Keller school board moves to block release of latest law firm invoices
Lawyers representing the Keller school board are attempting to withhold from public disclosure their law firm’s latest invoices for services rendered to the trustees.
On Aug. 4, the Star-Telegram sent a public records request to the district for “all invoices submitted to the district by Jackson Walker LLP since May 23, 2025.”
The district has fulfilled previous requests for invoices from the Fort Worth firm, but on Thursday Jackson Walker attorney Ali Williams sent a “10-day” letter expressing the board’s intent to appeal to the Texas Attorney General’s Office to ask it to withhold the requested documents.
Williams, fellow Jackson Walker attorney Tim Davis and others at the firm represent the board of trustees as a separate entity from the school district. Three board members face lawsuits seeking their removal over alleged violations of the Texas Open Meetings Act and school board policy.
The district possesses documents that are responsive to the Star-Telegram’s request, the letter states, but it believes some of them are excepted from public disclosure under statutes in the Government Code allowing for exemptions due to ongoing litigation, “certain legal matters,” agency memoranda and other criteria.
Williams did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Star-Telegram reached out to district spokesperson Bryce Nieman for comment, but did not get an immediate response.
Submitted to the district on May 23, the latest Jackson Walker invoice made available to the public was for just under $172,000, which included over $8,800 in expenses. The descriptions of the services and expenses were redacted.
District officials told the Star-Telegram that Jackson Walker submits invoices with these sections already redacted.
Davis has told the Star-Telegram that the invoices are redacted to safeguard the attorney-client relationship. While the district is the payer of the bills, the client is the board of trustees, thus the district does not have the authority to see the specific legal services rendered, he said.
Payments for legal services for the trustees has been a growing point of concern for some Keller ISD taxpayers since the board hired Davis in June 2022. Since then, Jackson Walker and Davis’ previous firm Cantey Hanger have invoiced the district for more than $500,000.
Davis did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
During that time, the district has addressed budget shortfalls with staff cuts, service and program reductions and an attempt to split the district earlier this year that ultimately failed.
The district made several cuts to staff and services in January 2024 in response to a $28 million budget shortfall. These actions included cutting librarian positions and making those who stayed on work at multiple campuses, among others.
In April, district officials announced more staff and program cuts in response to a $9.4 million deficit.
Keller ISD and some trustees now face legal action as a result of the attempt to split the district.
Attempting to withhold documents and information from the public has become a hallmark of the district since Davis was hired to represent the board, according to Laney Hawes, a Keller ISD parent and vocal opponent of the split proposal, book bans and other culture war issues the district has dealt with in recent years.
“We truly believe Tim Davis was hired in part to allow the board to operate secretly and without having to answer to the public or allow us to be involved in their policymaking decisions,” said Hawes, who is also a cofounder of the nonprofit advocacy group Keller ISD Parents for Public Education.
“I can’t even count the number of times I’ve requested public information about school board policies and district decisions only to receive a letter from Tim Davis’ law firm where they are appealing to the Texas AG to withhold information,” she said.
