In a courtroom showdown, Travis County Judge Jan Soifer dropped the legal hammer on Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, ordering him to provide sworn testimony in a heated wrongful termination lawsuit brought against him by former top deputies, as reported by KXAN. The depositions also include Brent Webster, Paxton's first assistant attorney general, Lesley French Henneke, his chief of staff, and Michelle Smith, a longtime political advisor, with the judge betting on their "unique and superior knowledge of discoverable information," in the case.
Paxton's legal team, represented by Bill Helfand, walked out of the courtroom tight-lipped, declining to comment on whether there will be an appeal after Judge Soifer trampled over their attempt to invoke the apex doctrine to protect Paxton and his associates from being deposed, as mentioned in Austin American Statesman report. Meanwhile, Paxton's not-so-secret "little holiday lunch" turned into an unexpected side dish of legal proceedings when he was served with a subpoena.
The origin of the dramatic legal tiff stems back to 2020 when eight high-ranking OAG employees approached the FBI voicing concerns over Paxton's ties with Nate Paul, an Austin real estate investor, accusing Paxton of abusing office power, a claim he rebuts, insisting the firings were justified and unrelated to their whistleblowing, these details were obtained by KXAN. The whistleblowers, including Blake Brickman, David Maxwell, Ryan Vassar, and Mark Penley later found themselves in a settlement dance to the tune of $3.3 million, which the Texas House ultimately snubbed.
The Texas House's snub led to further proceedings as, following Paxton's Senate acquittal on all articles of impeachment after a trial in September, the whistleblowers sought justice once more through the legal veins of the Texas Supreme Court and a subsequent Burnet County court's decision, both sides aligning against Paxton as they rejected motions to halt the suit according to information from the Austin American Statesman. Helfand's argument that despite legislative blockade the previous settlement agreement was honored fell on deaf ears as Judge Soifer saw the agreement as "compromised," post-impeachment.
While Paxton remains tight-lipped and presumably, still digesting the legal summons served with his lunch, dates for these monumental depositions are set to be booked post-New Year, leaving Texans waiting to see if their Attorney General's New Year's resolutions include a candid reveal under oath.
