What a difference a comma makes! Compare "Let's eat,
Grandma," to "Let's eat Grandma." Less dramatic
but just as significant is the Texas Supreme Court's parsing of
punctuation in Sullivan v. Abraham, No. 14-0987, 59 Tex.
S. Ct. J. 652 (April 15, 2016).
That case was an appeal from an award of attorney's fees
under the Texas Citizens Participation Act (TCPA). The TCPA
provides for the expedited dismissal of a legal action that
implicates a defendant's right of free speech or other First
Amendment right when the party filing the action cannot establish
the Act's threshold requirement of a prima facie case. Tex.
Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 27.005. A successful motion to
dismiss under the Act entitles the moving party to an award of
court costs, reasonable attorney's fees, and other expenses
incurred in defending against the legal action. Id. §
27.009(a).
