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| 3 | 4 | | |
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| 4 | 5 | | R E S O L U T I O N |
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| 5 | 6 | | WHEREAS, The Honorable Leonard Davis is retiring as chief |
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| 6 | 7 | | judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District |
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| 7 | 8 | | of Texas in May 2015, concluding an exemplary 15-year tenure on the |
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| 8 | 9 | | bench; and |
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| 9 | 10 | | WHEREAS, Appointed as a U.S. district judge in 2002, Judge |
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| 10 | 11 | | Davis has gained recognition as one of the nation's top |
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| 11 | 12 | | intellectual property law jurists; the patent docket in the Eastern |
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| 12 | 13 | | District has grown on his watch from under 10 cases in 2002 to more |
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| 13 | 14 | | than 1,100 in 2015, and he has personally handled more than 1,700 |
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| 14 | 15 | | intellectual property cases, including as many as 11 patent jury |
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| 15 | 16 | | trials in a single year; and |
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| 16 | 17 | | WHEREAS, Many of his cases have become landmark decisions of |
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| 17 | 18 | | the Federal Circuit and U.S. Supreme Court, and they have a high |
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| 18 | 19 | | affirmance rate on appeal; Judge Davis has been invited to sit by |
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| 19 | 20 | | designation on both the United States Federal Circuit Court of |
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| 20 | 21 | | Appeals and the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, and he has served on |
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| 21 | 22 | | the Judicial Council of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals and the |
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| 22 | 23 | | Federal Circuit Advisory Council Committee on Case Management; |
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| 23 | 24 | | moreover, he has served as co-chair of the Federal Judges Committee |
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| 24 | 25 | | of the Federal Circuit Bar Association; and |
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| 25 | 26 | | WHEREAS, Previously, Judge Davis served as chief justice of |
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| 26 | 27 | | the Twelfth Court of Appeals of the State of Texas; before taking |
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| 27 | 28 | | the bench, he distinguished himself as a trial lawyer in East Texas |
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| 28 | 29 | | for more than two decades, and from 1983 to 1988, he was general |
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| 29 | 30 | | counsel to the Republican Party of Texas; he served by |
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| 30 | 31 | | gubernatorial appointment on the Judicial Districts Board and the |
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| 31 | 32 | | State Ethics Advisory Commission, and he has served the State Bar of |
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| 32 | 33 | | Texas on its Legal Publications Committee; and |
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| 33 | 34 | | WHEREAS, A Fellow of the Texas Bar Foundation, Judge Davis |
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| 34 | 35 | | was named 2013 Jurist of the Year by the Texas Chapter of the |
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| 35 | 36 | | American Board of Trial Advocates; in 2012, he received the |
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| 36 | 37 | | prestigious Baylor Lawyer of the Year Award from his alma mater, |
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| 37 | 38 | | where he graduated first in his class in 1976; he also holds a |
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| 38 | 39 | | bachelor's degree in mathematics from The University of Texas at |
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| 39 | 40 | | Arlington and a master's degree in management science from Texas |
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| 40 | 41 | | Christian University; and |
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| 41 | 42 | | WHEREAS, Leonard Davis has set high standards of excellence |
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| 42 | 43 | | throughout his career, and his contributions to his profession have |
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| 43 | 44 | | earned the respect and admiration of the legal community in Texas |
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| 44 | 45 | | and across the country; now, therefore, be it |
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| 45 | 46 | | RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 84th Texas |
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| 46 | 47 | | Legislature hereby congratulate Leonard Davis on the occasion of |
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| 47 | 48 | | his retirement as chief judge of the United States District Court |
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| 48 | 49 | | for the Eastern District of Texas and extend to him sincere best |
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| 49 | 50 | | wishes as he embarks on the next exciting chapter of his life; and, |
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| 50 | 51 | | be it further |
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| 51 | 52 | | RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
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| 52 | 53 | | prepared for Judge Davis as an expression of high regard by the |
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| 53 | 54 | | Texas House of Representatives. |
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