Justin M. Campbell III

Justin M. Campbell III

Houston, TX recognized lawyers icon Recognized in Best Lawyers since 2016
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18 Best Lawyers awards

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Awarded Practice Areas

Commercial Litigation Litigation - Trusts and Estates

Biography

A trial lawyer for more than 35 years, Mr. Campbell has dedicated his professional life to obtaining favorable results for his clients by trial and, where possible, through negotiation. Mr. Campbell represents individuals and corporations, both as plaintiffs and as defendants. He has extensive experience in a wide variety of legal matters, including cases involving allegations of business torts; breach of contract; fraud; breach of fiduciary duty; auditing malpractice; legal malpractice; violation of employment rights; improper trust and estate administration; securities fraud; infringement of intellectual property rights; personal injury; products liability; and negligence. Mr. Campbell’s background includes substantial experience in complex commercial lawsuits and in class action litigation.

Mr. Campbell was born on August 6, 1946, in Austin, Texas, and grew up on the Texas Gulf Coast. He received a B.B.A. in Accounting, with honors, from the University of Texas at Austin in 1968 and entered the University of Texas School of Law, where he completed the first year of study before a two-year break for military service. In 1973, Mr. Campbell received a J.D., with honors, from the University of Texas School of Law, where he was a member of the Order of the Coif and the Texas Law Review. Mr. Campbell commenced his law practice with the Houston firm of Baker & Botts, where he became a partner in 1981. In August, 1984, Mr. Campbell became a partner at the Houston trial specialty firm Miller, Keeton, Bristow, & Brown, where he practiced until founding the firm of Campbell Harrison & Dagley L.L.P. in 1991.

He has earned selection to Thomson Reuters’ list of Texas Super Lawyers (2003, 2006-present) in Estate & Trust Litigation, Business Litigation, and Class Action/Mass Torts, as published in Texas Monthly. Justin has been included on BL Rankings, LLC’s list of Best Lawyers in America® (2016-present) in Personal Injury Litigation Defense, and its list of Texas Best Lawyers® (2016-present).

Wright Close Barger & Guzman

18 Best Lawyers awards

Wright Close Barger & Guzman logo

Overview

  • The University of Texas, J.D., graduated 1973
  • The University of Texas, B.B.A., graduated 1968

  • United States, State Bar of Texas

  • American Bar Association - Member
  • Texas Bar Association - Member
  • Houston Bar Association - Member

  • U.S. Court of Appeals 5th Circuit
  • U.S. District Court Southern District of Texas
  • U.S. District Court Northern District of Texas
  • United States, State Bar of Texas
  • American Bar Association - Member
  • Texas Bar Association - Member
  • Houston Bar Association - Member
  • The University of Texas, J.D., graduated 1973
  • The University of Texas, B.B.A., graduated 1968
  • U.S. Court of Appeals 5th Circuit
  • U.S. District Court Southern District of Texas
  • U.S. District Court Northern District of Texas

Client Testimonials

Awards & Focus

Recognized in The Best Lawyers in America® 2026 for work in:
  • Commercial Litigation
  • Litigation - Trusts and Estates
Additional Areas of Practice:
  • Litigation - Regulatory Enforcement (SEC, Telecom, Energy)
  • Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions - Defendants
  • Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions - Plaintiffs
  • Personal Injury Litigation - Defendants
  • Personal Injury Litigation - Plaintiffs
  • Product Liability Litigation - Defendants
  • Product Liability Litigation - Plaintiffs
  • Securities / Capital Markets Law
  • Trusts and Estates
Awards:
  • Best Lawyers in America, 2016-2022, 2024-2026
  • Texas Super Lawyers, by Thomson Reuters, 2003, 2006-2019
  • Member, Order of the Coif, University of Texas School of Law

Additional Information

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Case History

Cases
  • Verdict
Complete exoneration of the trustees of a $250,000,000 family trust in suit by beneficiaries for removal, an accounting, and damages
  • Defense Win
Successful defense of client in a $30,000,000 suit by the independent executor of an estate for tortious interference with the administration of the estate, breach of contract, and fraud and the successful prosecution of client's counterclaim, producing an agreement in which the executor paid $1,500,000 to the client, resigned, and supported the client's appointment as successor administrator of the Estate
  • Resolution
Resolution of a $100,000,000 breach of trust suit brought against a major national bank for nuisance value after extensive document, fact deposition, and expert discovery
  • Verdict
Favorable resolution of a suit against a privately owned, international plastics manufacturer to recover multi-million dollar retainage and early completion bonus rising out of the construction of a polyethylene plant
  • Win
Recovery of the ownership of a closely held corporation worth $25,000,000 for the executor (a national bank) of the estates of the majority shareholders, who had agreed to sell the business to senior corporate officers for $165,000 upon their deaths
  • Malpractice and Breach of Fiduciary Duty
$2,500,000 recovery for an estate against a national law firm for malpractice and breach of fiduciary duty
  • Judgment
$17,300,000 judgment for a trust beneficiary against the Texas affiliate of a national bank holding company for breach of trust in connection with an agreement to sell the stock of a closely held corporation

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