Designated for publication per curiam (Richman, Ho; Dennis on panel but not participating in this order) (oral argument at the merits stage), Ho, J., dissenting from denial of panel rehearing; municipal liability, qualified immunity, First Amendment Denying petition for panel rehearing of October 7, 2025, opinion that had affirmed qualified immunity dismissal of police officers … More January 13, 2026, opinions
Designated for publication Douglas, J. (Smith, Higginson, Douglas) (oral argument), sec. 1988, standing, attorneys’ fees Affirming vacatur of attorneys’ fee award after vacatur of declaratory judgment relief for lack of standing in plaintiff’s constitutional challenge to city’s home rule charter. Plaintiffs-Appellants challenged provisions of the City of Houston home-rule charter requiring initiative petition circulators to … More January 2-6, 2026, opinions
Designated for publication per curiam (en banc) (voting against rehearing: Elrod, Stewart, Southwick, Haynes, Graves, Higginson, Willett, Ho, Douglas, Ramirez, JJ.; voting for rehearing: Jones, Smith, Richman, Duncan, Engelhardt, Oldham, Wilson, JJ.); Ho, J., concurring in denial of rehearing; Oldham, J., dissenting from denial of rehearing (joined by Jones, Smith, Richman, Duncan, Engelhardt, Wilson, JJ.) … More December 18-20, 2025, opinions
Designated for publication Jones, J. (Jones, Stewart, Ramirez) (oral argument), Medicaid Vacating summary judgment for plaintiff hospitals in challenge to Department of Health and Human Services regulation “that penalizes hospitals in states that have pursued alternatives to Medicaid expansion,” and remanding for further proceedings. A group of Texas hospitals challenged a 2023 regulation issued by … More December 9, 2025, opinions
Designated for publication Engelhardt, J. (Dennis, Southwick, Engelhardt) (oral argument), Dennis, J., dissenting in part; First Amendment, sovereign immunity, standing Vacating injunction entered on First Amendment pre-enforcement challenge brought by drag performer and organizations against Texas law regulating “sexually oriented performances on public property and in the presence of minors”; and remanding for further proceedings. … More November 6, 2025, opinions
Designated for publication Higginbotham, J. (Higginbotham, Ho, Douglas) (no oral argument), Ho, J., concurring; False Claims Act, qui tam Affirming dismissal of qui tam action under False Claims Act. Inpatient-rehabilitation facilities (IRFs) provide intensive therapy to patients after hospital discharge and are reimbursed by Medicare per discharge, contingent on compliance with procedural rules such as … More November 3, 2025, opinions
Designated for publication Elrod, C.J. (Elrod, Clement, Haynes) (oral argument), Haynes, dissenting in part; timeliness, personal torts Affirming dismissal as untimely of claims brought under Texas law, originally in Texas state courts but then removed, for monetary damages arising from chemical explosions at defendant’s facility, where original action was certified as to injunctive relief class … More October 30-31, 2025, opinions
Designated for publication en banc, First Amendment, Establishment Clause, Free Exercise Clause, ripeness, standing, sovereign immunity, en banc Ordering initial hearing en banc, with the en banc rehearing argument of Roake v. Brumley. Stewart, J. (Jones, Stewart, Ramirez) (oral argument), criminal, sufficiency of evidence Affirming conviction of coercing and enticing a minor to engage in … More October 28, 2025, opinions
Designated for publication en banc; First Amendment, en banc Vacating August 18, 2025, panel opinion (Dennis, Southwick, Ho; Ho, J., dissenting) and ordering en banc rehearing of panel opinion that reversed denial of preliminary injunction against university administration’s cancellation of LGBT+ student organization’s drag show. Unpublished decisions per curiam (Wiener, Willett, Wilson) (no oral argument), … More October 27, 2025, opinions
Designated for publication Jones, J. (Elrod, Jones, Stewart) (oral argument), equal protection clause, First Amendment, Commerce Clause Affirming in part and reversing in part district court’s summary judgment finding city’s short-term rental regulations constitutional, and remanding for further proceedings. The Fifth Circuit reviewed New Orleans’s regulation of short-term rentals (STRs)—defined as rentals of fewer than … More October 7, 2025, opinions
