Opinion ID: 4380332
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: The State Lawsuit

Text: Cook sued WOL Church in state court for violating Texas Election Code §§ 253.094(b) and 253.031(b) 3 in circulating and submitting the recall petitions and raising and spending money for the recall effort. Section 253.094(b) regulates corporate political contributions in the context of a recall election. See TEX. ELEC. CODE ANN. § 253.094(b). Section 253.031(b) regulates political committees’ political expenditures and acceptance of political contributions when the committee lacks a campaign treasurer. See id. § 253.031(b). The trial court issued a temporary restraining order (“TRO”) enjoining any further circulation of recall petitions. Brown intervened, seeking to dissolve the TRO. The trial court then dissolved portions of the TRO and denied Cook’s request for injunctive relief. Cook appealed. The El Paso Court of Appeals reversed the trial court’s order denying injunctive relief. In so doing, the court of appeals found violations of Texas Election Code §§ 253.094(b) and 253.031(b). See Cook, 385 S.W.3d at 603. The court of appeals concluded that “WOL Church made campaign contributions from its own property in connection with a measureonly recall election without properly making the contributions to a measureonly committee” in violation of Texas Election Code § 253.096. Cook, 385 S.W.3d at 603. It further concluded that “WOL Church, a corporation, made a political contribution in connection with a recall election, including the circulation and submission of petitions to call an election, and failed to make 3 Cook also argued that Brown and WOL Church violated Election Code §§ 253.003 and 253.005 in connection with their violations of § 253.031. Section 253.003 prohibits “knowingly mak[ing] a political contribution in violation of” Chapter 253 or “knowingly accept[ing] a political contribution the person knows to have been made in violation of this chapter.” TEX. ELEC. CODE ANN. § 253.003. Section 253.005 forbids “knowingly mak[ing] or authoriz[ing] a political expenditure wholly or partly from a political contribution the person knows to have been made in violation of this chapter.” Id. § 253.005. 4 Case: 18-50108 Document: 00514884981 Page: 5 Date Filed: 03/22/2019 No. 18-50108 such contribution to a political committee” in violation of Texas Election Code §§ 253.096 and 253.094(b). Cook, 385 S.W.3d at 603. The court of appeals ordered the El Paso City Clerk to decertify the recall petition and rescind the scheduled recall election. WOL Church appealed to the Texas Supreme Court, but the Court denied WOL Church’s petition for review. The state trial court then entered an order granting Cook’s motion for partial summary judgment and finding Brown and WOL Church liable to Cook for violations of the Texas Election Code. Before the case could proceed to trial, WOL Church and Brown entered into an agreed judgment with Cook stating that they were liable to him for $475,000 in damages.