No movement in Keller, Grapevine-Colleyville public records lawsuits
Nine months after two Tarrant County school districts sued Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton to block the release of records that were previously deemed public, the lawsuits are still pending, with no resolution in sight.
Last year, the Star-Telegram and district residents submitted public information requests to Keller and Grapevine-Colleyville for copies of unredacted invoices for work performed by attorney Tim Davis and his firm, Jackson Walker. The requestors also asked for invoices from Davis’ former firm, Cantey Hanger.
Davis was previously counsel for both districts’ school boards. He parted ways with Keller in March, and Jackson Walker resigned as Grapevine-Colleyville’s counsel in May. Davis and Jackson Walker are, however, still representing Keller’s board in ongoing litigation related to last year’s plan to split the school district in half.
Following the public information requests for the invoices, Jackson Walker attorney Ali Williams sought a decision from the attorney general allowing the districts to withhold those records, citing attorney-client privilege among other exceptions. However, the attorney general’s office ruled in August that fee details are not privileged, and ordered Keller and Grapevine-Colleyville to make the unredacted invoices public.
In September, Davis filed the lawsuits against Paxton on behalf of Keller and Grapevine-Colleyville challenging that decision.
Keller board president John Birt and Grapevine-Colleyville board president Dalia Begin did not respond to messages asking if their school boards would continue with the litigation to withhold the invoices. Emails sent to Keller Superintendent Cory Wilson, Keller spokesperson Bryce Nieman and Grapevine-Colleyville spokesperson Nicole Lyons were not returned.
A message left with the attorney general’s office asking for a status update on the lawsuits was not returned.
The requests for the unredacted invoices followed reports last year that Keller had paid Jackson Walker more than $500,000 between 2022 and 2025. Approximately $170,000 of that was spent between December 2024 and May 2025 amid the Keller school board’s push to split the district.
At the time, Davis was viewed by many as being central to that plan, which was ultimately called off in March 2025. Davis was elected chair of the Tarrant County Republican Party, replacing Bo French, who stepped down to run for Texas Railroad commissioner. Davis also serves as counsel for the Texas State Board of Education.