BARRY BARNETT, born January 19, 1959, Corsicana, Texas; admitted to bar, 1985, Texas. Member, Bar of the Supreme Court of the United States of America; United States Courts of Appeals, Fifth and Tenth Circuits; United States District Courts for the Northern, Eastern, Southern, and Western Districts of Texas, the District of Arizona, and the District of Colorado.
You and Me
This profile tells you about me. But guess what? I want to know about you.
Yes, you. I have to understand you, your situation, and your goals before I can help you solve your problem.
So, as you read about me, consider whether I sound like someone you can trust. Somebody who will do every honest and ethical thing to help you achieve the best outcome for you. An individual you'll enjoy working with.
A profile tells you only so much about a lawyer. You probably wouldn't guess from what appears below, for example, that I grew up in Nacogdoches, Texas; that I sang in the All-Region Choir; that I played football in high school and college; or that my dad worked as a roughneck and my mom as a secretary. So, as you get to know a little about me, remember that I need to hear about – and from – you.
Education and Clerkship
Yale University awarded me a B.A. in Economics and History (honors), magna cum laude, in 1981. Three years later, Harvard Law School granted me a J.D., cum laude. The following year (1984-85), I served as Law Clerk to The Honorable Jerre S. Williams, United States Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit, Austin, Texas, before starting in the Houston office of Susman Godfrey L.L.P. in September 1985.
Professional Honors
Publications and Presentations
Co-author, "Techniques for Expediting and Streamlining Litigation" for American Bar Association Section of Litigation's second edition of Business and Commercial Litigation in Federal Courts (2005-08). Creator and blogger-in-chief, Blawgletter®. Editor, Barnett's Notes on Commercial Litigation, winner of Advocatus Diaboli Grand Prize award for law firm newsletters (2006). Interviews by and articles for NPR's " Marketplace" report, Law Blog of The Wall Street Journal, Texas Lawyer, ABA Journal, business torts "Hot Topics" by the Litigation Section of the Texas Bar Association, Kansas City Business Journal, The Dallas Morning News, Blawg Review, Texas Cable News, D CEO, and Dallas Business Journal.Author and speaker at continuing legal education seminars, including "Techniques for Expediting and Streamlining Litigation" for the Harris County Civil District Judges Summer Conference 2008; "How to Bust or Follow Through with an Arbitration" for the State Bar of Texas's Advanced Civil Trial Course; "Rule-Making and How It Affects Your Practice" for the State Bar of Texas's Advanced Personal Injury Law Course; "Current Developments in Business Litigation", American Bar Association. Business and Professional Affiliations
Trustee, Greenhill School. Alumnus member, Texas Lyceum. Member, State Bar of Texas; American Bar Association; Section of Litigation and Section of Antitrust Law; American Association for Justice; Dallas Bar Association; Houston Bar Association; Yale Club of Dallas; Harvard Club of Dallas; Yale Club of New York City. Fellow, Texas Bar Foundation, Dallas Bar Foundation, and Houston Bar Foundation.
Litigation Experience
Since 1985, I've handled lawsuits and arbitrations that involved a broad array of claims and defenses in a wide variety of industries and around the country. They include: - Antitrust (price-fixing, territorial and customer allocation, monopolization, tying, price discrimination): telecommunications, computer chips, cable, explosives, airlines, vitamins, pharmaceuticals, concrete, confectionery chocolate
- Patents, copyrights, trademarks, trade dress, and trade secrets: computer software, seismic data, restaurants, publishing, needlepoint rugs, memory chips, real estate development
- Class actions: price-fixing, ERISA, consumer fraud, securities fraud, pyramid scheme
- Contracts for goods and services: tools, aircraft, delivery services, licensing agreements, distribution agreements, franchises
- Lender liability: real estate, oil and gas, improper seizure and sale of collateral
- Securities fraud: false sales and profit numbers, misleading inventory levels
- Insurance coverage: D&O, oil field casualty, fiduciary bond
- Oil and gas: oilfield services, lease disputes, unitization/pooling
- Fiduciary duties: officers and directors, partners, trustees
- Minority shareholders: majority abuse, voting rights, failure to pay dividends
- Corporate control: seizure of control by insurgent shareholders
- Stock purchase and shareholder agreements: cinema chain, medical device maker
- Golden parachute: former CEO
- Employee Retirement Income Security Act: breach of duty of care over pension plan investments
- Partnerships: control, distribution of profits, dissolution
- Sexual harassment and discrimination: spying, physical injury
- Covenants not to compete: payday lending, real estate development, insurance brokerage, food services
Cases have ranged from two-party lawsuits to class actions involving millions of individuals.
Examples of Clients (Current and Former)
Public companies: Cisco Systems, Forest Oil, EMC, ENSCO, AmWINS, Trammell Crow Company, Texas Instruments, New Century Financial.
Private companies: Neiman Marcus Group, Mewbourne Oil, Gobeli Research, Swift Cash, Wagner & Brown, Ltd., and Morris & Dickson Co.
Top Three Reasons for Hiring Me
- Although I graduated from Yale and Harvard, I think, act, and talk like somebody who grew up in East Texas.
- I know it's not about me and my goals. It's about you and your goals.
- We will have fun working together.
Fee Arrangements Even in a strong economy, clients – you – should look at ways to get the most value from your lawyer's services. That starts with picking the right lawyer, of course, but aligning your interests with him or her matters a lot, too.
Different fee arrangements create different incentives. An hourly engagement tends to give you more control in the day to day conduct of your case. But it also puts the risk of inefficiency – especially by the other side – on you.
A contingent fee, on the other hand, shares risk between you and the lawyer and gives the lawyer an incentive to maximize your recovery because he or she will earn a percentage of it. The percentage varies from case to case, depending in part on the probability, timing, and size of the recovery. Don't feel shy about negotiating.
Flat fees work best in cases that involve more or less predictable levels of activity. A docket of employment litigation comes to mind. But flat fees can also function well in complex litigation, including patent and antitrust suits.
You can also combine hourly, contingent, and flat fee components.
Just let me know which you prefer.
Bill the Buffalo
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