News

News

Applications Open for 2026 Summer Associate Program

Hicks Johnson is now accepting applications for our 2026 Summer Associate Program. This is an exciting opportunity for students with a strong interest in trials and complex civil litigation. The ideal candidate is creative, intellectually curious, and ready to make an immediate impact.

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Applications Open for 2025 Diversity Fellowship Program

Hicks Johnson is now accepting applications for our 2025 Diversity Fellowship Program, open to 1Ls who have demonstrated a commitment to diversity in the legal profession. The fellowship, which runs from May 12-30, 2025, includes a stipend as well as lodging in Houston. Applications will be considered on a rolling basis through January 2, 2025. Please apply by December 2, 2024, to ensure that your application receives priority consideration.

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Texas Supreme Court Ruling Limits Governmental Immunity in Contract Disputes

The Texas Supreme Court recently handed down two decisions clarifying its interpretation of governmental immunity and waiver under Section 271.152 of the Texas Local Government Code. According to associate Adam Greiner, these decisions are valuable indications of the court’s narrow read of the Local Government Code—and its overall willingness to constrain the breadth of governmental immunity.

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Hicks Johnson Wins Summary Judgment in Federal Bankruptcy Case

Managing partner Andy Hicks, senior counsel Brandon Winchester, and associate Fraser Holmes secured a victory on summary judgment in a long-running case in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas. This ruling brings to an end five years of procedurally complex litigation against our client, C&J Spec-Rent Services Inc. (C&J), as well as the elimination of millions of dollars of potential exposure.

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Hicks Johnson Welcomes Liz Pursley

We are excited to announce that Liz Pursley has joined Hicks Johnson as a senior associate. Liz focuses her practice on complex commercial litigation. She has handled a variety of work for energy industry participants, including contract disputes, mineral and royalties disagreements, and business torts. Additionally, she has experience handling decommissioning-related liabilities. In these matters, operators turn to Liz for guidance throughout the life cycle of the project, from planning and strategy to negotiating with the government and enforcing their rights through litigation.

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Hicks Johnson Earns 2024 Chambers Ranking

Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business announced today that Hicks Johnson has been ranked as a leading law firm in the Texas Litigation: General Commercial practice area for 2024. Managing partner Andy Hicks and founding partner Logan Johnson were also ranked among the top lawyers in their market.

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The FTC’s Ban on Non-Competes: What Businesses Need to Know

On April 23, 2024, the FTC announced its final Rule banning non-compete clauses for most workers as unfair competition under federal law. This final Rule has already been challenged in two district courts in Texas. But even if it does not go into force across the entire country, individual states may decide to follow suit, becoming less hospitable to non-compete clauses currently held to be enforceable under state law. Senior counsel Brandon Winchester and associate Fraser Holmes outline key considerations—and potential solutions—for businesses seeking to minimize damage to their operations.

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Meet Summer Associate Ella Endorf

Ella is a rising 3L at the University of Virginia School of Law, where she has served as the assistant managing editor of the Virginia Journal of International Law and the vice president of Virginia Law Women. She also participated in the Virginia Innocence Project and various other pro bono endeavors. Previously, Ella was a judicial intern for the Hon. Susan Rodriguez in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina. Before law school, she interned for the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Institute and the U.S. House of Representatives. Ella holds a dual B.A. in Public Policy Leadership and a B.S. in Integrated Marketing Communications from the University of Mississippi.

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Meet Summer Associate Oliwia Lukacz

Oliwia is a rising 3L at Georgetown University Law Center. This fall, she will join Georgetown’s Civil Rights Clinic as a student attorney. She is also a member of the Georgetown Journal on Poverty Law & Policy, OutLaw, and the Georgetown Defenders. Previously, Oliwia was a legal extern for the Arlington Public Defender’s Office in Virginia. She holds a B.A. in Political Science from the University of Florida.

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With the SEC’s New Climate Disclosure Rules on Pause, What Should Registrants Expect?

On March 6, 2024, the SEC voted 3-2 to adopt final rules requiring registrants to disclose climate-related information. However, a multitude of legal challenges to these rules have been consolidated before the Eighth Circuit, which is now tasked with determining their legality. As the litigation proceeds, the case will have important consequences for the regulatory power of federal agencies and the ultimate disclosure requirements for registrants. Partner Persis Dean and associate Gabe Slater outline key changes in the new rules and offer guidance for registrants seeking to prepare for compliance.

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Four Years of McGirt: Reviewing Changes in Tax, Energy, and Criminal Law

Four years on from the Supreme Court’s monumental decision in McGirt v. Oklahoma, the results have been a mixed bag for all parties involved. In their previous McGirt update, managing partner Andy Hicks and associate Dave Finkel analyzed potential tax and regulatory implications in the first few months following the decision. Now, with the benefit of hindsight, they update those initial predictions and reflect on McGirt’s effects in the Sooner State.

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Hicks Johnson Names 2024 Diversity Fellows

We are excited to announce that Copenhagen Elliott (Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law) and Aman Sankineni (Columbia Law School) have been selected as Hicks Johnson’s 2024 diversity fellows.

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Supreme Court Takes on the Chevron Doctrine

On January 17, 2024, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in tandem cases Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo and Relentless, Inc., et al. v. Dept. of Commerce, et al., which ask whether the court should overrule one of its most frequently cited precedents: the Chevron doctrine. Hicks Johnson staff attorney Jennifer Cordell explains the doctrine’s history and application, then outlines one of the court’s available paths in addressing the issue of statutory silence.

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Supreme Court Considers Title VII Case That Could Impact Company Diversity Initiatives

Federal courts have long held that Title VII discrimination must consist of material harm or disadvantage. However, on December 6, 2023, the Supreme Court heard oral argument in a Title VII case out of the Eighth Circuit, Muldrow v. City of St. Louis, that could radically lower this threshold – and reshape the landscape of workplace discrimination law entirely. Hicks Johnson associate Dave Finkel analyzes the decision’s potential implications, including challenges to employer DEI programs.

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Meet Partner Logan Johnson

For more than 20 years, Logan Johnson has represented plaintiffs and defendants in their most important matters. Here, he discusses his approach to trial work, the exhilaration of prevailing in court, and one of the best years of his career.

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Hicks Johnson Welcomes Dave Finkel

We are thrilled to announce that Dave Finkel has joined Hicks Johnson as an associate. Dave’s practice centers on complex commercial litigation. As a former federal clerk in both district and circuit courts, he has experience overseeing the entire lifecycle of a case, from pre-trial through appeal.

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Hicks Johnson Welcomes Gabe Slater

We are delighted to announce that Gabe Slater has joined Hicks Johnson as an associate. Gabe’s practice centers on complex commercial litigation. He has managed the day-to-day duties of a broad spectrum of cases, including consumer class actions, mass torts, merger litigation, and shareholder disputes. Gabe’s experience includes appearing at hearings in both state and federal court, leading oral argument on a motion to compel, and first-chairing numerous depositions.

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