Hicks Thomas Law Firm and Five Partners Earn Benchmark Litigation Honors

HOUSTON, Oct. 3, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Hicks Thomas LLP and five of the firm's partners have earned recognition in the 2020 edition of Benchmark Litigation, a prestigious annual guide to America's leading trial firms and attorneys.

Hicks Thomas co-founder John B. Thomas and firm partners Robin Harrison and Jay Old were named Local Litigation Stars; and firm partners Courtney Ervin and Stewart Hoffer were recognized as Future Stars, with Mr. Hoffer also named a Labor & Employment Star. The Texas-based firm made Benchmark's list of "Recommended" trial law firms.

For over 30 years, Mr. Thomas has represented a diverse range of clients in significant litigation in state and federal courts across the country and in domestic and international arbitration in the U.S. and abroad. Recently, Mr. Thomas represented Mattress Firm, Inc. (one of the country's largest retailers) in highly publicized litigation against its long-time supplier Tempur-Sealy, Inc. after news of the companies' breakup resulted in Tempur-Sealy stock losing nearly $1 billion in market capitalization. He has been recognized by Chambers USA as being among the country's leading environmental trial lawyers and has been listed as a Texas top business litigator by Texas Super Lawyers each year since the magazine's 2003 inception.

Mr. Harrison has achieved a record of success representing plaintiffs and defendants in trials and arbitrations, including international arbitration, for over 35 years. He has extensive experience handling cases involving breach of fiduciary duties, breach of contract, misappropriation of trade secrets, fraud and misrepresentation, and professional liability disputes. He is Board Certified in Civil Trial Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization and has been recognized in Chambers USA for Commercial Litigation, The Best Lawyers in America for Business Litigation and Oil and Gas Law, and for Business Litigation by Texas Super Lawyers magazine since 2004.

For over three decades, Jay Old has represented businesses and professionals of all backgrounds and sizes in complex commercial and insurance litigation across the country. Earlier this year, Mr. Old won a significant state Supreme Court decision for the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association, which reaffirmed the importance of attorney-client privilege. He is a past president of the Texas Association of Defense Counsel, has chaired the Construction Law Section of the State Bar of Texas, and served on numerous task forces appointed by both the State Bar and the Texas Supreme Court. He is also Board Certified in Personal Injury Trial Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization and is a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates, ABOTA.

Ms. Ervin is one of Texas' up-and-coming female trial lawyers, having secured numerous victories for her clients, including a take-nothing judgment in arbitration for three major international oil and gas exploration companies. Handling everything from important, cutting-edge energy matters involving first-of-its-kind business ventures to complex, insurance coverage litigation, Ms. Ervin practices high-stakes commercial litigation in state and federal court and in arbitration. In addition to energy and insurance litigation, Ms. Ervin handles disputes in the construction, real estate, private equity, information technology, and health care spaces.

Mr. Hoffer has a long list of trial successes winning multimillion-dollar judgments in breach of contract, trade secrets, and labor and employment disputes. Recently, he challenged the City of Houston's failure to comply with a journalist's efforts to expose potential irregularities in the city's award of a lucrative recycling contract. He also served as the sole trial lawyer, and part of the appellate team that changed Texas procedural and substantive law regarding whether a court could require the removal, and enjoin the re-publication of, speech adjudicated as defamatory. He is Board Certified in Civil Trial Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization.

Since 2008, Benchmark Litigation has recognized top firms and attorneys through extensive interviews with litigators and their clients. Researchers examine recent casework and evaluate peer feedback. The guide will be published in October. To view the rankings online, visit https://www.benchmarklitigation.com/.

Founded in 1997, Texas-based Hicks Thomas LLP is a premier litigation firm representing plaintiffs and defendants across the nation. With offices in Houston, Austin, Beaumont, Amarillo, and Sacramento, California, the firm provides in-depth experience in cases involving oil and gas, environmental, complex commercial, toxic tort, construction, products liability, corporate governance, securities, banking, insurance coverage, transportation, trade secrets and business litigation. Visit the firm at http://www.hicks-thomas.com.

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SOURCE Hicks Thomas LLP