Daniel Charest

Daniel Charest

Dallas, TX recognized lawyers icon Recognized in Best Lawyers since 2018
Burns Charest LLP

4 Best Lawyers awards

Burns Charest LLP logo

Awarded Practice Areas

Commercial Litigation Energy Law Litigation - Securities

Biography

Proven hustle. Unrivaled grit. Bold execution.

Daniel has spent years on the front lines of high-stakes litigation in both federal and state courts throughout the country, coast to coast, and international arbitrations around the world. He is equally comfortable in a courtroom talking to a jury as he is in a boardroom talking to executives or on a gravel road talking to witnesses. Daniel uses a combination of experience, intellect, grit, and compassion to achieve his client’s goals.

And Daniel’s excellent work and achievements are regularly recognized in various peer- and industry-driven rating publications. Those honors include being named “Attorney of the Year” in 2020 by Texas Lawyer, called a "Winning Litgiator" by National Law Journal, and listed as a "Leading Plaintiff Financial Lawyer" a "Leading Plaintiff Consumer Lawyer" and a "Leading Litigator" by Lawdragon. And he backs up those honors by actually winning in court day-by-day, including recently earning a $41,000,000 jury verdict in an oil & gas matter in Denver District Court.

Daniel’s experience goes deep. He has handled antitrust, breach of contract, business torts (trade secret misappropriation, executive employment disputes, and unfair competition), government takings claims, consumer protection issues, oil and gas disputes of many types, class actions, fraud, insurance bad faith, and wrongful death. His docket has also included nearly every type of procedural and jurisdictional challenges such as removal and remand, class certification, venue transfers, forum non conveniens, temporary restraining orders, temporary injunctions, and appeals.

After his federal appellate clerkship, Daniel joined a nationally recognized litigation boutique firm where he became a partner. He left to pave his own path by co-founding Burns Charest with a goal of developing a team of skilled, trial-savvy lawyers together as a team. The Burns Charest team is modeled after his watchwords: efficiency and effectiveness.

Burns Charest LLP

4 Best Lawyers awards

Burns Charest LLP logo

Overview

  • Tulane University, J.D., summa cum laude, graduated 2004
  • United States Merchant Marine Academy, B.S. Marine Transportation, cum laude, graduated 1994

  • Texas, State Bar
  • Virginia, State Bar (inactive)
  • District of Columbia, State Bar
  • United States, U.S. Virgin Islands

  • American Bar Foundation - Fellow
  • Litigation Counsel of America - Fellow
  • Oil & Gas Committee, State Bar of Texas - Member, Pattern Jury Charges
  • Trial Law Institute - Member, Litigation Counsel of America
  • Diversity Law Institute - Member, Litigation Counsel of America

  • Admitted to practice in several federal district courts and courts of appeal, including all Texas federal courts
  • Texas, State Bar
  • Virginia, State Bar (inactive)
  • District of Columbia, State Bar
  • United States, U.S. Virgin Islands
  • American Bar Foundation - Fellow
  • Litigation Counsel of America - Fellow
  • Oil & Gas Committee, State Bar of Texas - Member, Pattern Jury Charges
  • Trial Law Institute - Member, Litigation Counsel of America
  • Diversity Law Institute - Member, Litigation Counsel of America
  • Tulane University, J.D., summa cum laude, graduated 2004
  • United States Merchant Marine Academy, B.S. Marine Transportation, cum laude, graduated 1994
  • Admitted to practice in several federal district courts and courts of appeal, including all Texas federal courts

Client Testimonials

Awards & Focus

Recognized in The Best Lawyers in America® 2026 for work in:
  • Commercial Litigation
  • Energy Law
  • Litigation - Securities
Additional Areas of Practice:
  • Litigation - Antitrust
  • Litigation - Intellectual Property
  • Litigation - Patent
Awards:
  • Best Lawyers in America, 2018-2026
  • Texas Super Lawyers by Thomson Reuters, 2019-2025
  • Ranked for “Litigation: General Commercial - Texas: Dallas, Fort Worth & Surrounds” by Chambers USA, 2021-2025
  • Lawdragon 500 Leading Plaintiff Consumer Lawyers, 2021-2025

  • Lawdragon 500 Leading Plaintiff Financial Lawyers, 2021-2025

  • Lawdragon 500 Leading Litigators, 2023-2024

  • Recognized as among “Best Lawyers in Dallas” by D Magazine, 2020-2021, 2023
  • Named “Litigation Star” by Benchmark Litigation: The Definitive Guide to America’s Leading Litigation Firms & Attorneys, 2020-2023
  • Barrister, Order of Veritas - Litigation Counsel of America, 2022
  • “Attorney of the Year” by Texas Lawyer, 2020
  • Named “Winning Litigator” by National Law Journal
  • Chambers USA, Leading Lawyers in Texas - Commercial Litigation
  • Managing Editor of the Tulane Law Review
  • Order of the Coif, 2004
  • Chief Mate, unlimited tonnage, U.S. Coast Guard
  • Lieutenant Commander, U.S. Navy (Reserve), with an honorable discharge

Additional Information

  • Speaking Engagements
  • "Devillier v. Texas: Federal Takings Claims Against a State," 23rd Annual SuperConference on Texas Eminent Domain, Eminent Domain Institute, CLE International (April 2024)
  • ”Drilling in the Courtroom: Calculating Damages in Oil and Gas Disputes,” 69th Annual Institute, Foundation for Natural Resources and Energy Law, Oil & Gas Landman Section (July 2023)
  • "Negative Prices & Royalty Calculations,” Oil and Gas Disputes 2020; State Bar of Texas, Oil, Gas & Energy Resources Section (January 2020)
  • “Disputes over Production in Paying Quantities,” CLE Series; Dallas Bar Association, Energy Law Section (June 2019)
  • “Disputes over Production in Paying Quantities,” Oil and Gas Disputes 2019; State Bar of Texas, Oil, Gas & Energy Resources Section (Jan. 2019)
  • “Royalty Disputes & Litigation,” 35th Annual Course, Advanced Oil, Gas & Energy Resources; State Bar of Texas, Oil, Gas & Energy Resources Section (Sept. 2017)
  • “Litigation Trends in the $50 Era,” 2015 Energy and Environmental Law Summit (Oct. 2015)

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