R. (Ted) Edward Cruz

Partner

Mr. Cruz has litigated and won some of the biggest cases in the nation before the U.S. Supreme Court and courts of appeals across the country, including the following:

Note: This list includes matters that were not completed at Morgan Lewis.

U..S. Supreme Court

            Briefed and Argued:

• Global Tech v. SEB, 131 S. Ct. 2060 (2011): Successfully represented a U.S. patent holder in a case defining the proper standard of intent for inducement to infringe a patent under 35 U.S.C. § 271(b).  The Court ruled for our client 8-1, upholding a $4.88 million jury verdict for inducing infringement of the patent.
• Kennedy v. Louisiana, 554 U.S. 407 (2008): Defended for nine States the constitutionality of state laws rendering the worst child rapists eligible for capital punishment.
• Medellin v. Texas, 552 U.S. 491(2007): Successfully defended Texas, winning a landmark 6-3 decision that the World Court cannot bind the U.S. justice system and the President cannot order the state courts to obey the World Court.
• LULAC v. Perry, 548 U.S. 399 (2006): Successfully defended the multiple litigation challenges to the 2003 Texas congressional redistricting plan in state and federal district courts and before the U.S. Supreme Court, winning 5-4.
• Dretke v. Haley, 541 U.S. 386 (2004): Successfully represented Texas in this federal habeas case concerning the exceptions to the procedural default rule, winning 6-3.

            Briefed:

• Connick v. Thompson, 131 S. Ct. 1350 (2011):  Morgan Lewis represented John Thompson, an innocent man exonerated from death row, in defense of his $14 million civil judgment against the New Orleans District Attorney's office. 
• Hardt v. Reliance Standard, 130 S.Ct. 2149 (2010), addressing the proper standard for awarding attorney's fees under ERISA.
• Salazar v. Buono, 130 S.Ct. 1803 (2010): Successfully represented as amici The American Legion, The Veterans of Foreign Wars, The Military Order of the Purple Heart, and The American Ex-Prisoners of War in defense of the constitutionality of the Mojave Desert Veterans Memorial, winning 5-4.
• USA Funds v. Espinosa, 130 S.Ct. 1367 (2010), addressing in what circumstances student loans may be discharged in bankruptcy.
• Van Orden v. Perry, 545 U.S. 677 (2005): Successfully defended the constitutionality of the Texas Ten Commandments monument, winning 5-4.
• District of Columbia v. Heller, 554 U.S. 570 (2008): Authored an amicus brief for 31 States successfully defending the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms, winning 5-4.
• Elk Grove Unified School District v. Newdow, 542 U.S. 1 (2004): Authored an amicus brief for all 50 States successfully defending constitutionality of the Pledge of Allegiance, winning 9-0.
• Bush v. Gore, 531 U.S. 98 (2000): Helped assemble the Bush legal team, devise strategy, and draft pleadings in the Florida and U.S. Supreme Courts during the 2000 Florida presidential recounts, winning twice in the U.S. Supreme Court.

Additional Oral Arguments:

• Successfully represented a leading medical devices manufacturer and argued numerous post-trial motions in the U.S. District Court for New Mexico challenging a $40 million punitive damages award.  The court remitted the $40 million punitive damages award to $4 million, a $36 million reduction.  
• Represented a major pharmaceutical company and successfully urged the Eleventh Circuit to uphold the dismissal of three consolidated nationwide RICO class actions alleging billions in damages.
• Represented a leading consumer products manufacturer and successfully obtained affirmance from the Fifth Circuit of a breach of contract claim for the failure of a mutual insurance company to pay a multi-million dollar dividend to one of its members.
• Represented a major parcel delivery company and successfully obtained reversal from the D.C. Circuit of an NLRB finding that the owner operators of home-delivery trucks were employees and not independent contractors under the National Labor Relations Act.
• Represented a trade association and successfully obtained temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction from the Western District of New York against the enforcement of a recently passed federal statute, the PACT Act.
• Ray v. Abbott, 261 F. App'x 716 (5th Cir. 2008): Successfully urged the Fifth Circuit to vacate a district court injunction against the enforcement of §§ 86.006(f) and (h) of the Texas voter fraud laws.
• Breen v. Texas A&M, 485 F.3d 325 (5th Cir. 2007): Successfully urged the Fifth Circuit to dismiss on qualified immunity a § 1983 suit based on the tragic accident at the 1999 Texas A&M bonfire.
• Tooke v. City of Mexia, 197 SW 3d 325 (Tex. 2006): Successfully urged the Texas Supreme Court to dismiss a breach of contract case against a Texas city on sovereign immunity grounds and to overrule a prior decision of the Court that had restricted immunity.
• In re Michael Fisher, 164 S.W.3d 637 (Tex. 2005): Successfully defended the constitutionality of the Texas Sexually Violent Predator Civil Commitment Act before the Texas Supreme Court, winning unanimously.
• Neeley v. West Orange-Cove Consolidated Independent School District, 176 S.W.3d 746 (Tex. 2005):  Successfully obtained a unanimous reversal from the Texas Supreme Court of the trial court's ruling that the Texas school finance system violated the Education Clauses of Texas Constitution.
• Brown v. de la Cruz, 156 S.W.3d 560 (Tex. 2004): Successfully urged the Texas Supreme Court not to imply a private right of action for plaintiffs to enforce Tex. Prop. Code §5.102 (1995).
• In re Buspirone, 185 F. Supp. 2d 363 (S.D.N.Y. 2002): Successfully represented the FTC in antitrust litigation alleging several hundred million dollars in damages for anticompetitive manipulation of FDA procedures governing the sale of generic pharmaceuticals.
• Ford Motor Co. v. United States, 157 F.3d 849 (Fed. Cir. 1998): At a prior firm, successfully challenged the U.S. Customs Service's multimillion-dollar assessment in import duties and interest.