Mr. Hart is a shareholder in the Firm’s Houston office. Mr. Hart’s practice focuses primarily on the representation of management in employment-related litigation in federal and state courts and arbitration proceedings, in proceedings before federal and state agencies charged with the enforcement of employment and labor laws, and in appellate proceedings in federal and state courts. Mr. Hart also counsels clients regarding employment practices and policies and employee rights and benefits. His practice also includes the creation and review of employment policies and manuals.
Experience
Mr. Hart has successfully represented numerous public and private employers in employment-related lawsuits and arbitration proceedings. Mr. Hart has won summary judgment dismissal in cases involving claims brought under the Family and Medical Leave Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act, as well as claims asserting age, race, sex, and religious discrimination and harassment, retaliation, torts, and wage and hour claims. Mr. Hart has also successfully defended the enforceability of employment arbitration agreements in trial and appellate courts.
Mr. Hart has successfully argued several cases before the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals and has won many other cases before that court on the strength of the briefs alone, without the necessity of a hearing. Mr. Hart has also won several appeals before the Texas Court of Appeals. Mr. Hart’s success in cases before the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals and the Texas Court of Appeals has resulted in published opinions.
Before entering private practice, Mr. Hart served as a law clerk for the Honorable Kenneth M. Hoyt, United States District Judge for the Southern District of Texas.
Texas
U.S. Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit
U.S. District Court Eastern, Northern and Southern Districts of Texas
Education and Honors
- Board Certified in Labor and Employment law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization
- “Rising Star” in the “Super Lawyers” edition of the Texas Monthly
Professional Activities
- Texas Bar Association (Labor and Employment Law Section, Appellate Law Section, African-American Lawyer’s Section)
- Houston Bar Association (Labor and Employment Law Section)
- Houston Management Lawyers Forum
- Ogletree Deakins Briefing - "The New FMLA Regulations: Clarification or Confusion" - Houston - January 15, 2009
- University of Houston Law Foundation, Advanced Employment Law Course - "Retaliation and Constructive Discharge Claims: The Fallout from Burlington Northern, Private Company Sarbanes-Oxley Whistleblower Claims, and Standards for Constructive Discharge Clai - Houston - April 17, 2008 - April 18, 2008
- Ogletree Deakins Briefing - "What Do You Mean You’re Sick? Recent Developments Affecting Employer Rights and Responsibilities Under the FMLA" - Houston - April 5, 2007
In The News
- 2009 - Texas Association of Business Employment Law Handbook - "Workers' Compensation Retaliation Chapter, Associate Editor"
