Litigation Associate Attorney

Trueline; Houston (TX); On-site; USD 140,000 - 215,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical insurance with 90% premium

Dental and vision coverage

Short-term and long-term disability

$50,000 life insurance

401(k) with 3% employer match

Salary increases yearly

Production-based bonus program

Job summary

Trueline seeks multiple Litigation Attorneys to join teams in Austin, San Antonio, Houston and Dallas. The role covers insurance defense, transportation and construction defect litigation with strategic trial capability. Expect a busy docket and leadership of 25+ active cases.

Applicants should have 5+ years of civil litigation experience, strong writing and deposition skills, and a commitment to in-office work across Texas. Base salaries vary by profile with a robust bonus program.

Qualifications

• Active Texas Bar license in good standing.
• At least 5 years of substantive civil litigation experience.
• Experience in insurance defense, personal injury, transportation or related fields.
• Strong independent case-management experience.
• Significant discovery and deposition experience.
• Strong motion practice and legal writing skills.
• Experience handling hearings and contested proceedings.
• Strong client, carrier, and insured communication.
• Strong risk-analysis and problem-solving abilities.
• Excellent organization, responsiveness, and attention to detail.
• Ability to meet the firm’s Associate billable target of 160 hours per month / 1,920 per year.
• Willingness to work in-office across Texas as required.

Responsibilities

• Independently manage an active civil litigation docket throughout Texas.
• Handle insurance defense, personal injury, commercial transportation, construction defect, and related matters depending on experience.
• Take ownership of approximately 25+ active cases.
• Develop litigation strategy, risk assessments, and recommendations.
• Maintain regular reporting and communication with clients, carriers, insureds, and assigning attorneys.
• Draft and respond to discovery, pleadings, motions, and briefs.
• Prepare insureds, witnesses, experts, and other parties for depositions.
• Take and defend depositions.
• Coordinate with engineers, experts, consultants, and other professionals as appropriate.
• Draft and argue substantive motions; attend hearings, mediations, arbitrations, and other proceedings.
• Negotiate settlements and advise on resolution strategy.
• Prepare matters for trial and participate directly in trial proceedings.
• Maintain comprehensive command of case facts, claims, strategy, exposure, and deadlines.
• Mentor junior attorneys and coordinate with legal support professionals as appropriate for experience level.

Skills

Texas Bar license

Civil litigation

Insurance defense

Discovery & depositions

Motions & writing

Trial experience

Client communication

Billable targets

Job description

Trueline is seeking multiple Litigation Attorneys to join its teams in Austin, San Antonio, Houston and Dallas. This is a critical growth and succession hire, with opportunities for experienced insurance defense and transportation litigators as well as a senior construction defect attorney who can bring deep substantive experience and meaningful trial capability.

What You'll Do as the Litigation Attorney:

• Independently manage an active civil litigation docket throughout Texas
• Handle insurance defense, personal injury, commercial transportation, construction defect, and related matters depending on experience
• Take ownership of approximately 25+ active cases
• Develop litigation strategy, risk assessments, and recommendations
• Maintain regular reporting and communication with clients, carriers, insureds, and assigning attorneys
• Draft and respond to discovery, pleadings, motions, and briefs
• Prepare insureds, witnesses, experts, and other parties for depositions
• Take and defend depositions
• Coordinate with engineers, experts, consultants, and other professionals as appropriate
• Draft and argue substantive motions
• Attend hearings, mediations, arbitrations, and other proceedings
• Negotiate settlements and advise on resolution strategy
• Prepare matters for trial and participate directly in trial proceedings
• Maintain comprehensive command of case facts, claims, strategy, exposure, and deadlines
• Mentor junior attorneys and coordinate with legal support professionals as appropriate for experience level

Must-Haves as the Litigation Attorney:

• Active Texas Bar license in good standing
• At least 5 years of substantive civil litigation experience for the core Associate openings
• Insurance defense, general personal injury, commercial transportation, or closely related experience for the core Associate profile
• Strong independent case-management experience
• Significant discovery and deposition experience
• Strong motion practice and legal writing
• Experience handling hearings and contested proceedings
• Strong client, carrier, and insured communication
• Strong risk-analysis and problem-solving abilities
• Excellent organization, responsiveness, and attention to detail
• Ability to consistently meet the firm's Associate billable expectation of 160 hours per month, or 1,920 hours annually
• Ability to work in-office and attend proceedings throughout Texas as required

Nice-to-Haves as the Litigation Attorney:

• 7+ years of litigation experience
• Significant construction defect litigation experience
• Trial experience
• First-chair or meaningful second-chair trial experience
• Commercial transportation or trucking defense experience
• Significant insurer-side litigation experience
• Texas federal court admissions
• Leadership or mentoring experience
• Portable business for highly experienced candidates

This Role Offers:

• Base salary of $140,000-$175,000 for the core 5-7 year Associate profile, depending on experience
• Base salary of $155,000-$215,000 for the 7+ year construction defect profile, depending on experience
• Potential flexibility in title and compensation for particularly experienced attorneys and candidates with meaningful portable business
• Lucrative production-based bonus program designed to meaningfully reward attorneys who exceed annual billable targets, with increasing earning potential as production grows
• Annual salary increases each December
• Medical insurance with approximately 90% of premium costs covered by the firm, plus dental and vision coverage
• Employer-paid short-term disability, long-term disability, and $50,000 in life insurance, with additional voluntary life insurance available
• 401(k) with a 3% employer match
• Sophisticated litigation, significant case ownership, and the resources of an established Texas-based firm with a national reach

Trueline and its clients are unabashed equal-opportunity employers committed to a diverse workforce. We welcome smart and ambitious applicants and recruit, refer, hire, place, and promote without regard to race, color, gender, religion, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, disability, age, sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by federal or state law.