Practice Areas: Business litigation, Civil litigation, Construction litigation; view more
Licensed in Texas since: 1981
Education: The University of Tulsa College of Law
Languages Spoken: English, Spanish
Selected to Super Lawyers: 2006 - 2008, 2011 - 2023 Call today:
512-940-1176
Virtual Appointments Richardson Firm PLLC
1607 Nueces StAustin, TX 78701 Visit website
Details
Jim Richardson is widely recognized for his robust courtroom skills and depth of experience in complex litigation.
Jim has been annually named to Best Lawyers® in Commercial Litigation for over a decade based on peer reviews by top trial lawyers and published client evaluations. Jim has been named to Super Lawyers® for over 15 years, including being named a Top 50 Central & West Texas Super Lawyer® multiple times by Thomson Reuters. He has been repeatedly recognized by the National Trial Lawyers Top 100™ and named to Austin Monthly's Top Lawyers in Austin and San Antonio. He is also an active Member of the American Board of Trial Advocates, an invitation-only national association of leading trial lawyers and judges.
Jim is the Immediate Past President and officer of the National Board of Trial Advocacy, overseeing the nation's largest private organization for attorney board certification. As a nonprofit established in 1977, the NBTA is committed to enriching trial advocacy skills in the United States by certifying trial lawyers in any of eight specialty areas accredited by the American Bar Association. He also serves as the Founding President of the NBTA Austin-Area Chapter.
Richardson Firm PLLC is ranked Tier 1 in Commercial Litigation by U.S. News and World Report and Best Law Firms®, an elite honor limited to the top one percent of American law firms.
Jim holds three active Board Certifications, one by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization in Civil Trial Law, and two by the National Board of Trial Advocacy in Civil Trial Law and Civil Practice Advocacy. He has been recertified multiple times.
Practice Areas: Trials and Arbitrations; Breach of Fiduciary Duty; Fraud; Breach of Contract; Interference with Contractual Relations; Real Estate Litigation; Business Torts and Technology; Construction Litigation; Marriage Dissolution and Complex Property Claims; Professional Liability and Legal Malpractice; Employment Disputes; Environmental Litigation; Negligence; Probate, Trusts, and Estates.
Practice areas
Business litigation, Civil litigation: plaintiff, Construction litigation: business, Estate & trust litigation, General litigationFocus areas
Trade secret, Non-compete agreements, Construction defects, Litigation, Restraining order
- 20% Business litigation
- 50% Civil litigation: plaintiff
- 10% Construction litigation: business
- 10% Estate & trust litigation
- 10% General litigation
First Admitted: 1981, Texas
Professional Webpage: https://www.richardson-firm.com/about-us/james-m-richardson/
- Immediate Past President, National Board of Trial Advocacy, 2022-2024; President, National Board of Trial Advocacy, 2020-2022, National Board of Trial Advocacy
- Top 50 Texas Super Lawyers, Central and West Texas Region, by Thomson Reuters, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2019
- The Best Lawyers in America© in Commercial Litigation by BL Rankings, 2012-2022, BL Rankings
- Top 100 Trial Lawyers®, The National Trial Lawyers, 2019, 2020, 2021
- Member, American Board of Trial Advocates
- Martindale-Hubbell/LexisNexis, AV®Preeminent™ 5.0-5
- Editor-in-Chief, Tulsa Law Review
- Outstanding Law Graduate of Oklahoma, Oklahoma Bar Association
- President, National Board of Trial Advocacy (2020-2022); President-Elect (2017-2020); Executive Committee (2016-present); Member, Board of Directors (2015-present); Civil Trial Advocate (2002-present); Civil Practice Advocate (2012-present); State Coordinator–Texas (2013-present)
- President, NBTA Austin-Area Chapter (2016 to present)
- State Bar of Texas, Rules of Evidence Committee (1996-98); Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct Committee (2000-04); Panel Chair, District 9A Grievance Committee of the State (2002-03) (Member from 1997)
- Austin Bar Association, Civil Litigation Section (Past-Chair, 2016-17; Chair, 2015-16; Vice-Chair, 2013-14; Treasurer, 2012-13; Secretary 2011-12); Member, Board of Directors (2009-12; Chair, CLE (1994-96); (Member from 1985)
- Member, American Board of Trial Advocates, TEX-ABOTA Chapter
- Fellow, Litigation Counsel of America (2015-present)
- Fellow, American College of Board Certified Attorneys (2015-present)
- Master of the Bench, American Inns of Court, Robert W. Calvert Chapter (2005-present)
- Special Assistant Attorney General, State of Texas, 1982
- Outstanding Law Graduate, Oklahoma Bar Association
- Pro Bono College, State Bar of Texas (2019-present)
- Founding Life Fellow, Austin Bar Foundation (2005-present)
- Life Fellow, Texas Bar Foundation (1999-present)
- Course Director/Presenter, Essential Trial Advocacy Workshop®, Winning Motions, Presented by National Board of Trial Advocacy, Hosted by Jackson Walker LLP (Oct. 2017)
- Presenter, 14th Annual Ultimate Trial Notebook®, Voir Dire, Presented by the Austin Bar Association Civil Litigation Section (Oct. 2018)
- Co-Chair/Moderator, 12th Annual Ultimate Trial Notebook 2016 (Co-Chair/Moderator in 2009, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015)
- Presenter, Model State Emergency Health Powers Act (March 2015)
- Presenter, Texas Lawyers and the Disciplinary Process, 2014
- Presenter, Lawyers and Social Network Media Websites: Litigation and Advertising Issues, American Inns of Court, Austin, Texas (Nov. 2009)
- Author, Advanced Courtroom Evidence Examination, National Board of Trial Advocacy (2009)
- Presenter, Tort Reform Time Machine, American Inns of Court, Austin, Texas (Mar. 2007)
- "Ask a Super Lawyer," Automated Camera Defenses, Texas Monthly (Oct. 2006)
- Presenter, Litigating Disaster Recovery Issues, American Inns of Court, Austin, Texas (Oct. 2006)
- Author, Advanced Courtroom Evidence Examination, National Board of Trial Advocacy (2006)
- Co-Chair, National Business Institute, How to Litigate Your First Civil Trial in Texas, Austin, Texas (2002)
- Panelist, Review of Litigation/Texas Center for Legal Ethics and Professionalism, Conflicts of Interest Symposium: Cutting Edge Conflicts of Interest Hypotheticals, Austin, Texas (1997)
- Presenter, Advanced Civil Trial Course, Offering and Excluding Evidence, Houston, Texas (State Bar of Texas 1996)
- Presenter, Austin Bar Association, Offering and Excluding Evidence in Commercial Trials, Austin, Texas (1996)
- Presenter, Advanced Civil Trial Course, Sanctions and Alternatives to Sanctions, Houston, Texas (State Bar of Texas 1996)
- Presenter, Texas Association of Defense Counsel, Texas Rules of Evidence: Predicates and Exclusions for Selected Rules, Lake Tahoe, Nevada (1996)
- Presenter, Advanced Civil Trial Course, Offering and Excluding Evidence, Fort Worth, Texas (State Bar of Texas 1996)
- Presenter, Advanced Civil Trial Course, Offering and Excluding Evidence, San Antonio, Texas (State Bar of Texas 1996)
- Panelist, Houston Board of Realtors, Dual Agency and Broker Liability, Houston, Texas (1986)
- Nova Health Systems, Preparing for the Jury Trial, San Antonio, Texas (1986)
- Author, Whom Do You Represent? Knowing Your Principals – Accidental Agency (co-author), 39 Texas Realtor 6 (Feb. 1986)
- Panelist, Texas Association of Realtors, Litigation Tips for the Unwary, Austin, Texas (1985)
- Author, Helicopteros Nacionales v. Hall: Clarifying the Limits of Personal Jurisdiction, 48 Texas Bar J. 651 (1985)
- University of California at Los Angeles, B.A. Magna Cum Laude in Political Science, 1977
- Board Certified – Civil Trial Law – National Board of Trial Advocacy, 2003
- Board Certified – Civil Practice Advocacy – National Board of Trial Advocacy, 2012
- Board Certified – Civil Trial Law – Texas Board of Legal Specialization, 2002
- Empirical analysis and historical background contrasting specialization of medical doctors with specialization of attorneys, trending toward increasing legal specialization of attorneys in the United States. Richardson, James M., President, National Board of Trial Advocacy, Legal Specialization: Fifty Years of Lawyers Playing "Catch Up" with Doctors, United States - Trial Attorneys; Legal Specialists; Attorneys, 2021
- 20-Year Fellow, Society of Legal Scholars, College of the State Bar of Texas , 2022
- AMERICAN BOARD OF TRIAL ADVOCATES
- National Board Of Trial Advocacy
Selections
- Super Lawyers: 2006 - 2008, 2011 - 2023
Top Lists
Top 50: Central/West Texas Super Lawyers: 2013 - 2014, 2016, 2018 - 2019Certificates and credentials
Civil Trial Law
