Practice areas: Personal Injury; view more
Licensed in Texas since: 1984
Education: Baylor University School of Law
Selected to Super Lawyers: 2009 - 2015, 2018 - 2026 Call today:
855-442-8355
Free Consultation Roach Law Firm
205 Linda DriveDaingerfield, TX 75638 Visit website
Nelson J. Roach is a partner at Roach Law Firm in Daingerfield, Texas, where he represents individuals and families in complex personal injury and civil litigation matters. His practice covers a wide range of cases, including wrongful death, truck and car accidents, motorcycle accidents, traumatic brain injuries, slip-and-fall incidents, product liability, medical device injuries, automotive defects, distracted driving and rideshare accidents, oilfield injuries, fires and explosions, environmental litigation and antitrust litigation.
Mr. Roach is dedicated to advocating for clients who have suffered serious injuries or significant losses due to the negligence or misconduct of others. He approaches each matter with thorough preparation and strategic advocacy, working to secure favorable outcomes while protecting the rights and interests of those he represents. His experience spans high-stakes litigation involving catastrophic injuries, complex liability issues and commercial disputes.
Mr. Roach earned his bachelor’s degree, with honors, from Baylor University in 1981 before receiving his Juris Doctor, with honors, from Baylor University School of Law in 1984. Admitted to practice in Texas since 1984, Mr. Roach is also admitted before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th and 10th Circuits, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas and the Supreme Court of the United States.
Among his notable achievements, Mr. Roach secured a $730 million jury verdict in 2021 in a case involving a collision between a passenger vehicle and an oversize-cargo truck transporting a propeller for a U.S. Navy nuclear submarine. The verdict ranked as the fourth-largest jury verdict in the United States and the third-largest in Texas that year, reflecting his experience handling complex and high-value litigation.
Mr. Roach is an active member of the American Board of Trial Advocates, the Texas Trial Lawyers Association, the Association of Trial Lawyers of America, the American Bar Association, The State Bar of Texas, the Morris County Bar Association and the Northeast Texas Bar Association.
Practice areas
Personal Injury - General: PlaintiffFocus areas
Animal Bites, Assault, Brain Injury, Construction Accident, Dram Shop Laws, Motor Vehicle Accidents, Personal Injury - Defense, Personal Injury - Plaintiff, Premises Liability - Plaintiff, Sexual Abuse - Plaintiff, Slip and Fall, Toxic Mold, Trucking Accidents, Wrongful Death
- 100% Personal Injury - General: Plaintiff
First Admitted: 1984, Texas
Professional Webpage: https://roachfirm.com/legal-team/nelson-roach/
Bar / Professional Activity
- Texas, 1984
- American Bar Association
- State Bar of Texas
- Association of Trial Lawyers of America
- American Board of Trial Advocates
- Supreme Court of the United States
- United States Courts of Appeals for the 5th and 10th Circuits
- United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas
- American Association of Justice (Board of Governors 2014-2024), 2024
- Texas Trial Lawyers Association; President, (2009); Executive Committee (2010-2021, 2025); Strategic Planning Committee - Chairman (2015-2020); Legislative Management Committee (2011, 2013, 2015, 2017). Budget Committee (2020). Board of Directors (2005-present). Over the last ten years, he has testified over 100 times before the Texas Legislature on behalf of TTLA including five times in 2017., 2025
Verdicts / Settlements (Case Results)
- $730 Million Verdict in a Truck Accident Case, 2021
- Bobby Morris, Sr. v. Odum Services, LLC, $4.6 million dollar settlement. Wrongful death suit involving a highway construction accident; Cause No. 26601, In the 76/276th Judicial District Court of Morris County, Texas., 2024
- CAUSE NO. 21C374, In the 5th District Court of Cass County, Texas, Joseph and Angela Reese v. FEDEX GROUND PACKAGE SYSTEM, INC., HAWKINS TRANSPORTATION, INC. and BENNIE MULDREW, JR., $3.125 million dollar settlement. Personal Injury. Car - truck collision., 2024
- Ramsey v. Landstar Ranger, et. al.: Titus County, Texas; $730 million dollar verdict; believed to be the second largest trucking verdict in the U.S. in 2021 and one of the largest verdicts of any kind in the U.S. in 2021., 2021
- Cause No. 20C186. Jennifer Ashmore v. David Kellen, District Court of Cass County, Texas. $1,000,000 settlement., 2023
- Duncan v. U.S. Express: Truck-automobile collision: Confidential settlement amount., 2022
- Ranes v. Encore Recyclers: $450,000 settlement. Woman injured by a dump truck., 2022
- Mejia v. Walmart; USDC Eastern District Texas; Premises Liability, $1,100,000 verdict, 2021
- Gilbert v. Albertson's, et. al. in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas.; Product liability and premises negligence; Confidential settlement., 2020
- Coffee v. Freeport McMoRan, et. al.; Class action settlement on behalf of residents of Blackwell, Oklahoma for lead and arsenic soil contamination having a class benefit of over 118 million dollars., 2012
Pro bono / Community Service
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Department; National Land Steward Award., 2019
- Texas Parks and Wildlife Department: Lone Star Land Steward Award - Pinewoods Division, 2018
- Texas Wildlife Society, Land Steward Award, 2018
Educational Background
- Baylor University Bachelor of Arts., 1977-1981
- Baylor University Law School, 1982-1984
White Papers
- Webinar for members of the Texas Trial Lawyers Association on the potential for business interruption insurance coverage for businesses affected by COVID19., A Primer on Business Interruption Insurance, Lawyers, 2020
Scholarly Lectures / Writings
- TTLA Advanced Tactics Seminar Presentation, CLE Presenter, How to Admit and Use Evidence of Post Accident Conduct, Texas Trial Lawyers Association, Plaintiff Trial Lawyers, 2021
- Juries make decisions on an emotional level, and then use logic to justify their decisions. The emotions you need to evoke are anger and disgust, not pity. You need to know what facts will evoke that emotional response before you send the first discovery or take the first deposition. Nelson will tell you what to look for to get that emotional response from your jurors., Speaker, Compelling Narratives: How to Engage Jurors in Commercial Vehicle Cases, TTLA, Lawyers, 2023
- Nelson was a CLE speaker at the Texas Trial Lawyers Association CLE event in New Orleans in February 2018. The topic, "Rules of the Road in a Design Defect Case" was a survey of the fundamental engineering principles that are applicable to a design defect product liability case such as "design hazard analysis, "the safety hierarchy," "the principle of the inherently safe design," "failure modes and effects analysis," and "root cause analysis.", Speaker, Rules of the Road in a Design Defect Case, Texas Trial Lawyers Association, 2018
- Webinar presentation on insurance coverage issues involved in business interruption insurance claims related to COVID-19, Presenter, A Primer on Business Interruption (BI) Insurance and COVID-19, Texas Trial Lawyers Association, Lawyers, 2020
- Live Webinar to help lawyers adapt to social distancing required by COVID-19., Presenter, TTLA Live Information Sharing: Adapting Your Law Office to COVID-1 & Social Distancing, Texas Trial Lawyers Association, 2020
Honors
- National Trial Lawyers (Top 10 Trucking Trial Lawyers list), 2025
- One of America’s Top 100 Personal Injury Attorneys, 2025
- Rated “Superb” on Avvo, 2025
- American Association for Justice (Distinguished Service Award)
- Award for Outstanding Achievement in Legislative Advocacy on behalf of the Texas Trial Lawyers Association., Don Bowen Distinguished Service Award, Texas Trial Lawyers Association, 2017
Awards
AV Preeminent®: This elite award is granted to attorneys who have been recognized by their peers for their very high ethical standards, with an average peer review score of 4.5 or higher.
Selections
- Super Lawyers: 2009 - 2015, 2018 - 2026
