Author Archives: Timothy Kirwin
The Art of Boring Legal Writing
I recently read an article about artificial intelligence (AI) computers drafting legal documents, mostly boilerplate language in contracts, but the use of AI in the legal field is rapidly expanding with it being able to gather data and analyze verdict decisions, for example. Computers are reviewing and analyzing law, predicting outcomes, and performing drafting… Read More »
Love it… Hate it… An Attorney’s Perspective
As 2016 draws to a close, I’m reflecting on what I love and hate, respectively, about being an attorney. Let’s start with the good part of this story: what I love about being an attorney. As many of you know, I spend most of my time practicing municipal law. I am a City Attorney,… Read More »
What Does a Texas Magistrate Do? You See People in Jail?
If you are confused by the separate duties of magistrate and judge in Texas, how bail works and when a plea is taken, there are specific procedures for each. I currently serve as an Associate Municipal Court Judge for the City of Hedwig Village, Texas. The City Council appointed me Judge in July 2011…. Read More »
The City Attorney, Politics and Keeping out of the Bed of Strange Bedfellows
I am a City Attorney first and foremost. Today, I want to tell you what a City Attorney is not. The City Attorney is not a politician or elected official. That role is reserved for the Mayor and members of the City Council (i.e. the governing body). The City Attorney is not a policy maker…. Read More »
What Does a City Attorney Do?
What does a City Attorney do? Sounds Kind of Boring! At dinner parties and social gatherings, people often ask, “what do you do for a living?” This is not an easy question to answer. I am a private practice attorney who spends the majority of my day representing multiple public municipalities (i.e., cities) in and around… Read More »
Citizens Should Engage Public Officials with Ideas to Better Their City
I recently went on a trip to San Francisco to visit a friend of nearly 20 years. While on a hike to the Golden Gate Bridge, she remarked that one of the abandoned buildings we came across on the hike should be turned into restroom facilities. The building needed a little TLC, but otherwise… Read More »
Knowing the Rules of Houston Historical Preservation Appeals
Purchasing a house with the desire to renovate it or planning a renovation of a house you already own can be one of the most stressful, not to mention expensive, experiences that a property owner may undertake. This process can be even more daunting if you live in one of Houston’s 22 designated historic districts…. Read More »