Byron K. Henry - Cowles and Thompson

Byron K. Henry
Shareholder
214-672-2156
[email protected]
Practice Areas
 Business Litigation
 Civil Appeals
Practice Emphasis
Byron Henry is a Shareholder in the firm’s Appellate Law Section with his practice principally focusing on
the areas of business litigation and civil appeals. Mr. Henry is a member of the State Bar College, the
Dallas Bar Association, the Collin County Bar Association, and the Bar Association of the Fifth Federal
Circuit. Mr Henry currently serves as President of the Collin County Bar Association and Chair of the
Dallas Bar Appellate Section. He also serves on the Judiciary and Fee Disputes Committees of the
Dallas Bar Association. Mr. Henry is a member of the State Bar of Texas Grievance Committee for District
1 and serves as a judge for Plano Teen Court
Mr. Henry is Board Certified in Civil Appellate Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. He is
licensed to practice in Texas state courts as well as the United States District Courts for Northern and
Eastern Districts of Texas, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, and the Supreme Court
of the United States. He has successfully argued cases in a number of state courts of appeals, and he
has filed papers and briefs in many more state and federal trial and appellate courts, including the U.S.
Supreme Court, the Supreme Court of Texas, and the Fifth and Sixth Circuits. Mr. Henry also provides
advice to clients and attorneys on legal and business strategies, as well as trial support in complex civil
cases in the area of experts, summary judgment, jury charge practice, and post-judgment motion
practice.
Special Honors
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In 2011 and 2012, Mr. Henry was named a “Texas Super Lawyer” in the Appellate area of law in
the Texas Super Lawyers Business edition magazine.
In 2010, Mr. Henry was named a “Texas Rising Star” in the Appellate area of law in the Texas
Super Lawyer edition of Texas Monthly and Law & Politics magazine.
Representative Appellate Matters
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Successfully obtained reversal and rendition of judgment for client by arguing on appeal that
there was legally insufficient to support the jury’s verdict against our client for negligence and
fraud.
Successfully obtained reversal and rendition of judgment for client by arguing on appeal that
there was legally insufficient evidence to support the trial court’s judgment against our client for
alleged violation of the DTPA for installing defective residential roofs.
Successfully defended trial court’s judgment in favor of client by arguing on appeal that our
client’s property was not a residential hotel for purposes zoning ordinances.
Successfully defended a property management company in a case involving premises liability by
obtaining affirmance of a take-nothing summary judgment in favor of his client.
Successfully obtained reversal and rendition of judgment for client by arguing on appeal that trial
court lacked personal jurisdiction over our client.
Successfully defended judgment after jury trial that client was entitled to property tax exemption
as a charitable organization for an “incomplete improvement.”
Successfully defended trial court’s finding that immunity was waived for plaintiff’s declaratory
judgment and takings claims against in case involving a city’s seizure and disposal of alleged
stolen vehicles.
www.cowlesthompson.com
Byron K. Henry
Cowles & Thompson, P.C.
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Successfully defended summary judgment for client in breach of contract case regarding sale of
apartment complex.
Successfully vacated judgment in excess of $2 million against and obtained dismissal of the case
by successfully arguing plaintiff lacked standing as an unadmitted assignee of a limited
partnership interest.
Successfully defended summary judgment in favor of client in breach of contract case by arguing
plaintiff could not recover attorney’s fees as damages.
Successfully obtained reversal and rendition of judgment for client by arguing on appeal that
unidentified witness should have been excluded.
Successfully obtained reversal and rendition of judgment for client after jury trial by arguing on
appeal that plaintiff’s civil theft claim was preempted by federal law.
Successfully defended judgment in favor of client by arguing on appeal that evidence regarding
unpaid sales commissions was sufficient to support judgment or fraud and punitive damages.
Successfully obtained reversal of judgment for client by restricted appeal by arguing on appeal
that evidence was insufficient to support plaintiff’s conversion claim.
Successfully defended take-nothing judgment in favor of client by arguing on appeal that
provisions of the Texas Transportation Code are preempted by federal law.
Representative Trial Matters
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Successfully prosecuted a case with Mark Hill by obtaining judgment in excess of one million
dollars for our client against defendants who ran a Ponzi scheme.
Successfully prosecuted a case with John Pease for an oil and gas client involving multiple
indemnity agreements with respect to a well blowout by obtaining a jury verdict awarding 100% of
our client’s damages.
Successfully prosecuted a case with John Pease by obtaining summary judgment in favor of
client awarding damages and attorney’s fees based on opposing party’s breach of an indemnity
agreement.
Successfully obtained summary judgment for client in a health care liability claim on plaintiff’s
claims under the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act.
Successfully obtained dismissal and attorney’s fees for client in a health care liability claim for
failure to file an adequate expert report.
Successfully defended a professional counselor with John Pease from allegations of fraud and
professional negligence by obtaining a take-nothing judgment in favor of our client at trial.
Memberships & Affiliations
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State Bar of Texas Appellate Section
Dallas Bar Association (Judiciary and Fee Dispute Committees)
Dallas Bar Association Appellate Section (Chair 2013)
Collin County Bar Association (President 2013)
Collin County Bar Association Appellate Section (Chair 2007-2011)
Bar Association of the Fifth Federal Circuit
College of the State Bar of Texas
Fellow, Dallas Bar Foundation
Fellow, Texas Bar Foundation
Education and Court Admissions
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J.D., Texas Wesleyan University School of Law, cum laude, 1997
o Citation Editor, Texas Wesleyan Law Review
B.S. in Political Science and History, Howard Payne University, 1994
Admitted to the State Bar of Texas, 1998
Supreme Court of the United States
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
U.S. District Court, Northern District of Texas
U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Texas
www.cowlesthompson.com