professional-liability – Case Law Wire

Melden & Hunt v. Cantu — Citing the Certificate-of-Merit Statute and Promising a Future Affidavit Does Not Satisfy Texas’s Contemporaneous-Filing Requirement

The Thirteenth Court of Appeals held that an original petition that cites Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 150.002(c) and promises a forthcoming certificate of merit does not substantially comply with the contemporaneous-filing requirement for professional-negligence claims against engineers, requiring reversal and remand for a determination on prejudice.

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Hurd v. H&H Real Estate (Hogan Associates) — Expert Testimony Required to Establish Real Estate Broker’s Standard of Care; Internet-Search Duty Question Not Within Common Knowledge

/ June 9, 2026

The Rhode Island Supreme Court affirmed summary judgment for a real estate brokerage, holding that the standard of care for screening prospective tenants—including whether a “basic internet search” is required in addition to a credit and criminal background check—is not within the common knowledge of laypeople and therefore requires expert testimony. Because the plaintiff was precluded from offering expert testimony after repeatedly failing to produce his expert for deposition, his negligence claim could not survive summary judgment.