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James B. Lewis
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JAMES B. ("Jim") LEWIS was born in Breckenridge, Minnesota, and grew up in North Dakota. He graduated with Highest Honors from the University of North Dakota at Grand Forks, earning a B.A. in 1984.
Jim then followed in his father’s footsteps to pursue a legal career, and traveled south, where he graduated from the University of Texas School of Law in Austin, Texas, in 1987. He has been a Texan by choice ever since.
Jim’s practice involves litigation, appeals and mediation. Due to his extensive trial experience, Jim is a Senior Life Fellow of the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA); and he is licensed to practice in all Texas state and federal courts. He has been board certified in civil appellate law since 1994 and is a long-time member of TACTAS. He has been an AMI certified advanced mediator and AV rated by Martindale-Hubbell since 1994. Jim’s extensive experience gives him a unique advantage in presenting legal arguments before trial judges and appellate justices. By anticipating the legal issues that will likely arise in complex civil trials, and preparing briefs and arguments to address each issue, Jim earns the respect of opposing counsel and the trial judges, and gives his clients the best possible opportunity to win their cases. Jim’s primary area of trial practice and great success has been in trucking cases and auto-truck accident cases involving catastrophic personal injury, death and brain injury. Because of Jim’s broad range of experience as a trial and appellate lawyer, representing both defendants and plaintiffs, he has acquired the extensive knowledge required to be an effective mediator.
Tens of Millions worth of Recoveries Obtained for His Clients
Early in his career, Jim earned the highest AV Martindale Hubbell* rating available for legal ability and ethics. And due to his extensive experience he was invited to associate with both the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA) and the Texas Association of Civil Trial and Appellate Specialists (TACTAS). He has put his legal knowledge and trial and deposition skills to work – benefiting his clients primarily in cases involving truck company negligence, commercial motor vehicle accidents, jobsite accidents, insurance disputes, and commercial litigation. Jim has obtained well over 50 million dollars in settlements and judgments as lead counsel for clients injured as a result of trucking and other serious accidents. He has an intimate knowledge of the Federal Motor Carrier Regulations and State regulations pertaining to the operation of commercial motor vehicles. These recoveries include single settlement or judgment sums for his clients of $18 million, $3.8 million, $3.5 million, $2.8 million, $2.7 million, $2.5 million, $2.3 million,$2 million $1.86 million, $1.78 million, $1.1 million, and $1.05 million and many more in cases involving death, brain injury, and other serious personal injuries. Jim has prevailed (six, seven, and even eight figure results) by verdict, settlement or mandate against many large companies when representing individual plaintiffs. See results pages for details and net recoveries.
As defense counsel, obtained trial and appellate wins for Adam’s Mark Hotel, Brunswick Corporation, Dresser Industries, Interstate Battery, Johnson Controls, Inc. (JCI), Mercury Marine, North American Van Lines, Sears, Sea Ray, Service Corporation International (SCI), Universal Fastenings Corp., and many more corporate and individual defendants.
His scores of published decisions include the often-cited Convalescent Services, Inc. v. Schultz, 921 S.W.2d 731 (Tex. App.—Houston [14th Dist.] 1996, writ denied) (punitive damages award affirmed), Russell v. Ramirez, 949 S.W.2d 480 (Tex. App. – Houston [14th Dist.] 1997, no pet), and Padilla v La France, 907 S.W.2D 454 (Tex. 1995).
Over 40 of Jim's appellate decisions are available on Westlaw or Lexis databases. Jim also works hard as an appellate lawyer to sustain judgments awarded to his clients and has achieved very good success in protecting multi-million dollar awards for plaintiffs and in representing individual and corporate defendants.
Click here to see some of the firm's trial verdicts and settlements and here to see appellate cases.
Jim’s professional associations include the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA) (Senior Life Fellow), Texas Association of Civil Trial and Appellate Specialists (TACTAS), Houston Bar Association, American Bar Association, the College of the State Bar of Texas, and the State Bar of Texas-Alternative dispute resolution (ADR), Appellate, and Litigation sections.
* Martindale-Hubbell is the facilitator of a peer review rating process. Ratings reflect the confidential opinions of members of the Bar and the judiciary. Martindale-Hubbell ratings fall into two categories – legal ability and general ethical standards.
Current Employment Position(s):
- Owner, Lewis Law Office, P.C.; Lewis Mediations.
Areas of Practice:
- Mediation
- Civil Litigation with focus on catastrophic injury & death cases
- Truck Accident Trials
- All Claims Involving Trucking and Commercial Motor Vehicles
- Civil Appellate Law
- Insurance Law
Certification/Specialties:
- Civil Appellate Law, Texas Board of Legal Specialization, 1994
Bar Admissions:
- Texas, 1987
- Minnesota, 1990
- U.S. District Court Southern District of Texas, 1989
- U.S. District Court Northern District of Texas, 1990
- U.S. District Court Eastern District of Texas, 1991
- U.S. District Court Western District of Texas, 1991
- U.S. Court of Appeals 5th Circuit, 1990
- U.S. Supreme Court, 1994
Education:
- The University of Texas School of Law, Austin, Texas, 1987, J.D.
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University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, North Dakota, 1984, B.A.
Honors: Summa Cum Laude -
North Dakota State School of Science, 1982, A.S.
Honors: Summa Cum Laude
Published Works:
- Sale of Alcohol to Interstate Travelers: Personal & Choice Of Law Analysis Drake Law Review, Vol. 39, No. 2, 39 Drake Law Review 349, 1990
- Federal Preemption of Product Liability Claims: An Overview and Discussion of the Recent Limitations Imposed by the Texas Supreme Court, Products Liability Seminar, South Texas College of Law, July, 1994
Honors and Awards:
- Admission to the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA)
- Board Certification by the State Bar of Texas, Civil Appellate Law
- Phi Beta Kappa
- Outstanding Scholastic Achievement Award
- President's Roll of Honor
Professional Associations and Memberships:
- American Board of Trial Advocates
- Houston Bar Association
- American Bar Association
- State Bar of Texas, Appellate, ADR and Litigation Sections
- College of the State Bar of Texas
- Texas Association of Civil Trial and Appellate Specialists (TACTAS)
Fraternities/Sororities:
- Phi Sigma Alpha
- Phi Alpha Delta