Judge Sullivan has held positions of significance in almost every area of the legal profession, including 21 years as a lawyer in private practice, government service as the Texas First Assistant Attorney General, and as a judge on both the trial and appellate benches. Head of the firm’s Energy Litigation Team and co-leader of the Appellate Litigation Practice, Judge Sullivan advocates for clients in complex commercial and civil litigation where he provides a second-to-none understanding of the Texas legal landscape and strategies for coordinating multi-jurisdictional litigation. He also advises clients on government relations matters, ranging from inquiries to investigations.
From 2008 to 2010, Judge Sullivan served as a justice for the Texas Court of Appeals in Houston, where he participated in the disposition of hundreds of appeals and personally authored more than 75 opinions. From 2003 to 2006, he served as a District Judge where he presided over multiparty cases to verdict involving such diverse subject matter as intellectual property rights and casino management fees.
In 2006, Judge Sullivan was appointed by the Texas Attorney General to serve as First Assistant Attorney General. In that role, he oversaw both the legal and administrative functions of the 800-attorney agency. Judge Sullivan supervised the representation of the state in its broad range of legal disputes and provided legal advice to many of the state’s officeholders and agencies. He was also actively involved in the coordination of multi-state legal disputes, often working with other state attorneys general and the National Association of Attorneys General.
Prior to his appointment to the bench, Judge Sullivan was a trial lawyer in private practice for more than 20 years. He also served as the managing partner for a 45-lawyer litigation law firm primarily focused on civil trial defense and for a 15-lawyer plaintiffs firm in Houston. Judge Sullivan’s complex civil litigation experience includes commercial, environmental, toxic tort and products liability matters.
PRIVATE PRACTICE REPRESENTATIVE EXPERIENCE
- Representing leading energy products and services company in jury trial and appeal including oral argument before the Texas Supreme Court on a precedent-setting commercial/contractual issue.
- Handling jury trial and appeal resolving unique contractual indemnity issues in a construction matter.
- Obtaining summary judgment and managing the subsequent appeal in the first Texas case establishing the non-liability of component part manufacturers relative to the products liability of integrated completed products.
PROFESSIONAL HONORS AND AWARDS
- Recipient of the Presidential Citation by the State Bar of Texas for service to the Bar (2004, 2006)
PROFESSIONAL AND COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT
- Member, Texas Supreme Court Advisory Committee (2003–present)
- Member, State Bar of Texas
- Vice-Chair, Pattern Jury Charge, Oversight Committee (2003–present)
- Presidential Task Force, Regulation of Referral Fees and Lawyer Advertising (2004)
- Texas Bar Foundation Life Fellow
- Administration of Rules of Evidence Committee (2000–2002)
- Committee on Pattern Jury Charges, Civil (1995–1996)
- Committee on Pattern Jury Charges, Volume I (1991–1992)
- Committee on Pattern Jury Charges, Volume III (1993–1994)
- Board of Directors, Texas Center for the Judiciary (2005–2006)
- Board of Directors, State Bar of Texas (1999–2002)
- Executive Committee (2000–2002)
- Chair, Legislative Policy Committee (2001–2002)
- Member, Houston Bar Association
- Houston Bar Foundation Life Fellow
- Board of Directors, Houston Volunteer Lawyers Program (2001–2002)
- Administration of Justice Committee (1989–1996)
- Trustee, J. Schuyler Alland Endowed Scholarship Fund, University of Virginia (1992–present)
- Member and Director, Executive Committee, Houston Society for the Performing Arts (1995–present)
- Director, Texas Public Policy Foundation (2002)
- Director, Downtown Houston Association (2001–2003)
PUBLICATIONS AND SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS
- Author, “UPL, MDP, and MJP: An In-Depth Look at the Issues,” Texas Bar Journal, Volume 65, Number 6 (May 2002)
- Commented, “Property Rights Versus Pipelines,” Houston Chronicle (October 11, 2012)
- Speaker, “Myth Busting: Attorney-Client Privilege and Work Product Doctrine,” In-House CLE (April 30, 2012)
- Speaker, “Myth Busting: Attorney-Client Privilege and Work Product Doctrine,” ACC Best Practices Committee (March 20, 2012)
- Speaker, “Ethical Issues in E-Discovery,” ACC Best Practices Committee (November 2, 2011)
- Speaker, “Desperately Seeking State Tax Fairness: The Need for Federal Adjudication," Broadband Tax Institute Annual Conference (October 23-26, 2011)
- Speaker, “Appellate Highlights,” Harris County District Judge Judicial Education Conference (August 11, 2010)
- Speaker, “Appellate Judge Panel Questions & Answers,” Houston Bar Association Appellate Section (January 21, 2010)
- Speaker, “Opening Remarks,” Texas Government Law & Liability Conference (October 15, 2007)
- Speaker, “Judicial Immunity,” Harris County District Judge Judicial Education Conference (August 1, 2007)
- Speaker, “Plain Language Methodology and Juror Comprehension of Patter Jury Charges,” Jury Trial Summit (October 4, 2006)
- Speaker, “The Role of the Judiciary in Lawyer Discipline,” Commission for Lawyer Discipline (January 19, 2006)
- Speaker, “Objections to Evidence,” Advanced Civil Trial Course, State Bar of Texas (November 10, 2005)
- Speaker, “The Vanishing Jury Trial,” Houston Bar Association Litigation Section (October 18, 2005)
- Speaker, “The Jury Charge,” Conference on Civil Appeals for Trial Lawyers (March 31, 2005)
- Speaker, “Proportionate Responsibility Since HB 4,” Admiralty Law Conference (September 24, 2004)
- Speaker, “The Regulation of Referral Fees and Lawyer Advertising,” Mexican American Bar Association (September 10, 2004)
- Speaker, “Changes in Proportionate Responsibility,” Construction Law Conference (May 4, 2004)
- Speaker, “Ethics in the Courtroom,” Advanced Civil Trial Law Conference (February 19-20, 2004)
- Speaker, “Damages: Evaluation and Proof, Part One: Personal Injury,” Insurance Law Seminar (May 31, 2001)
- Speaker, “Multi-Disciplinary Practice,” Houston Legal Assistants Association (September 13, 2000)
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