Joe Roden

Joe Roden

Houston, TX recognized lawyers icon Recognized in Best Lawyers since 2018
Rusty Hardin & Associates LLP

6 Best Lawyers awards

Rusty Hardin & Associates LLP logo

Awarded Practice Areas

Appellate Practice Criminal Defense: White-Collar Personal Injury Litigation - Plaintiffs

Biography

Joe Roden grew up in Liberty, Texas and attended the University of Texas as an undergraduate, where he graduated in 1988. He then went into the U.S. Marine Corps. Joe attained the rank of 1st Lieutenant and was a decorated officer in the Marine Corps during Desert Storm, the first Gulf War. After leaving the Marine Corps, he graduated from the University of Houston Law Center with honors and then clerked for Justice Murry Cohen on the First Court of Appeals. After clerking for the Court of Appeals, he joined McGinnis, Lochridge and Kilgore, where he did primarily appellate work, an area of concentration he has continued while at Rusty Hardin & Associates.

Joe is considered an excellent appellate attorney by his peers and continues to consider that his primary vocation. He is the immediate past chair of the Houston Bar Association appellate practice section. He proudly refers to himself as an “appellate geek.” In reality, however, he is far more than a one-note artist. He has increasingly taken the lead in developing and managing complex personal injury and business litigation cases that started out with forlorn potential. Through his sheer determination and legal imagination, he has achieved incredibly favorable settlements in several of these thorny cases during the last few years. He has done a remarkable job conducting the discovery for these cases and preparing them for trial. Joe has also been a wonderful asset and resource in assisting the other attorneys in the office with instant high-quality legal research and writing on short notice for a wide variety of cases. Joe concentrates exclusively on civil cases.

Practice Areas:

Appellate, Cases Involving Public Figures, Commercial Litigation, Personal Injury Claims

Rusty Hardin & Associates LLP

6 Best Lawyers awards

Rusty Hardin & Associates LLP logo

Overview

  • University of Houston, J.D., cum laude, graduated 1995
  • The University of Texas, B.A., graduated 1988

  • Texas, State Bar of Texas

  • Houston Bar Association, Appellate Practice Section - Past Chair
  • Houston Bar Association, Appellate Practice Section - Secretary (2009), Treasurer (2010)
  • State Bar of Texas - Member

  • United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
  • U.S. Supreme Court
  • United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
  • Texas, State Bar of Texas
  • Houston Bar Association, Appellate Practice Section - Past Chair
  • Houston Bar Association, Appellate Practice Section - Secretary (2009), Treasurer (2010)
  • State Bar of Texas - Member
  • University of Houston, J.D., cum laude, graduated 1995
  • The University of Texas, B.A., graduated 1988
  • United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
  • U.S. Supreme Court
  • United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit

Client Testimonials

Joe Roden is a white knight. He rides in, gets the job done, and liberates his clients from the entanglement in which they find themselves. He is brilliant, fair, and compassionate. As anyone knows who has been in the position to need an attorney, the word advocate takes on an entirely new meaning. Joe truly advocates for his clients. His encouragement, determination, and creativity reveal glimmers of his past military prowess. His sharp legal mind and knowledge of the nuanced intricacies of the law give his clients the best shot at a favorable outcome.

Angel Texada

Awards & Focus

Recognized in The Best Lawyers in America® 2026 for work in:
  • Appellate Practice
  • Criminal Defense: White-Collar
  • Personal Injury Litigation - Plaintiffs
Additional Areas of Practice:
  • Commercial Litigation
Awards:
  • Best Lawyers in America, 2018-2026
  • Lawdragon 500 Leading Litigators in America, 2026

  • Lawdragon 500 Leading Plaintiff Consumer Lawyers, 2022-2025

  • Lawdragon 500 Leading Plaintiff Financial Lawyers, 2021-2025

  • Texas Super Lawyers, Thomson Reuters, 2009-2021, 2023-2025
  • Texas Rising Stars, Thomson Reuters, 2005

Additional Information

  • Publications and Speaking Engagements
  • Scope of Remand, 30th Annual Advanced Civil Appellate Practice Course, September 12-13, 2013, Austin, Texas
  • Post-Trial Motions, Practicing Before the 1st and 14th Courts of Appeals, South Texas College of Law, May 21, 2004
  • Strategies and Tactics to Strengthen the Strong Appeal and Save the Weak One, Civil Appellate
    Course for Trial Practitioners, South Texas College of Law, December 6, 2002 & HBA Continuing Legal Education Seminar, November 8, 2002
  • The Intersection Between Civil and Criminal Trials, Harris County Civil District Judges’ Retreat, San Antonio, Texas, August 6, 2003 & Advanced Civil Trial Law Conference, South Texas College of Law, February 21, 2003
  • U.S. Marine Corps

First Lieutenant, U.S. Marine Corps, 1988-1992

U.S. Marine Corps:

  • Combat Action Ribbon
  • Navy Commendation Medal
  • Kuwait Liberation Medal

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