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For those who have been severely injured and crippled by pain, I understand you. I understand what you are going through more than almost any other lawyer. I know the pain of my back exploding and then collapsing, and having to be rebuilt. I know how nerve damage feels and lost both of my feet and lower legs because of it. I understand. And because of it, I can explain it and argue it– the pain, the damage to your life and finances, the emotions and sometimes break in personal relationships – to the judge and jury, to the big company and insurance companies that back them. We sue the federal, state, county and city governments. Since 2021, I have fought through tremendous injuries. I’m still here and still fighting. Now, I’m fighting to stand and walk again. Through all three years of my injuries, I have been fighting for my clients, with Erik by my side the whole way.
We fight for those who have been injured – both individuals and companies – against large, international corporations and their large law firms. We don’t back down. We hold our own. We handle personal injury and business litigation. Erik and I have been fighting shoulder-to-shoulder, sometimes back-to-back. We have fought international oil and gas companies, trucking companies, multi-national conglomerates, and their huge insurers. We continue to do so. If you or a family member has been seriously injured, we can help you, and understand you in a way that most can’t.
I’ve been fighting my whole life. I was an amateur boxer, I worked in jails in Arkansas before law school. I’m not afraid of anyone. Now, I’m fighting to stand and walk again. I have also dedicated my life to serving others, first as a teacher with Teach for America in Helena, Arkansas, and for more than 20 years as an attorney. For the vast majority of those, I have been ranked as a Rising Star or a Super Lawyer, the top 5% of lawyers in the State of Texas, as voted by my peers, an honor I am extremely proud of.
At Law Done Right, we have always fought the biggest companies, the biggest law firms, and the federal government. And we have won. We are a small firm. We like it that way so we can deal individually with all of our clients, and they can know us personally, and we fight the biggest companies and the government and don’t back down.
I spent my first decade practicing law working for and being trained by some of the largest and most prestigious law firms in Houston and the United States, including Fulbright & Jaworski, LLP (now Norton Rose Fulbright) and Bracewell LLP.
I wasn’t just sitting in the office billing hours. I tried lawsuits in state and federal courts and in front of arbitration panels. I took hundreds of depositions and presented clients, fact and expert witnesses in depositions and at trial. I worked on huge cases with millions of pages of documents and made them easy to understand, and represented individuals and small businesses with the same effort and attention to detail. My experience included product liability litigation, mass torts, business litigation, bankruptcy litigation and construction law, among others. I advised individuals and small businesses as well in the drafting of their contracts and assisted them in negotiations. (Representative experience listed below.)
In January 2014, I left the large law firms and started a boutique law firm serving both individuals and smaller businesses. We are Law Done Right. This applies to how we treat our clients and how we practice law. We believe first and foremost that our clients’ interests come first and we are here to serve. We offer the skill and expertise that clients expect from large law firms and provide the personal service associated with a boutique law practice. When you hire us, you get us, personally.
My Experience Working With Erik Knockaert
Erik Knockaert and I have been friends since the first week of law school at the University of Texas in 1999. We both graduated with honors. We worked together in the 2000s when we were trained as big-firm litigators. Each of us is a capable first-chair attorney with the humility and personal relationship to support each other in all that we do.
REPRESENTATIVE CAREER PERSONAL INJURY EXPERIENCE:
- Federal Tort Claims Act lawsuit on behalf of a victim of the Sutherland Springs First Baptist Church massacre, where a former Air Force soldier was able to buy a gun due to the negligence of the government. We sued the federal government and won. We were part of a group of plaintiffs’ lawyers representing all the victims, and we took on a major role. We took the trial testimony of both the shooter’s parents, his former roommate, and his psychologist. We took the knees out of the government’s expert psychologist witness, and our work was highlighted in the Court’s judgment, and picked up and quoted by major newspapers and TV media.
- Federal Tort Claims Act lawsuiton behalf of the survivors of a soldier massacre of his wife and neighbors, after being reported for domestic abuse. Suit against the U.S. Army for negligently undertaking a duty to his wife to provide domestic violence protection services, pursuant to DOD regulations, and not following them.
- Leadtrial counsel in multiple personal injury arbitrations on behalf of employees suing companies that refused to carry workers’ compensation insurance, including for truck drivers, Walmart workers and a disabled adult care facility attacked by one of the cared-for individuals. We have both tried these cases to a verdict and settled them, winning compensation for our clients.
- Lead trial counsel for truck driver permanently injured due to defective winch bar. Reached a favorable settlement in personal injury arbitration.
- Represented customer of a club who had his car shot up by the armed security guard, trying to hit him, and who then lied to the police, and was backed up in those lies by the bouncer. Malicious prosecution and assault suit against club and security company.
- Represented an elderly customer against office supply store. Our client was viciously assaulted and beaten by the store manager, who pled guilty. We secured compensation for our client’s permanent injuries.
- Represented passenger in T-Bone car wreck that caused traumatic brain injury.
- Represented family seriously injured by 18-wheeler speeding down feeder road in a construction zone when our client and her children were turning onto their land.
- Lead counsel in oxygen-fed fire caseagainst hospice company and doctor who gave multiple mind-altering drugs and oxygen to a disabled veteran with a long history of smoking.
- Lead trial counsel in many other serious auto and workplace injury
- Handled hundreds of toxic tort claimsinvolving premises liability and products liability.
- Handled multiple claims for injurydue to tire tread separation.
REPRESENTATIVE CAREER BUSINESS LITIGATION EXPERIENCE:
- Lead trial counselin a multi-part business-fraud case in bankruptcy court involving alleged fraudulent transfers between businesses.
- Lead trial counsel successfully defending real estate broker from multi-million dollar defamation and tortious interference claims brought by competitor.
- Lead counsel for property developer against MUD district in fight over major infrastructure improvements.
- Co-trial counsel to three-judge arbitration panelwinning valuation dispute involving recycled aggregates, including cross-examining other side’s expert and key fact witnesses and presenting client’s key fact witness and expert at arbitration trial.
- Co-trial counsel to three-judge arbitration panelwinning dispute in a post-closing purchase price adjustment in the sale of a construction company, including presenting and cross-examining key witnesses at arbitration trial.
- Lead counsel for small energy company against multinationals in international arbitration regarding foreign gas-field interest transfer.
- Defended multiple property developersagainst claims of fraud, breach of contract and RICO for failed re-development of large parcel of property in Houston, Texas.
- Trial counsel defeating injunctionand forcing dismissal of $11 million business tort claims regarding sale and disputed ownership of real estate.
- Successfully represented trucking companyfacing loss of DOT operating authority.
- Successfully represented health-care companyin enforcement action with the State of Texas, maintaining license and significantly decreasing proposed fine.
- Lead counsel representing commercial real estate brokers in lawsuits against property owners for unpaid commissions.
- Lead arbitration counsel representing specialty contractor in claims stemming from sinking of major highway and railroad line
- Represent specialty contractor in negotiating terms of subcontracts with much larger general contractors and premise owners.
