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Organization and Philosophy
The firm's Litigation section includes both partners and associates in Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston, San Angelo, and San Antonio, enabling us to offer a full spectrum of services for clients in all aspects of civil litigation and white-collar criminal defense.
The Litigation section's philosophy is grounded upon one fundamental tenet: a client's litigation matter is best handled, and can be resolved most advantageously, if the firm's attorneys are capable of successfully trying the case and are willing to do so, and the opponent knows it. The Litigation section has found that this philosophy (and our reputation that stems from it) allows us to achieve favorable outcomes and avoid unnecessary litigation costs.
At the same time, we recognize there is no substitute for experience and training in specialized fields of litigation, and our practice groups permit the concentration of this expertise in areas that include the following listed below:
- Patent, trademark and copyright litigation
- Technology litigation
- Telecommunications litigation including consumer class actions, intellectual property disputes, advertising complaints, construction and cable cutting cases, labor matters, and contract disputes
- Defense of Insurance Bad Faith Claims
- Media, including First Amendment litigation, pre-publication reviews, Freedom of Information requests, and libel matters
- Securities litigation, covering litigation of securities, RICO, and accounting malpractice claims, and arbitration of securities matters
- Banking and lender liability litigation
- Health care commercial disputes, medical malpractice defense, and nursing home issues
- Real Estate and environmental litigation
- Tort and insurance, from claims defense to coverage opinions
- Aviation, from air disaster litigation to property claims
- Construction, architect, and engineer litigation
- Public law, ranging from inmate constitutional challenges to election contests
- White collar criminal defense
- Condemnation and eminent domain litigation
- Workers' compensation non-subscriber/personal injury defense
- Appellate practice in state and federal courts
The Litigation section also believes that a case is most likely to be successfully resolved if it is individually evaluated at the inception of the representation; thus, Jackson Walker's approach is tailored to the nature of the lawsuit and the client's needs. As a consequence, the firm assists clients in developing case budgets and, where appropriate, in employing alternative fee arrangements. Jackson Walker trial lawyers have long been sensitive to staffing concerns, and partners and associates at all levels strive to assign tasks to attorneys with appropriate experience levels to ensure cost-effective legal services. The firm's attorneys are also thoroughly experienced in all forms of alternative dispute resolution, including mediations and arbitrations. In the final analysis, however, Jackson Walker's ability to prepare and try cases is the key ingredient of the Litigation section's century-old reputation for excellence.
Architects and Engineers
Jackson Walker has traditionally defended architects and engineers in litigation involving claims of professional liability. We also have represented builders, contractors, subcontractors, owners, and lenders in a variety of construction litigation matters. The firm's experienced attorneys bring to bear a comprehensive knowledge of the industry, including the technical capabilities of the various disciplines and the legal relationships between the parties involved in substantial construction projects.
Aviation
For more than 50 years, Jackson Walker has had a substantial practice in aviation law, representing aviation insurers, major airlines, airports, and manufacturers of aircraft, aircraft engines and component parts. Jackson Walker handles all forms of aviation related products liability and contract litigation, including commercial, private and military accidents, both in the United States and abroad, and additionally represents aviation industry clients in FAA and other regulatory matters. The Jackson Walker Aviation Practice Group is staffed by attorneys and support personnel with substantial aviation experience, including ATP pilots currently flying with major air carriers and attorneys with commercial instrument ratings and military and civilian pilot-in-command designations in various helicopters and complex fixed wing aircraft. The Aviation Group also publishes the JW Flyer, a newsletter dedicated to informing the aviation community about developments in Aviation Law in Texas and the Southwest.
Bad Faith, Coverage and Subrogation
The firm defends suits and claims where insurance carriers, agents, and brokers are charged with liability under a variety of legal theories such as violations of the Texas Insurance Code, the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act, breach of contract, Stowers actions, and the tort of bad faith. Jackson Walker's attorneys have represented insurers who write general liability, officers and directors, homeowners, automobile, life, and health insurance. The firm regularly provides coverage opinions and reservation of rights agreements to insurers, represent insurers in suits over coverage, and handle retrospective claims on behalf of insurers. The firm's attorneys also pursue and defend subrogation claims.
Insurance Defense
Jackson Walker's insurance defense group consists of attorneys in all of our offices. The firm's attorneys represent insurance industry clients in matters ranging from traditional insurance defense litigation to coverage and bad faith claims. Our firm defends companies with large self-insured retentions in professional and product liability claims, as well as casualty and property loss.
In addition to significant trial experience, many of our attorneys have previous professional experience that provides helpful insight into our clients' needs and business practices. For example, the litigation section includes former engineers, underwriters, reporters, educators, pharmacists, commercial and military pilots, and members of the petroleum industry.
Intellectual Property
Winning an IP case is the product of experience and the execution of a skillful, balanced strategy. Jackson Walker's team of IP attorneys and trial lawyers have litigated all types of intellectual property matters in federal and state courts across the United States, from California to Virginia, and from Illinois to Texas. JW has successfully represented numerous corporations, including Fortune 500 companies, in infringement lawsuits involving trademarks, trade dress, trade secrets, patents, and copyrights. Our experience includes successful appeals to the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals, the Trademark Trial & Appeal Board, and the U.S. Supreme Court. Our IP trial lawyers have also enforced and defended our clients' intellectual property rights in arbitrations, alternative dispute forums, and proceedings before the International Trade Commission.
Media
Jackson Walker's media law group is one of the most prominent in the country, providing a full range of services to its clients in the areas of media and first amendment litigation, communications and telecommunications litigation, intellectual property litigation for media law clients, access to government information and litigation related to advertising and entertainment law. Jackson Walker's media law group has been involved in litigation on behalf of media clients in state or federal court in 33 states and the District of Columbia.
Our media law group has provided counsel regarding prepublication review of news articles, broadcasts and advertisements; responses to subpoenas, including protection of confidential sources, notes and outtakes; and defense of libel, obscenity, invasion of privacy, and intentional infliction of emotional distress cases. The media law group has also represented media clients in litigation seeking access to government information and in administrative proceedings regarding communications law issues ranging from FCC regulations to postal permit, circulations/distribution, advertising, and anti-trust issues. The firm has extensive experience in appeals of media related litigation in both state appellate courts and the federal Courts of Appeals. Working with Jackson Walker's appellate specialists, Jackson Walker has been responsible for the development of a significant body of appellate decisions relating to media law. Jackson Walker also regularly handles the defense or prosecution of trademark, copyright and other intellectual property matters on behalf of its media clients. The media law group, working with Jackson Walker's labor and employment lawyers, regularly represents media entities in employee related disputes including suits related to employment contracts, personnel issues and discrimination cases.
Medical Malpractice
Jackson Walker has considerable experience in defending medical malpractice claims against hospitals, physicians, and other health care providers. We often represent hospitals concerning the hospital's liability for the alleged malpractice of physicians, nurses, and other employees under apparent or ostensible agency theories, as well as the hospital's liability for its policies, procedures and credentialing. The firm's representation of physicians and hospitals has included the defense of claims of negligence during post-operative care and post-procedure treatment, failure to obtain informed consent, failure to timely diagnose, and loss of chance of survival. In addition to litigation defense, we have been called upon to review the legal ramifications of certain proposed policies and procedures considered by hospitals and health care groups.
Products Liability
In addition to defending general negligence claims, Jackson Walker attorneys have broad experience defending products liability suits throughout Texas. The cases handled by our attorneys include a diverse array of products such as automobiles, tires, wheels, bicycles, engines, aircraft, cranes, trailers, and lawn mowers, as well as many others.
Some of the firm's products liability clients include: Honda of North America, Mercedes-Benz, General Motors, Fruehauf Trailer Corporation, Great Dane Trailers, Inc., Hayes Wheels International, Pratt & Whitney - Canada, Inc., United Technologies Corporation, Campbell Soup, Searle Pharmaceutical, and other national and international corporations.
Securities Litigation and Arbitration
Jackson Walker has been engaged in the defense of lawsuits involving claims of violations of the federal and state securities laws, as well as claims for common law fraud and negligence. In these cases, which have been both class actions and individual claims, we have represented brokerage houses, accounting firms, underwriters, outside directors, management and inside directors, corporate defendants, and individual defendants.
Additionally, we have represented brokerage firms and individual brokers in recruitment litigation and arbitrations. We have also defended clients in arbitrations involving customer complaints.
Telecommunications
The strength of the firm's telecommunications litigation practice lies in its ability to combine exceptional trial and appellate capabilities with technical expertise and an understanding of the industry. Several of the firm's litigation partners have represented telecommunications companies since before the break-up of the AT&T Bell System. The unique perspective these attorneys contribute to the firm's telecommunications practice benefit our clients who know that they are hiring not just skilled litigators, but skilled litigators with knowledge of the industry, its history, and its players.
The variety of state and federal court litigation that the firm has handled is a function of the many industry sectors and capacities in which our telecommunications clients operate. Much of the litigation we handle focuses, for example, on our clients' roles as innovators, researchers and developers. Other cases arise from our clients' roles as service providers and equipment manufacturers, and as advertisers, wholesalers and retailers.
The firm also represents telecommunications companies as employers. Attorneys in the firm's labor and litigation groups handle EEOC claim investigations and collective bargaining agreement arbitrations, as well as state and federal lawsuits alleging discrimination, retaliation, and ERISA violations. Our attorneys have handled sales force commission disputes ranging from single plaintiff state court claims to federal court class actions arising from major organizational shifts.
Given the mobility of the high tech work force, the firm also has handled numerous disputes involving industry leaders over the ability to protect trade secrets and to enforce nondisclosure agreements, covenants not to compete, and similar restrictive covenants, for example, in stock option agreements. Frequently, such controversies over departing employees erupt quickly and lead to fast-paced suits for injunctive relief ranging from restrictions in work scope to limitations on recruitment. The firm's ability to gain speed and advantage in these lawsuits again is a function of trial capability combined with experience learning and communicating highly technical subjects.
Tort and Personal Injury
Our attorneys have defended thousands of personal injury and wrongful death cases over the past 100 years. Additionally, our firm has a substantial practice representing insureds in cases where their conduct is governed by federal statutes, such as the Jones Act or the Federal Employers' Liability Act. In addition to trial experience in the major cities in Texas, Jackson Walker has successfully defended and tried cases in forums traditionally unfavorable to defendants, such as Brazoria, Galveston, Harrison, Jasper, Jefferson, Madison, Maverick, Starr, and many other Texas counties. The types of cases we have handled cannot be easily categorized. However, a representative sampling of the types of cases includes: automobile and trucking accidents; premises liability; aviation accidents; food contamination; railroad, industrial, and construction accidents; and toxic torts such as asbestos.
Financial Institution Litigation
Jackson Walker recognizes there is no substitute for experience and training in specialized fields of litigation. The Financial Institution Litigation group includes partners and associates in Dallas, Houston, Austin, Fort Worth, San Antonio, and San Angelo, and has represented a large number of financial institutions, including national banks, super regional banks, savings and loan associations, money center banks and state banks. We have represented financial institutions directly, as agents for participated credits, and as participants.
Jackson Walker has represented financial institutions in hundreds of actions brought on behalf of the financial institution for collection of debts, and brought against the financial institution under countless lender liability and other theories. Jackson Walker was the outside law firm used most frequently by the purchasers of the failed First Republic Banks and MBanks. As a result, we handled hundreds of special asset and lender liability cases and work-outs. In fact, we were advised that Jackson Walker handled more collection and lender liability defense matters than any other single law firm arising out of the failure of the First Republic Bank system (over two thousand matters). Out of the numerous litigated matters from the First Republic Bank portfolio handled to conclusion, only one litigated matter resulted in an adverse judgment. The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals later reversed in part and remanded the balance of the case to the trial court. In doing so, our litigators developed wide ranging experience in usury claims, the National Bank Act, foreclosure issues, injunction actions involving real estate and other bank collateral, duty of good faith claims, offset issues, assignments of rents, limited guaranties, RICO claims, receiverships used to chill foreclosures, and other cutting-edge financial institution issues.
After the bank failure avalanche passed, in addition to litigation involving bank operations and more typical financial institution disputes including trust and fiduciary litigation, we handled a large volume of cases involving alleged forgeries, fictitious payees, wrongful repossession, deceptive trade practices, conversion, fraud, breach of fiduciary duties, and other theories. One of our clients challenged us to consider handling cases involving claims under $250,000 on a general fixed fee plus expenses basis. To date, we have handled well over one hundred cases on a fixed fee arrangement and have handled other, more involved matters on other alternative fee arrangements, including capped fees.
We realize that bankers have budgets and that litigation sometimes operates to disrupt financial cost centers and group budgets. We strive to work with our financial institution clients to accurately forecast fees and, in appropriate circumstances, set fees in a manner that allows for accurate litigation budget planning. We know that sophisticated institutions sometimes require reporting and sensitivity to lines of authority. We regularly create and manage responses to reporting requirements. We communicate with our financial institution clients as the client's needs are determined. We also use electronic billing and task code billing for financial institutions that require it.
As some examples of our recent representations of financial institutions, we represented a national bank against a borrower on a significant loan where the borrower had converted collateral worth over $3 million. The borrower alleged that he was justified in his actions because the bank had breached the loan agreement and committed numerous other wrongful acts due to the bank's actions in allowing another borrower to assume the loan over the original borrower's objection. The borrower brought a counterclaim against the bank for $6 million in damages. We tried the case before three arbitrators and prevailed on all claims and theories. An award was entered in favor of the bank for over $3 million in damages, all attorneys' fees, pre- and post-judgment interest, and arbitration costs. The borrower's $6 million counterclaim against the bank was dismissed with prejudice. Since the Judgment was entered, we have received additional attorneys' fees from the borrower over and above the amount awarded.
In another case, lawyers from the firm's Dallas and San Angelo offices represented the nation's largest savings and loan association in a lawsuit in West Texas arising out of a fraudulent factoring scheme. The entity that issued the fraudulent invoices had been a bank customer. Plaintiffs began factoring invoices as a result of a communication from a bank officer. The plaintiffs alleged claims for fraud, negligent misrepresentation, negligence, and breach of a duty of good faith and fair dealing. The plaintiffs sought actual damages in excess of $3 million and punitive damages. After a 23 day trial, the trial judge exonerated the bank, finding that the plaintiffs' losses were caused by the actions of other parties and that the plaintiffs could not have reasonably relied on the bank officer's statements.
In yet another case, we were hired as local counsel in Austin in a case brought by six national banks against the Texas Banking Commissioner, challenging the constitutionality of an amendment to the Texas Business & Commerce Code during a recent legislative session. That amendment at Tex. Bus. & Com. Code § 4.112 prohibited banks from charging non-customers a check cashing fee. We were able to secure a temporary injunction in favor of the Banks prohibiting enforcement of § 4.112, and subsequently obtained an order from the federal court granting summary judgment in favor of the Banks, thereby invalidating the Texas statute. The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed that finding in favor of our bank clients.
We have been very successful in having matters against our bank clients referred to binding arbitration based on arbitration provisions contained in loan agreements and deposit agreements. In one recent case, a United States District Court issued a lengthy memorandum opinion in which the Court enforced an arbitration provision against bank customers based on a deposit agreement that the customers swore they never received. The Court also ruled that certain non-signatories to the account were subject to the binding arbitration clause. In another case, we obtained an order of referral to arbitration in probate court against the administrator of the estate, even where some of the deposit agreements at issue did not contain arbitration provisions.
We have also been instrumental in developing the law in this circuit with respect to the jurisdiction of national banks. Courts around the nation have been divided as to where a national bank is "located" for jurisdictional purposes. We have obtained two federal court opinions in this circuit that national banks are "located" in the state of their principal place of business, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1348, and have successfully removed cases from state court to federal court on this basis.
We have also handled special projects for our bank clients, such as a detailed analysis of Texas foreclosure issues. This project was undertaken to avoid potential borrower or class litigation brought to overturn hundreds of foreclosures. We understand that the potential litigation was avoided entirely. Jackson Walker handled strategic litigation brought in connection with the restructuring of some of the bank's largest borrowers. In one matter, we negotiated a twenty two million dollar cash payment to resolve litigation involving an obligation of a party that was at the time in a Chapter 11 proceeding in New York. We were also retained to handle the so-called "MSlim" litigation against three former MBank affiliates. The MSlim litigation involved the prefailure transfer of about $442 million of loan participations. The transferee institutions filed multiple lawsuits against a national bank. Ultimately, Jackson Walker obtained a summary judgment favorable to the bank under a centuries old provision of the National Bank Act rarely utilized since the Great Depression. This ruling enabled our client to resolve favorably the remaining related actions.
We also recognize that negotiation and settlement of claims is often in our clients' interest, and we have been very successful in settling claims brought against our financial institution clients. For example, in one case we represented a national bank in a matter brought one of its customers relating to embezzlements totaling around $3 million. The customer sued the bank for fraud, conversion, and breach of contract relating to this embezzlement, which the customer alleged was allowed by the bank's negligent opening of an account for the embezzler without proper corporate documents. We negotiated a settlement on behalf of our client for $162,000.00, and obtained an indemnification from the customer to indemnify and defend the bank in certain related litigation that was ongoing. We also represented a national bank in another embezzlement case involving embezzlements of approximately $4 million. Again, the plaintiffs alleged that the bank converted the checks by not verifying the signatures on the checks in question. We negotiated a settlement on behalf of the bank with the customers for $275,000.00, and one of the customers agreed to pay the bank 100% of its loan, with interest, on which we had filed a counterclaim.
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