Attorney Jerad Najvar

04/21/2026

Politicians and judges in Texas right now too often enjoy a practical immunity from accountability for their criminal misconduct because when they get caught, too often the prosecutors drop charges in exchange for a mere resignation.

RESIGNATION ISN’T ENOUGH.

Officials entrusted with authority who abuse it should be prosecuted regardless of a resignation.

04/17/2026

Jerad Najvar, counsel for Plaintiffs Mark Goloby and Richard Vega, explained why he will seek review by the Texas Supreme Court:

"The Court of Appeals' fundamental mistake is to assume - at Harris County's desperate urging - that while Adrian Garcia clearly broke two good-government rules of law, he can only be held accountable for one of them. That is a false tension. Everyone agrees Garcia was illegally appointed to represent the County on the Gulf Coast Protection District in 2023. But the fact he actually assumed that second office, despite being ineligible, and sat as a GCPD board member for three years, also means he resigned as a matter of law from Commissioners' Court."

The stakes are high.

Richard Vega is the Republican nominee for Pct. 2, running against Garcia in November. But if the Court agrees that Garcia resigned from office in Aug 2023, the seat is currently vacant, and Pct. 2 voters are entitled to a special election to fill the seat THIS YEAR, which could result in another Republican on Commissioners' Court, allowing Vega and Ramsey together to thwart any tax increase or irresponsible budget in September 2026.

Mark Goloby is suing as a taxpayer to stop any further illegal salary payments to Garcia and any further payments for irresponsible spending approved with Garcia's vote as part of the 3-2 Democratic majority in 2021-2022 (and we know large sums of money remain to be spent pursuant to illegal votes during that period).

Below, watch the appellate argument held April 8, 2026. Jerad Najvar for Appellants; Jonathan Fombonne, acting County Attorney, for Respondents.

The First Court of Appeals issued a decision on April 16, holding that since Garcia was ineligible for appointment to the GCPD, he never legally assumed that office, and therefore did not resign as Commissioner.

01-25-00409-CV Mark Goloby and Richard Vega v. Lesley Briones, Adrian Garcia, Lina Hidalgo, Rodney Ellis, and Tom Ramsey, all in their official capacities as...

04/01/2026

Honored that a couple of my partners at Chalmers Adams are helping O’Keefe out in reply to this crazy restraining order.

02/24/2026

CORRECTION: the County actually did respond 2/23 but for some reason I didn't get the normal email service from the court. These things happen. I'll be filing a Reply on behalf of Vega and asking the Court to rule as soon as possible. Stay tuned.

**

HARRIS COUNTY FAILS TO RESPOND TO RICHARD VEGA'S MANDAMUS PETITION

As discussed in a previous post, I'm representing Pct. 2 Commissioner candidate Richard Vega. Vega is running in the R primary in March. But I'm representing him because he's also seeking to force Harris County to order a special election to fill the remainder of the CURRENT term (through the end of 2026), which is CURRENTLY VACANT because Adrian Garcia resigned as a matter of law when he accepted a position on the Gulf Coast Protection District. We explained to the court that plenty of time remains to hold an election to allow a new rep to be seated in time to thwart any plans to raise taxes in September 2026.

The court doesn't have to request responses to a mandamus petition like this; if they don't see merit in it, they will just deny it without putting the opposing party to the expense of a response. Harris County has all along postured as if our arguments are frivolous. But back on 2/10, the First Court of Appeals requested a response from the County--a clear indication the Court sees potential merit in our arguments and wants the County to explain itself.

The Court gave Harris County until yesterday, 2/23, to file its response. Nothing was filed. Why can't Harris County respond to the arguments they claimed initially were frivolous?

We will take appropriate action in the Court.

02/11/2026

HOUSTON COURT OF APPEALS TO CONSIDER PCT. 2 CANDIDATE RICHARD VEGA'S REQUEST TO FORCE SPECIAL ELECTION FOR PCT. 2 FOR REMAINDER OF CURRENT TERM (POSSIBLY STOPPING TAX INCREASE IN 2026)

When I filed this case, Harris County attorneys threatened me with sanctions, arguing it was frivolous...as always, seeking to avoid accountability for their lawbreaking. Now, the First Ct of Appeals wants to hear oral argument--a clear indication the case presents serious issues.

I filed a lawsuit in 2024 because Adrian Garcia automatically resigned from office when he accepted appointment to the Gulf Coast Protection District, and proceeded to sit and vote both as a member of GCPD and Harris County Commissioners' Court. Under TX law, accepting appointment to a second public office constituted an automatic resignation from his Pct. 2 office. (While Harris County moved to dismiss, they also quietly replaced Garcia on the GCPD with another appointee--effectively acknowledging the two offices are incompatible and conflicting.) If the Court agrees with our arguments, then Pct. 2 IS CURRENTLY VACANT, Garcia has no right to vote on the Court and no right to salary, and Harris County will have to order a special election to fill the remainder of the current term, which runs through the end of 2026.

Why is this important? Among other things, Commissioners will have to vote in September 2026 on the tax rate and budget. If my client Richard Vega is elected to fill the remainder of 2026, Republicans would have 2 votes on the Commissioners' Court THIS YEAR, allowing them to thwart any tax increases by abstaining from any Commissioners' Court votes to increase taxes or adopt any irresponsible budget.

The Court of Appeals intends to hold oral argument in "early April" 2026.

12/12/2025

My client's statement, which I echo. We take bully politicians to the woodshed. Major victory for the anti-SLAPP Act, which I'll explain further in future posts.

You LOSE Representative PAT CURRY! The Waco Appellate Court knew LAWFARE when they saw it! We take bully politicians to the woodshed. Pat Curry is a disgrace to Waco & all of TEXAS!!

12/07/2025

Just settled in Washington DC, preparing to explain to a panel of the D.C. Circuit tomorrow morning why FDA's entire civil money penalty regime for to***co products violates the Seventh Amendment right to a jury trial. This is the first case to reach argument in a federal circuit court seeking to apply the Supreme Court's Jarkesy decision in the context of "to***co product" enforcement by FDA.

This will be the third oral argument I've had the privilege of presenting in federal circuit courts in 2025. I argued a First Amendment case against Houston (attorneys fee issue) and another case against FDA (USVA's challenge to the PMTA rule under the Regulatory Flexibility Act) in the Fifth Circuit, back in August and then Dec. 2, respectively. It is an honor to have the confidence of my clients and the opportunity to present our arguments at this level.

I'm looking forward to the argument tomorrow, and for a victory for the va**ng industry, especially the small business v**e shops and manufacturers, which have been unfairly maligned and misunderstood for years. If we get the court to understand why FDA cannot constitutionally impose debilitating civil fines through its in-house administrative court system, it will be a landmark victory, and I think will be an inflection point that will force the agency to start thinking more clearly about what enforcement in this industry should look like.

I'll give some substantive reaction to both arguments against FDA (in the Fifth and DC Circuits) later this week.

10/22/2025

ORAL ARGUMENT IN REGULATORY FLEXIBILITY ACT CASE FOR VA**NG INDUSTRY: DEC. 2, 2025 IN NEW ORLEANS.

I'll explain to three federal judges, in person, why the FDA's "certification" that the 2021 PMTA Rule (for "new to***co products") had no significant economic impact on small biz constitutes a "metaphysical deconstruction of the [Regulatory Flexibility Act]," as I wrote in our brief.

BUT THAT'S NOT ALL. In other good news, I also got notice last week that the D.C. Circuit will hear argument in my Seventh Amendment challenge to the FDA's administrative fine program on Dec. 8. We are asking the DC Circuit to recognize that the FDA lacks authority to impose fines through its administrative courts because this violates the right to a jury trial.

As I said before, when an appellate court sets a hearing for argument, your chances of winning increase dramatically.

Let's go.

Attorney Jerad Najvar
Chalmers, Adams, Backer & Kaufman LLC

10/06/2025

ORAL ARGUMENT IN OUR CASE CHALLENGING FDA'S "PREMARKET TO***CO APPLICATION" (PMTA) RULE SCHEDULED!

Very happy for my clients, the United States Va**ng Association, and the rest of the individual plaintiffs who put their name on the line for this lawsuit.

I just got the notice this morning; the Fifth Circuit will hear oral argument in our challenge to the PMTA Rule the first week of December 2025. New Orleans. Exact date and courtroom will be published when we get the details.

This is excellent news. The Court only schedules oral argument in about 30% of civil cases (among those where a party is represented by an attorney; the percentage is much lower when you look at all civil cases (including pro se parties) together). They schedule argument when at least one judge on the 3-judge panel believes the appellant might have a good case.

So this means we've cleared an important hurdle, and the court wants to probe FDA's rationale here.

I can't wait to show up in New Orleans in December and explain why FDA's refusal to acknowledge the small business effects of the PMTA Rule is absurd, and a misreading of FDA's obligations under the Regulatory Flexibility Act.

Thank you to the USVA and to all the individual Plaintiffs in this case who have shown yourselves willing to continue this fight and put your name on the line.

09/23/2025

Accountability is coming for the Left’s dishonest lawfare.