Richard Howell

Jon Shoebotham focuses his practice on product liability, environmental litigation, commercial litigation, pharmaceutical, and medical device litigation. Three of the cases he has tried to jury verdict have been selected by The National Law Journal as among the most significant defense verdicts in the United States. He is a member of the Texas and New York state bars and is admitted to practice before the U.S. Ct. of App., Fifth Circuit; U.S. Dist. Ct., E. Dist. Texas; U.S. Dist. Ct., N. Dist...

Ms. Schovajsa joined the Eastham firm in 1998 and became a partner in 2003. Her practice focuses on the firm’s major casualty, personal injury and appellate dockets. Ms. Schovajsa is an experienced advocate with substantial experience in both Texas state court and federal court. She guides her clients through every stage of the legal process, from pre-litigation incident investigation, risk analysis and case evaluation to motion practice, discovery, mediation and, if necessary, trial. T...

James M. Hall, Jr. is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions - Defendants. James M., who practices law in Houston, Texas, has been recognized since 2025. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which James M. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Kenneth Held is an experienced trial attorney who focuses his practice on business litigation in state and federal courts, arbitration and regulatory enforcement matters, with a particular emphasis on securities litigation, energy litigation and class action defense. His clients range from individuals to publicly traded and privately held companies, as well as private equity firms and hedge funds. Mr. Held has significant experience in securities litigation and defending corporate and individ...

Stephen Pate focuses his litigation practice on property insurance matters, Directors and Officers insurance matters, business interruption issues, CGL insurance matters, builders risk matters, commercial general liability insurance disputes, fraud, and various other extracontractual litigation matters. Over a 30 year career in coverage work, he has tried more than 45 first-party extracontractual cases to verdict. Prior to joining the firm, Stephen had been partner in the Houston office of an...

Barry is a Director in the Construction and Surety section of Coats Rose in the Houston office. Barry’s practice includes representation of owners, sureties, general contractors and subcontractors in construction litigation, arbitration, construction arbitration, document preparation, investigation and administration of construction contracts and contract defaults, as well as general commercial litigation. Barry has been involved in the mediation, arbitration and trial of numerous matte...

Tim Shelby focuses on complex commercial litigation and oil and gas-related litigation. When interviewed by Chambers USA, clients offered the following assessments: “Tim is an excellent trial lawyer;” “Tim has good common sense and comes up with great strategy, which always leads to good results;” and “Tim is excellent at what he does.” Tim is recognized by Best Lawyers in America for commercial litigation in Texas from 2015 – 2025. Tim is recognized ...

Aaron P. Roffwarg is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Real Estate Law. Aaron P., who practices law in Houston, Texas, has been recognized since 2013. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Aaron P. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Robert S. Nichols is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Employment Law - Management and Labor Law - Management. Robert S., who practices law in Houston, Texas, has been recognized since 2023. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Robert S. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Ed Ripley has practiced in the restructuring and related litigation area for over 30 years with significant experience in energy space (including upstream, mid-stream and downstream), on-shore and offshore, both conventional and renewable; real estate and related development (including construction, M&M lien and related surety bond issues); and retail (including commercial landlord and tenant issues). Ed has been involved in some of the largest bankruptcy cases filed in Texas and througho...