Paul Oliver Wickes

Bar / Professional Activity

• American Bar Association, Litigation and Intellectual Property Sections, Member, 1993 to Present
• National Association of Railroad Trial Counsel, Member, 1998 to Present
• Eastern District Bar Association
• Dallas Bar Association, Litigation Section, Member, 1993 to Present
• Bar Association for the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, Member
• Bar Association for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, Member
• U.S. District Court Southern District of Texas
• U.S. District Court Western District of Texas
• U.S. District Court Northern District of Texas
• U.S. District Court Eastern District of Texas
• U.S. Court of Appeals 5th Circuit
• Texas, 1993

Verdicts / Settlements (Case Results)

• Represented Maalt, LP in a suit against Sequitur Permian, LLC for breaching a crude oil transloading take-or-pay contract, and obtained a $11,205,758.71 bench trial judgment in the US Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Texas, Fort Worth Division., 2025
• Represented The Kansas City Southern Railroad Company in federal court for a breach of contract lawsuit arising out of the lease of a Storage in Place (SIT) Yard to Sasol, a petrochemical company with worldwide operations.  The parties disputed how the rent was to be calculated under the lease.  The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that KCSR's position was correct as a matter of law. Kansas City S. Railway Company v. Sasol Chemical (USA), 113 F.4th 446 (5th Cir. 2024).  The ruling allowed KCSR to recover roughly $1,500,000 in rent per year over the decades long lease., 2024
• Railroad Construction Dispute $4,178,121.64 Our railroad client hired a contractor to complete a $10M rehabilitation of approximately 70 miles of mainline rail that had been out-of-service for decades.  After completing the job, the contractor sued our railroad contractor for more than $4M for it alleged was extra work and delays caused by the railroad. We filed a counterclaim alleging that our railroad client did not delay the work and that, instead, the contractor wasted thousands of tons of ballast resources purchased by the railroad. After a two-week federal bench trial, the federal court judge agreed and awarded over $2Million in damages to our railroad client, more than $1 Million in attorney's fees through appeal. The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the judgment. So, after being sued for $4 Million, our railroad client actually recovered $4,178,121.64 after pre and post-judgment interest were added to the verdict. Balfour Beatty Rail v. Kan. City S. Ry. Co., 173 F. Supp. 3d 363 (N.D. Tex. 2016) Affirmed by the Fifth Circuit (2018 WL 921577)., 2018
• Represented frac sand company in zoning dispute where the City of Midlothian sought to prohibit the construction of giant sand silos for transloading sand from railcars to trucks.  The Dallas federal District Court and the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals agreed with our position that the Interstate Commerce Commission Termination Act (ICCTA) preempted the City's effort to halt construction of the silos.  The zoning efforts were held to be an impermissible regulation of rail transportation under the ICCTA. Texas Cent. Bus. Lines v. City of Midlothian v. Maalt, LP, 669 F.3d 525 (5th Cir. 2012)., 2012
• Defense verdict for railroad in action brought by injured employee under the Federal Employers Liability Act and the Locomotive Inspection Act, 2016
• Commercial Trucking Accident $1,500,000.00 Our client ran into the back of dump truck while not wearing a seatbelt while traveling 78 MPH on a highway. He spent a month in a coma followed by an extended in-patient rehabilitation. We were able to show that the trucking company failed to properly equip the back of the dump truck with federally required clearance lamps and industry standard retro-reflective tape. The trucking company settled at mediation, 2019
• Bicycle Accident $1,300,000.00 Our client was struck by a car while riding his bike to his job at Steak 'N Shake in the dark. His injuries caused him to be placed in a coma and then spend months working on rehabilitation learning to walk and talk again. He continues to ride his bicycle.  Because our client has a proper bike with proper lights and reflectors and even wore a reflective safety vest, we were able to convince the insurance company that its insured was 100 percent at fault. The insurance company paid its policy limits before any lawsuit was to be filed, 2016
• Jury trial defending railroad in wrongful death action involve a railroad vs. pickup grade crossing collision. The jury found the decedent and the railroad 50% at faulty resulting in a $200K verdict. The plaintiffs were demanding $1 Million to settle during jury deliberations.  Appealed to Texas Supreme Court -- Horton v. The Kansas City Southern Railway Company, 692 SW 3d 112 (Tex. 2024)., 2019
• Represented Plaintiff in a trip and fall claim. Case tried to a jury with a Plaintiff's verdict and judgment in the amount of roughly $41,000, 2020

Representative Clients

• The Kansas City Southern Railway Company
• Vista Minerals
• Maalt, LP
• Don Lee Farms
• Mooring Restoration Services, LLC
• Tavacon, LLC
• Cementco, LLC

Special Licenses / Certifications

• Board Certified Personal Injury Trial Law, Texas Board of Legal Specialization., 2025

Pro bono / Community Service

• The Samaritan Inn, a Collin County, Texas homeless shelter, Board Member and General Counsel
• Counsel to The Samaritan Inn, Collin County's only homeless shelter., 2005
• Chancellor to Christ Church Plano, 2010

Educational Background

• The University of Texas, B.B.A. in Finance, 1990

Awards

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Gold: This award is granted to attorneys who have received at least 6 client reviews, and have an average review score of 4.2 or higher.

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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.

Industry Groups

• National Association Of Railroad Trial Counsel