Texas Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico asked a Texas court on Wednesday to unseal two depositions given by his Republican opponent, Ken Paxton, arguing the testimony could raise questions about the attorney general’s conduct.
Talarico’s campaign filed a petition in Collin County seeking the release of depositions Paxton gave in 2019 and 2022 in connection with a civil dispute involving Unity Resources, an energy company for which Paxton previously served as an attorney and board member, and in which he invested. The Democrat’s campaign claims in the petition that Paxton’s depositions raise “substantial ethical questions,” according to the complaint.
The dispute dates to 2016, when North Texas businessman Charles Loper III, who oversees Paxton’s blind trust, accused Unity Resources and investors Byron Cook and Joel Hochberg of defrauding him. Cook and Hochberg countered that Loper and Paxton were attempting to smear their reputations because the two men were expected to serve as witnesses in a separate securities fraud case against Paxton.
Paxton was not a defendant in the Unity lawsuit, which was settled in 2023, but he sat for depositions in 2019 and 2022. Paxton reportedly acknowledged during his 2019 testimony that he provided Unity records to attorney Mitch Little, who represented Loper in the lawsuit, according to reporting from the Wall Street Journal. The report raised questions about whether Paxton had disclosed information protected by attorney-client privilege.
In the complaint, Talarico argues that although he has not seen the depositions, reporting on them raises questions about Paxton’s fitness for office, which they claim is enough to make them accessible to the public under Texas law.
The Washington Examiner reached out to Paxton and Talarico for comment.
The request comes as Talarico increasingly focuses his general election campaign on Paxton’s lengthy history of legal controversies.
Paxton was indicted on state securities fraud charges in 2015 over allegations that he encouraged investors to put money into a technology company without disclosing that he would be compensated. The case ended in 2024 under an agreement requiring Paxton to pay restitution and complete legal ethics courses without admitting guilt.
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Paxton was also impeached by the Republican-controlled Texas House in 2023 on allegations that included bribery and abuse of office. The state Senate later acquitted him on articles considered at trial.
Recent polling suggests Talarico’s strategy is working, as he leads Paxton by 3 points, a narrower margin than the Democrat’s 4-point lead in July.