David is an Alternative Dispute Resolution practitioner. He has 30 years of litigation experience and is Board Certified in Personal Injury Trial Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. He was born in McAllen, Texas and grew up in the Houston area. After graduating from Cy-Fair High School, he attended Texas A&M University where he was a member of the Corps of Cadets. At A&M, David was an NROTC scholarship recipient and recognized as a Distinguished Student.
Upon graduation, he served in the United States Navy as an Intelligence Officer. Shortly after being commissioned as an Ensign, David attended the Navy and Marine Corps Intelligence Training Center, where he graduated with a 4.0 GPA. He thereafter saw service in Desert Storm and was awarded the Sea Strike Intelligence Officer of the Year Award. As the Aviation Intelligence Officer for VS-24, he obtained 22 arrested carrier landings and logged combat time aboard the carrier-based S-3B Viking.
David left active duty to return to his hometown and attend the University of Houston Law Center. He was very active in Law Center activities and competed in the national trial competition on the school’s Mock Trial Team, edited the Houston Journal of International Law and served as the leader of the law school’s honor society (the Order of the Barons). Although David was dedicated to trial advocacy and other extracurricular activities (including the U.S. Navy Reserves), he nevertheless managed to graduate in the top 10% of his law school class.
After graduating with honors from the University of Houston Law Center, David began an almost six-year career of representing defendants and their insurers. He then left the defense bar to represent plaintiffs in personal injury and select commercial litigation matters. His practice expanded to include wage and hour class and collective action cases. He thereafter began working as the General Counsel for a national construction firm and began his mediation practice.
David has served in multiple organizations. As a defense attorney, he was a member of the Greater Houston Society of Healthcare Risk Management, amongst others. As a member of the Texas Trial Lawyers Association, he served on the Board of Advocates and later became Chair of the TTLA PAC. He has also served as a Director of the Houston Trial Lawyers Association and was twice elected as Chair of the State Bar of Texas District 4 Grievance Committee. He also served as Panel Chair of the District 4A/4-1 Grievance Committee.
David has been interviewed by numerous local and national news organizations on various subjects related to the civil justice system. He has been an invited commentator at news conferences, television shows and print media.
As a defense lawyer, David defended many multi-million dollar cases and represented clients in the areas of personal injury, medical malpractice, offshore construction, retail construction, premises liability, commercial litigation, securities litigation, intellectual property and insurance defense.
As a plaintiff’s attorney, he represented clients in the areas of personal injury, medical malpractice, wage and hour, mass torts and MDL cases where he served as co-lead or on the executive committee.
Verdicts and Settlements Include:
- $10.7 million verdict in a daycare abuse case
- $6 million settlement in a wage and hour dispute
- $4.5 million settlement in a trucking accident case
- $4.3 million settlement in a medical malpractice case
- $3.7 million settlement in a medical malpractice case
- $2.1 million settlement in a wage and hour dispute
- $1.8 million jury verdict in a medical malpractice case
- $1.6 million jury verdict in a medical malpractice case
Areas of Practice
- Alternative Dispute Resolution
- Mediation
- Arbitration
- 18-Wheeler Truck Accidents
- Medical Malpractice
- Birth Injuries
- Wage and hour
- Pharmacy Malpractice
- Industrial Accidents
- Products Liability
- Commercial Litigation
Certified Legal Specialties
Board Certified, Personal Injury Trial Law, Texas Board of Legal Specialization
Bar Admissions
- Texas
- U.S. District Court Eastern District of Texas
- U.S. District Court Northern District of Texas
- U.S. District Court Southern District of Texas
- U.S. District Court Western District of Texas
- U.S District Court District of Colorado
- U.S. Court of Appeals 5th Circuit
- U.S. District Court Eastern District of Michigan
- U.S. Court of Federal Claims
Education
- University of Houston Law Center
- Top 10% of Graduating Class
- Honors Graduate
- Champion, Hippard Mock Trial Tournament
- Chief Baron, Order of the Barons (Law Center’s Honor Society)
- Member, National Order of the Barristers
- Editor, Houston Journal of International Law
- Texas A&M University
- Member, Corps of Cadets
- NROTC Scholarship Recipient
- Distinguished Student
Honors and Awards
- Texas Monthly and Thomson Reuters Super Lawyer (20 years)
- Texas Lawyer Litigator of the Week
- Named as “Top 100 Trial lawyers” by The National Trial Lawyers Association
- Lawyers Lifetime Achievement Society (Multi-Million Dollar Member)
- Million Dollar Advocates Forum Life Member
- AV Peer Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell
- Named one of Houston’s Top Lawyers by H Texas Magazine
- Named a Professional on the Fast Track by H Texas Magazine
- Recipient, Sea Strike Intelligence Officer of the Year Award
Professional Associations and Memberships
- The State Bar of Texas
- Houston Bar Association
- American Bar Association
- Bar Association of the Fifth Federal Circuit
- Texas Bar College
- Professional Society of Legal Scholars
- Texas Association of Civil Trial and Appellate Specialists
- District 4 Grievance Committee, Former Chair
- American Association for Justice
- Texas Trial Lawyers Association, Former TTLA PAC Chair
- Texas Trial Lawyers Association, Former Board of Advocates Director
- Houston Trial Lawyers Association, Former Director
Past Employment Positions
- United States Navy, Intelligence Officer
- Chamberlain Hrdlicka
- Mayor, Day, Caldwell & Keeton, L.L.P. (now Hunton Andrews Kurth L.L.P.)
- Kennedy Hodges, LLP/Hodges & Foty LLP