Ongoing Legal Battles

Dallas dentist Richard Malouf sues more WFAA reporters and Curbed.com

Waterpark-building dentist Richard Malouf has added a half dozen more defendants to his privacy lawsuit, stemming from media coverage of construction at his family's Strait Lane mansion. WFAA reporters Brett Shipp and Jason Trahan have been served, along with Jason's wife, Marina L. Trahan; attorney James "Rusty" Tucker; and Sarah Firshein, editor of Curbed.com, which is also named separately as a defendant.

Tucker is a private attorney who specializes in medical malpractice, among other areas. He did not immediately respond to a request for comment on why he would be included in this suit. Shipp and Trahan also could not be reached for comment, and Firshein declined to make a statement on the pending litigation against Curbed.com.

Apparently, the media conspiracy against the Maloufs has stretched nationwide and now includes New York-based Curbed.com.

In October 2012, Richard and Leanne Malouf sued real estate reporter Candy Evans, Belo Corporation, Channel 8 WFAA and reporter Byron Harris, and Laura Wilson, who happens to live next door to the would-be waterpark. The Maloufs alleged then that all parties had conspired to trespass on their property; invade their privacy; and defame, libel and slander the couple.

Evans is bearing the brunt of the blame for her work on CandysDirt.com and with WFAA. The Maloufs accuse Evans of working closely with Wilson to gain access to their home. Wilson, a renowned photographer, lives on Strait Lane with her husband, Bob. They are the parents of Hollywood heartthrobs Andrew, Luke and Owen Wilson.

"It's hard to tell where Candy Evans stops and WFAA starts," Richard Malouf testified during a pre-trial hearing in December. "They are all conspirators in this."

Apparently, the conspiracy is growing wider and now includes New York-based Curbed.com, which once dared to link to a WFAA story on the waterpark.

Richard Malouf is no stranger to legal drama. He's been charged with Medicaid fraud for his work at All Smiles Dental, and he's facing lawsuits from the Texas Attorney General and private attorneys under the False Claims Act.

WFAA won a 2013 Edward R. Murrow Award for its investigation of Texas Medicaid fraud, including the allegation that Malouf used taxpayer money to build his personal waterpark. Texas law generally prohibits the seizure of one's home, even in the event of wrongdoing, but there is a loophole.

"If that home is purchased with stolen money, or that home is purchased based on money that has been earned by falsehood or deceit, then that home is not protected at all," attorney Jim Moriarity told WFAA.

The Maloufs' jury trial against a host of media professionals for trespassing, invasion of privacy and defamation is slated to begin September 16, 2013, in Judge Sally Montgomery's court.

Richard and Leanne Malouf are suing to keep the media — and their own neighbors — off their property.

Significanthomes.com

Richard and Leanne Malouf are suing to keep the media — and their own neighbors — off their property.

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family values

Dallas sees Texas' biggest one-year jump in cost of raising kids

Courtesy of SmartAsset/iStock

Raising a child in Dallas will cost parents over $23,000 this year.

Raising a child is not an easy or inexpensive feat, and a new study has determined Dallas parents are saddled with the second-highest costs for childrearing in Texas, with expenses jumping higher than any other metro statewide since 2025.

SmartAsset's latest report, "Cost of Raising a Child in Major U.S. Metros – 2026 Study," calculated year-over-year changes in the annual cost of raising a child (factoring in childcare, additional housing costs, food, transportation, medical costs and other necessities) in the 48 largest U.S. metro areas. MIT's Living Wage Calculator was used to compare the living costs of a household with two working adults and one child to that of a childless household with two working adults.

Childrearing costs in Dallas-Fort Worth have grown 4.5 percent since last year, totaling $23,340 for a family of three in 2026. That's over $1,000 more than what it took to raise a child in 2025, and it's $1,414 higher than what it took in 2024.

This is how SmartAsset broke down the cost for raising a child in Dallas:

Cost of childcare: $10,736
Cost of food: $1,826
Other expenses: $10,778

Though Dallas has the second-steepest costs for raising a child in Texas, the metro is actually much more affordable than most other places in the U.S.: DFW ranked 39th in SmartAsset's national list of cities with the highest childrearing costs in 2026, making it the 10th most affordable U.S. metro for raising a family.

San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont in California topped the list with the highest childrearing costs in the U.S., at $43,171. The cost for raising a child in this California metro soared nearly 11 percent higher since last year.

Memphis, Tennessee ranked dead last as the most affordable U.S. metro for raising a child in 2026. Families will spend less than $20,000 to raise a child in Memphis, only 3.24 percent more than what was needed in 2025.

Raising a child in other Texas metros
It may come as no surprise that Austin is the most expensive place to raise a child in Texas, and it appeared as the 31st most expensive U.S. metro for families. Parents will spend nearly $25,000 to raise a child in the state's capital city, which is $703 higher than it was a year ago.

Meanwhile, San Antonio-New Braunfels is the most affordable metro in the Lone Star State for raising a family, and it's the third-most affordable place for raising a child nationwide. San Antonio parents will spend $21,393, or $448 more than last year, on their childrearing costs.

Houston also ranked among the top 10 most affordable U.S. metros for raising a child, landing in 7th place nationally, with childrearing costs adding up to $22,605 in 2026. That's only $737 more than last year.

The top 10 most affordable U.S. metros for raising a child in 2026 are:

No. 1 – Memphis, Tennessee ($19,922)
No. 2 – Nashville, Davidson-Murfreesboro-Franklin, Tennessee ($21,216)
No. 3 – San Antonio-New Braunfels ($21,393)
No. 4 – Birmingham, Alabama ($21,684)
No. 5 – Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, Virginia ($22,314)
No. 6 – Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, Georgia ($22,470)
No. 7 – Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands ($22,605)
No. 8 – Richmond, Virginia ($22,658)
No. 9 – Louisville/Jefferson County, Kentucky ($23,270)
No. 10 – Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington ($23,340)

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