shaping parts of Texas law, particularly via its tort reform advocacy.
While the group’s priority bills aimed at curbing nuclear verdicts failed last session, some expect it may make better inroads with the Legislature under Patrick’s leadership—though he says that’s no sure thing. Here, Patrick shares his thoughts on TLR’s next phase, litigation funding, and the challenges of taking on the role.
This conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
What does coming into this role look like after what was seen as a bad year for TLR? What’s next?
None of the big changes in tort reform happen overnight. It’s like tipping over a Coke machine: you’ve got to rock it a little bit to get it going.
There was other legislation that was not exactly branded TLR, but TLR staff and [co-founder] Dick Weekley worked on them: We had a huge deregulation bill. SB 29 was massive. And TLR was instrumental in getting the Business Court passed and the 15th Court of Appeals.
I think our enemies would like to say we failed. But we had a successful session with big bills. Our bigger bills, they didn’t get across the finish line, but we’re coming back with the medical damages part of this. This is not a fight we’re going to walk away from.
What are the challenges of your current role?
I’m very comfortable in the Capitol, but there are still a lot of people who don’t know me. I think there’s definitely kind of, ‘OK, what’s Ryan gonna bring to this?’ ... ‘Is he going to be just marching to the drum of whatever the lieutenant governor says?'—which I can tell you is not the case.
I’ve got a lot of relationships to make, particularly in the House. And there’s a lot of turnover in the Texas Senate.
What’s an emerging legal trend you’re watching this year?
Third-party financing and litigation funding is going to be a big deal—domestic financing and then also foreign financing.
I wouldn’t be surprised if the Legislature decides to deal with those differently. Maybe banning one or requiring higher transparency disclosures like some of the other states are doing, and the feds have been talking about as well.
Our big push is really going to be on the medical damages.
What’s a game-changing state or federal lawsuit you’re watching?
We just saw big success with the Southwest Airlines case in the Northern District of Texas, where a federal judge upheld the new ability under SB 29 for states to [allow companies] to increase their proxy threshold to 3% of the stock owned.
We’re going to watch to see how that plays out on the appellate side and if there are other cases that come out that decide to test that. But we’re looking at, not the litigation side, but what can we do on the state legislative side to work on these issues?
Where’s the best BBQ in Texas?
There’s a really good place here in Houston called Truth. I’m also partial to Killen’s. Goode Company—it’s a different style. They have a very different sauce. And of course, Franklin Barbecue is kind of the big place in Austin.
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