Rusty Hardin & Associates

http://www.rustyhardin.com/
[email protected]
+1 713 652 9000 

Managing Partner: Rusty Hardin
Number of partners: 7
Number of lawyers: 15

Firm Overview:
The attorneys of Rusty Hardin & Associates are highly experienced lawyers recognized for their diligence in preparing for trial, establishing rapport with juries, and obtaining favorable results for plaintiffs and defendants in courtrooms across the nation. While the practice is devoted primarily to civil litigation, the firm continues to represent high-profile individuals in criminal cases, believing that this diversity makes each lawyer better and reinforces a collective ability to help a broad cross-section of clients. This approach is grounded in a belief and trust in jurors and in the skills to effectively communicate all the relevant facts and evidence of a complex case or concept while retaining the panel’s interest and attention. The firm’s record of success enhances the settlement potential of a case, frequently making a trial unnecessary and creating a more satisfying solution for the firm’s clients.

Main Areas of Practice:

Commercial Litigation:
While the firm is perhaps best known for its history of defending clients in several high-profile criminal matters, commercial litigation remains the focus of the practice. This experience covers a range of industries and professional services, such as real estate, energy, health care, manufacturing, accounting, and financial services. In preparing and trying these cases, the firm establishes and confirms the individual objectives of each client, enabling attorneys to efficiently manage investigations and discovery and effectively work with any co-counsel. These commercial litigation matters have included cases involving abuses of trust, disciplinary hearings, contracts, fiduciary duty, fraud and deceptive trade practices, intellectual property, and employment agreements.

■ The firm represented Nan Ya Plastics Corporation, a publicly traded company that is a part of the largest commercial concern in Taiwan, in a theft of trade secrets case filed in Texas. After aggressively challenging the plaintiff ’s claims for more than $400 million in damages, the firm’s attorneys negotiated a settlement that was significantly less than Nan Ya’s remaining defense costs. The terms were so favorable that the remaining defendant, Formosa Plastics Corporation, asked the firm to serve as co-counsel at trial.

Personal Injury Cases:
Helping individuals gain some form of justice in the wake of death or injury to a loved one is important to the firm. This work often involves the search for the best way to convey the facts of the client’s story, allowing a jury to better understand how and why certain events occurred and the impact of those events on an individual, a family, or a broader segment of the population. In the successful resolution of product liability claims, the firm can bring about fundamental change in the way specific consumer goods are manufactured and marketed, at times forcing corporate interests and insurers to provide greater protections for customers, residents, or employees. Many of the firm’s plaintiff clients in personal injury cases have received jury awards and out-of-court settlements ranging from several thousands to millions of dollars.

■ Attorneys of the firm represented the mother of a young boy who was killed in an accident involving a ski boat manufactured by Skier’s Choice, Inc. The product liability case was effectively proven when a company design expert admitted under oath that the addition of a $40 piece of protective equipment would have saved the boy’s life. Soon thereafter, the case settled on terms quite satisfactory for the plaintiff

Criminal Matters:
The firm’s criminal defense team has brought cases to trial in jurisdictions across the nation. While this work often involves the defense of clients in state criminal courts, the firm also represents corporations and individuals charged in white-collar criminal matters and regularly counsels clients in criminal investigations brought by federal and state authorities.

■ The firm represented chemical manufacturer Arkema Inc. after the company and its executives were indicted on state criminal charges for reckless emission of air pollutants under the Texas Water Code. The case stemmed from a 2017 chemical fire at the company’s plant in Crosby, Texas. Inundated by Hurricane Harvey floodwaters, the plant lost power to several trailers that cooled the company’s temperature-regulated organic peroxide. A 2020 trial ended with a Texas judge issuing two directed verdicts and acquitting all defendants in the case.

Cases Involving Public Figures:
The firm’s ability to successfully cope with the personal needs and public scrutiny of high-profile individuals involved in civil or criminal litigation is an unmatched asset. These cases are particularly sensitive as they often involve potentially negative publicity. The firm’s judgment and experience in effectively engaging news media can help assure that any coverage is as balanced and objective as possible.

■ The firm represented former professional baseball player Roger Clemens in matters that developed from the Mitchell Report’s allegations of performance enhancing substance abuse in the sport. The firm represented Mr. Clemens in the criminal case brought by the Department of Justice alleging that he committed perjury during Congressional testimony about the report’s findings. After an initial mistrial, Mr. Clemens was found not guilty on all counts by a Washington DC jury after eight weeks of testimony. In addition, the firm represented Mr. Clemens in a civil defamation suit against his accuser, a civil defamation suit brought by his accuser, and other related hearings and investigations

Investigations:
The firm’s attorneys are fortunate to have the resources and experience to help clients respond to investigations and prosecutions by state and federal governmental agencies in a discreet, efficient, and cost-effective manner. The firm employs an in-house investigator with a background in law enforcement and corporate security to support the trial teams in both civil and criminal cases.

Clients:
Arkema Inc.; Arthur Andersen LLP; Burlington Resources; Calvin Murphy; Dow Jones & Company; Enterprise Products; ExxonMobil; Houston Community College System; Houston Independent School District; Houston Police Chief C.O. Bradford; The Houston Texans; J. Howard Marshall II; Las Vegas Sands Corp.; The Methodist Hospital; NCI Building Systems; Osprey Petroleum Company; Ponderosa Land Development Co.; Rafer Alston; Rice University; Roger Clemens; Rudy Tomjanovich; Russian Academy of Science; Scottie Pippen; Stealth, LP; Steve Francis; The Texas House Select Committee on Transparency in State Agency Operations; Trigeant, Ltd.; Victoria Osteen; Wade Boggs; Warren Moon