{"id":1767,"date":"2018-03-03T07:43:44","date_gmt":"2018-03-03T13:43:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/truthinaddison.com\/?page_id=1767"},"modified":"2018-03-03T07:43:44","modified_gmt":"2018-03-03T13:43:44","slug":"the-settlement-of-the-wind-turbine-lawsuit","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/truthinaddison.com\/?page_id=1767","title":{"rendered":"The Settlement of the Wind Turbine Lawsuit"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Settlement of the Wind Turbine Lawsuit<\/strong>
\nReserving Judgment Until the Terms Are Announced<\/strong>
\nBy Susan M. Halpern<\/strong>
\nFormer Addison Councilmember (1992-1999)<\/strong><\/h3>\n

As predicted, the apparent settlement of the wind turbine lawsuit has sent the ex-mayor and his sycophants into a tailspin. From all accounts, they are witnessing the crumbling of this year\u2019s faux election issue, and that has left them utterly desperate to find some way to cast the matter in a negative light.\u00a0 It is of no concern to them that this is a positive development for Addison.\u00a0 For these folks, if it\u2019s not their development, they attack it.\u00a0 So, they continue to beat what is quickly becoming a very dead drum.<\/p>\n

The level of misinformation is astonishing. Yet, they claim to have spoken to an unnamed \u201coutside expert\u201d with \u201cno ties to Addison.\u201d\u00a0 You have to laugh.\u00a0 After all, these are the same folks who published the supposedly unsolicited letter from the North Carolina politico.\u00a0 You may remember my three-part \u201cI Smell A Rat\u201d series, where we dispelled the myth of the North Carolina claims and exposed this individual as a local resident.\u00a0 And lo and behold, there was Mr. North Carolina on the campaign finance report of their candidate, to whom he was a paid political consultant.\u00a0 So, you\u2019ll pardon me if choked a bit on the \u201coutside expert\u201d nonsense, especially when I read the rest of the misinformation.\u00a0 We\u2019ve all seen that song and dance before.<\/p>\n

So, let\u2019s dispel a few myths from the negative spinners.<\/p>\n

First, they cite the court\u2019s file, which reflects an announcement of settled. I say \u201cannouncement\u201d because that\u2019s what we lawyers do on the Thursday before a Monday trial setting, as required by the Dallas County local rules.\u00a0 Upon receiving an announcement of settled, the court removes the case from the next week\u2019s trial docket, and usually issues an order setting a deadline for submission of final documents.\u00a0 Totally routine and utterly insignificant.<\/p>\n

Second, there is Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 11, which states that to be enforceable, settlements must either be announced on the record (typically happens when everyone is present at the courthouse for some reason) or reduced to writing and signed by the party to be charged (fancy language for the person with the obligations under the settlement). I\u2019m sure when the Texas Supreme Court promulgated that rule, they thought of Yogi Berra, who famously said: \u201cIt ain\u2019t over \u2018til it\u2019s over.\u201d\u00a0 For us lawyers, that is ever so true.\u00a0 The devil is always in the details, hashed out in the written settlement documents.\u00a0 They take time to draft, particularly in cases like this one where there are multiple parties.\u00a0 Again, totally routine and utterly insignificant.<\/p>\n

Third, without any knowledge of any of the terms, the negative spinners continue to foment the false narrative that the settlement includes a confidentiality provision. There is no basis for this nonsense.\u00a0 Although confidentiality provisions are common, they are not typical in cases involving municipalities, precisely because taxpayers have a right to know how their tax dollars are being spent (or recouped).\u00a0 But then, these same folks supported the prior administration\u2019s improper suppression of Lea Dunn\u2019s key memo, and the use of taxpayer dollars to buy Lea\u2019s silence in her separation agreement.\u00a0 The suppression of such information made their 2016 campaign of lies possible.\u00a0 I\u2019ve written much about it.\u00a0 For now, I\u2019ll leave it at this: these folks know nothing about accountability.<\/p>\n

Look, I doubt seriously that this council would agree to confidentiality. It\u2019s not their style.\u00a0 They are truthful and transparent to a fault.\u00a0 I\u2019m betting they agree with me that the public does have a right to know the details of this settlement.\u00a0 And for that reason, I\u2019m quite certain that we\u2019ll learn the terms as soon as the ink on the settlement documents is dry.<\/p>\n

In the meantime, don\u2019t believe the negative spinners. Let\u2019s keep Addison moving in a positive direction.\u00a0 It\u2019s the Addison Way.\u00a0 And so is patience, as we wait for news of the settlement terms.<\/p>\n

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