For most people, the prospect of filing a lawsuit isn’t one we relish. But in cases of corporate malfeasance, defective product design, or dangerous drugs, filing a claim like a class-action lawsuit may be the only way to get justice.
More than 90,000 attorneys are practicing in Texas today, which can make it difficult to choose the right advocate to have on your side. That’s why we’ve broken down the best class-action law firms and attorneys in the state. Use this as a guide when making your decision, and remember that you probably won’t have to pay attorney’s fees unless you win your case and initial consultations are free.
1. Baron & Budd
3102 Oak Lawn Ave Suite 1100, Dallas, TX 75219
Practice Areas: Class Action, Dangerous Drugs, Mesothelioma, Environmental Contamination, Multijurisdictional Litigation (MDL)
Firm Size: Big Law
Dallas-based Baron & Budd is one of the largest and most accomplished class-action firms in Texas and around the U.S. The firm has taken on cases across the country, and it has offices in California, Louisiana, and Washington, D.C., in addition to its offices in Dallas and Austin.
Baron & Budd attorneys handled their first mesothelioma case some-40 years ago, and asbestos- and mesothelioma-related litigation continues to be a primary area of focus. In fact, the firm’s founder Russell Budd led the negotiation that resulted in the establishment of a $4 billion Halliburton trust fund, making it the largest asbestos trust fund in the world.
Other major victories for Baron & Budd attorneys include negotiating a $420 million settlement over chemical contamination of drinking water and a $5.5 billion settlement related to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Active investigations include ones into defective auto parts, building products, deceptive banking and credit card practices, defective medical devices, and dangerous drugs.
2. Arnold & Itkin
6009 Memorial Dr, Houston, TX 77007
Practice Areas: Class Action, Dangerous Drugs, Defective Products, Big Pharma, Environmental Contamination
Firm Size: Medium
Midsized Houston-based law firm Arnold & Itkin was founded in 2004 and holds a national distinction — in 2019, attorneys with the firm won an $8 billion verdict in punitive damages against Johnson & Johnson over the medication Risperdal. Though the award was later slashed on appeal, that verdict represented the third-largest such award for an individual plaintiff in U.S. history.
In addition to continuing to pursue Risperdal-related cases, attorneys at Arnold & Itkin are investigating individual and potential class-action cases related to drugs like Zantac, Valsartan, and Xeljanz, as well as consumer products, environmental contamination, and workplace safety.
Many of the company’s biggest victories speak to its geographic location in Houston, as the firm has won tens of millions in verdicts and settlements for workers in the energy industry. Arnold & Itkin also has offices in Dallas, Baton Rouge, and Utah.
3. Crosley Law
3303 Oakwell Ct #200, San Antonio, TX 78218
Practice Areas: Class Action, Personal Injury, Defective Products, Mesothelioma
Firm Size: Small
Crosley Law is a small, San Antonio-based firm specializing in personal injury cases; indeed, many of the firm’s biggest results have been in this area, including a $28 million verdict on behalf of the family of a man killed by a drunken driver. Other key practice areas for the firm’s attorneys include individual and mass cases related to defective products, asbestos, aviation disasters, and more.
Crosley attorneys are pursuing and investigating potential class-action cases relating to asbestos and mesothelioma; dangerous auto parts like tires, airbags, and seatbelts; defective medical devices; aircraft defects; and dangerous drugs.
Attorneys with the firm have helped class-action clients receive awards like a $6.3 million verdict on behalf of victims of illegal debt-collection practices and a $1.9 million verdict over consumer protection violations.
4. Williams Hart
8441 Gulf Fwy #600, Houston, TX 77017
Practice Areas: Class Action, Big Pharma, Environmental Contamination, Employment Law
Firm Size: Medium
Houston-based Williams Hart was founded in 1983, and today, this midsized firm is at the forefront of protecting consumers in Texas and across the U.S. from dangerous drugs, environmental contamination, and corporate overreach in the workplace.
Over the firm’s four decades, Williams Hart attorneys have represented more than 100,000 clients, generating tens of millions in judgments, verdicts, and settlements.
Williams Hart attorneys are currently pursuing and investigating potential individual or class-action cases related to asbestos exposure, Roundup weedkiller, talcum powder, Lorsban insecticide, the medications Valsartan and Elmiron, and the Addicks and Barker flood-control project in which the federal government took control of 7,000 acres of private land.
5. Watts Guerra LLP
4 Dominion Dr Building 3 Suite #100, San Antonio, TX 78257
Practice Areas: Class Action, Mass Torts, Medical Devices, Consumer Products, Agriculture, Big Pharma
Firm Size: Medium
Watts Guerra is a medium-sized firm with multiple locations in San Antonio as well as having offices in Corpus Christi and Odessa. The firm also has offices in Chico and Santa Rosa, California.
Among the most notable past successes that can be claimed by attorneys with Watts Guerra is that they were instrumental in the legal action that led to the recall of defective Firestone tires and unstable Ford Explorer vehicles; their work led directly to Congressional hearings that revealed the extent of the controversy.
One of the firm’s ongoing crusades is the fight on behalf of family farms. To that end, agriculture-related lawsuits, both individual and group claims, are at the forefront of much of the work the firm’s attorneys do today. Recent results covering cases like trade disruption and injury to trees have resulted in settlements upwards of $150 million.
6. The Lanier Law Firm
10940 West Sam Houston Pkwy N Suite 100, Houston, TX 77064
Practice Areas: Class Action, Asbestos Exposure, Business Fraud, Personal Injury, Big Pharma
Firm Size: Large
Founded in 1990, the Lanier Law Firm is one of the nation’s leaders in taking on companies who expose consumers to dangerous chemicals.
In fact, founder Mark Lanier was the lead counsel in a 2018 case against Johnson & Johnson over its baby powder product that resulted in a $4.7 billion jury verdict for 22 victims and their families. Though that amount was later reduced on appeal, Johnson & Johnson has faced mounting lawsuits and is expected to establish a mass settlement over its talc-based products.
Attorneys with the firm are in the midst of considering and investigating cases into other talc-based products, faulty medical devices, JUUL e-cigarettes, and dangerous drugs like Actos, Avandia, Chantix, Lipitor, Vioxx, Zoloft, and Zyprexa.
7. Laminack Pirtle & Martines LLP
5020 Montrose Blvd # 900, Houston, TX 77006
Practice Areas: Class Action, Personal Injury, Big Pharma, Defective Medical Devices, Hurricane, E-Cigarettes
Firm Size: Small
Laminack Pirtle & Martines is a small, Houston-based firm that’s become a national leader in litigation related to dangerous and faulty medical devices. Among the most prominent results over the past few decades were the first two jury trials involving silicone breast implants, which have been known to rupture and leak, causing serious injury. Those two landmark cases ended in jury verdicts totaling more than $60 million.
These days, attorneys with the firm remain focused on ensuring that consumers receive safe treatment, whether in the form of medication or medical devices, and they’re investigating potential lawsuits over medications like Nexium and Prilosec, artificial joint implants, medical pumps, and hernia mesh.
The firm provides services in English and Spanish, which is typical in Texas, but also in Vietnamese, helping serve the large community of Vietnamese-Americans in Houston.
8. Provost Umphrey Law Firm L.L.P.
490 Park St, Beaumont, TX 77701
Practice Areas: Class Action, Personal Injury, Big Pharma, Toxic Torts, E-Cigarettes, Asbestos
Firm Size: Medium
Provost Umphrey was founded in 1969, making it one of the oldest Texas firms on our list. Today, the attorneys for this medium-sized, Beaumont-based firm focuses largely on handling cases related to dangerous drugs, environmental contamination, and similar cases.
Most recently, the firm was critical in finalizing a $179 million asbestos settlement that had faced 16 years of appeals and bankruptcy proceedings.
Attorneys with the firm are actively pursuing and investigating claims related to asbestos exposure, which is the leading cause of the rare cancer mesothelioma. Other toxic-tort cases the firm has handled include exposure to benzene and silica, and attorneys are pursuing cases related to medical devices like replacement joints, medical pumps, and transvaginal mesh, as well as dangerous drugs like Invokana and Zantac.
9. The Schmidt Firm, PLLC
3500 Maple Ave #1250, Dallas, TX 75219
Practice Areas: Class Action, Personal Injury, Medical Devices, Toxic Torts
Firm Size: Small
Founded in 1992, the Schmidt Firm is a two-person, Dallas-based operation that focuses largely on medical malpractice, faulty medical devices, toxic torts, and personal injury cases in addition to handling class-action lawsuits around Texas and the rest of the U.S.
The firm’s attorneys are currently pursuing and investigating potential individual and class-action lawsuits related to consumer products like 3M combat earplugs, contact lenses, talcum powder, and auto parts, as well as medical devices like replacement joints, and transvaginal mesh, and dangerous drugs like Zantac and Metformin.
They have also handled cases related to toxic substances like Dicamba, benzene, Roundup and other weedkillers, and more.
10. Simmons and Fletcher, P.C.
9821 Katy Fwy #925, Houston, TX 77024
Practice Areas: Class Action, Toxic Torts, Product Liability, Personal Injury
Firm Size: Small
Houston-based Simmons and Fletcher holds the distinction of being one of the few law firms in Texas or the rest of the U.S. to focus on the practice of law from a Christian perspective.
While that’s unique, the attorneys of this small firm are experts in some of the most well-known lawsuits, both individual and mass-tort actions. Among the firm’s most prominent results are a $12 million settlement in the case of an electrocution burn and a $1.4 million settlement in a drunken-driving car accident.
Simmons and Fletcher attorneys are investigating and pursuing potential class-action claims related to the weedkiller glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup, as well as dangerous products like silicone breast implants, talc-based products that have been linked to multiple forms of cancer, and environmental contamination in Houston’s Fifth Ward.
