Overview

About Tom Kirkendall

I have been involved in the planning, trial and appeal of complex business litigation matters for the past 30 years.

I was born born and raised in Iowa City, Iowa and moved to Houston in 1972, where I worked my way through college and law school. I received a Bachelor of Arts, cum laude, in 1975 from the University of Houston and a Doctor of Jurisprudence in 1979 from the University of Houston Law Center.

After working for one of Houston’s oldest downtown law firms for two years immediately after law school, I was one of the founding partners in 1981 of the Houston business litigation boutique firm that bore my name and became prominent over the next 20 years in complex business litigation matters in Houston and throughout Texas.

In 2000, I established a solo practice in my home, The Woodlands, Texas (35 miles north of downtown Houston), in which I concentrate on personalized representation of clients in complex business litigation matters and utilization of technology applications in such representation.

I have represented a wide variety of clients in complex business litigation in state and federal courts throughout Texas and the United States. My practice has involved trials and appeals in such diverse litigation areas as corporate reorganization and bankruptcy, securities and business fraud, white collar-business criminal cases, anti-trust, real estate, construction, oil and gas, insurance disputes, civil rights, First Amendment issues, defense of civil and criminal contempt matters, and defense of individuals in NCAA Infractions Committee hearings. I maintain an “AV” rating from the Martindale-Hubbell Legal Directory.

I have been a lecturer at the University of Houston Law Center and the University of Texas Law School, and an author and lecturer for the State Bar of Texas Advanced Bankruptcy Seminar and the Houston Bar Association in various areas of business litigation and corporate reorganization law, as well as on the subject of legal research and weblogs. Since February 2004, I have also maintained the popular Houston's Clear Thinkers weblog, which addresses issues of interest for the Houston legal, business, medical and academic communities. I frequently lecture on a variety of business litigation topics for private companies and citizen groups.

Practice Areas
Professional Experience
ExperienceYears
Owner, Law Office of Tom Kirkendall2000-Current
Managing Partner, Kirkendall & Isgur, LLP1992-2000
Partner, Maddox, Perrin & Kirkendall1981-1992
Associate, Hirsch & Westheimer1979-1981
Education
SchoolFocusDegreeYear
University of Houston - Main CampusJ.D (1979)1979
University of Houston - Main CampusPolitical Science & EconomicsB.A1975
Honors: Cum Laude
Professional Activities
ActivityOrganizationStart YearEnd Year
DirectorUniversity of Houston Law Foundation2007
Sustaining Life MemberA.A. White Association of the University of Houston Law Center 1990
Life MemberUniversity of Houston Alumni Association1979
Sustaining Life FellowHouston Bar Foundation1985
Founding Board MemberUniversity of Houston Athletics Foundation19952002
Professional Affiliations
PositionYears
Member, State Bar of Texas1979-Current
Member, American Bar Association1980-Current
Member, Fifth Circuit Bar Association1995-Current
Member, Houston Bar Association1979-Current
Member, American Bar Association Litigation Section1980-Current
Member, American Bar Association Business Law Section1980-Current
Member, State Bar of Texas Litigation Section1980-Current
Member, State Bar of Texas Appellate Section1980-Current
Member, State Bar of Texas Bankruptcy Law Section1980-Current
Member, State Bar of Texas Antitrust and Business Litigation Section1980-Current
Member, State Bar of Texas Computer and Technology Section1990-Current
Member, Houston Bar Association Litigation Section1980-Current
Member, Houston Bar Association Appellate Section1980-Current
Member, Houston Bar Association Federal Practice Litigation1979-Current
Member, Houston Bar Association Bankruptcy Section1980-Current

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Twitter & Social Networks

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Total Following

Twitter / bigtkirk
  • bigtkirk: New HCT blog post Customer service: Robert Duvall -- in his classic role of former Texas Ranger Gus McCrae in Larry ... http://bit.ly/2yXeMI
  • bigtkirk: Frederick Hayek:"The curious task of economics is to demonstrate to men how little they really know about what they imagine they can design"
  • bigtkirk: I mean really. How is it that Timothy Geithner still has a job?: http://j.mp/3vHtdu
  • bigtkirk: New HCT blog post Dylan does Christmas: Andrew Ferguson is not impressed with Bob Dylan or his new Christmas CD: The... http://bit.ly/3SzTni
  • bigtkirk: New HCT blog post Muddled thinking: Everyone who follows football around these parts is feeling bad for Texans' TE Ow... http://bit.ly/u6SCj
  • bigtkirk: 2010 PGA TOUR schedule includes a Texas swing after The Players from May 10-30 @ San Antonio, Dallas and Ft Worth: http://j.mp/278Sxc
  • bigtkirk: Cool view:http://j.mp/2nJidn
  • bigtkirk: Given the injury risk in football, I am constantly amazed at the bad financial decisions that players and agents make: http://j.mp/2uIp6z
  • bigtkirk: New HCT blog post Why is Timothy Geithner still employed?: Last week, we learned that Timothy Geithner, while the he... http://bit.ly/3Mm2il
  • bigtkirk: These people were having fun? Sure doesn't look like it: http://j.mp/3xsTB3
  • bigtkirk: New HCT blog post 2009 Weekly local football review: (AP Photo/Don Heupel; previous weekly reviews for this season a... http://bit.ly/2Fsisq
  • bigtkirk: New HCT blog post Secret Agent Man: One of the most underappreciated rockers from the 60's, Johnny Rivers.... http://bit.ly/313YxP
  • bigtkirk: Forest Evashevski, the legendary Iowa football coach from the 1950's, has died: http://j.mp/1TSwcP
  • bigtkirk: New HCT blog post Jonathon Winters' Stick: Before Robin Williams and Jim Carrey, there was Jonathon Winters. Enjoy.... http://bit.ly/1SMsO5
  • bigtkirk: “He who spends time passing trivial legislation may find himself out of time to read healthcare bill”: http://j.mp/1g78L9
  • bigtkirk: "Football has the same relation to education that bullfighting has to agriculture." http://j.mp/2g4FhJ
  • bigtkirk: New HCT blog post John O'Quinn, R.I.P.: The Houston legal community remains in shock over the death yesterday in a c... http://bit.ly/3gC2RE
  • bigtkirk: RT @MarkWBennett: Prominent Houston lawyer John O'Quinn killed in car wreck on Allen Parkway. http://bit.ly/2FpKE7 (via @HoustonPress)
  • bigtkirk: Even the bookies are upset with all the bad NFL teams this season: http://j.mp/3qg6zY
  • bigtkirk: New HCT blog post Bluffing Geithner is profitable: Say what? Timothy Geithner -- while heading up the New York Fed i... http://bit.ly/39TOe7
  • bigtkirk: The Epicurean Dealmaker is pissed that Timothy Geithner was sent to do a man's job: http://j.mp/39eqWf

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