Current Scope of Practice

 

Mr. Batchelor’s practice is focused on representing insurance carriers in complex insurance litigation, including coverage matters and extra-contractual claims. He is an AV rated attorney with extensive experience representing clients in a variety of litigated and non-litigated matters. He has extensive experience in handling insurance disputes arising out of a wide variety of policies, including general liability, property, homeowners, automobile, fidelity, and professional liability.

 

Mr. Batchelor also has extensive experience in handling complex construction litigation, including defending and counseling owners, contractors, design professionals and a variety of other clients in all aspects of construction and surety litigation. He represents clients in matters involving contract preparation and negotiation, claims investigation and administration, affirmative claims, and collection. His practice areas also include professional liability and representation of clients in creditor’s rights and bankruptcy proceedings.

 

Representative Matters

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• Obtained summary judgment in multi-million-dollar claim arising out of alleged hail damage to a commercial property (state court).

• Obtained a bench verdict for a surety company in an action filed in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas, Houston Division. The defendant, the president and co-owner of a specialty subcontractor with projects across the South, forged the signatures of three of his relatives on an indemnity agreement issued by the surety. Without the indemnity agreement, the surety would not have issued bonds on behalf of the defendant’s business. As a result of issuing the bonds, the surety suffered losses exceeding $3 million. After admitting to the forgery, the defendant executed a consent judgment. The defendant then filed for bankruptcy. After a four-day bench trial, the court found that the defendant committed actual fraud and ordered that the more than $3 million judgment be exempted from discharge.

• Assisted a surety in the workout of a design-build contractor on multiple public and private projects, including the preparation of collateral and workout agreements, deeds of trust, subordination agreements, bond forms, asset sale agreements, and assistance in the defense of multiple payment bond claims.

• Obtained a take-nothing summary judgment out of the District Court in Travis County, Texas on behalf of a surety who issued bonds for the construction of a multi-unit housing complex near the University of Texas in Austin. Plaintiff was seeking in excess of $20 million from the surety.

• Representation of full-service engineering, architecture, construction, environmental and consulting solutions firm in defense of claims arising out of design and construction of an airport fuel farm.

• Assistance for a surety following the default of a prime contractor on multiple public school projects, including the preparation of workout agreements, completion contracts, takeover agreements, and the defense of multiple payment bond claims.

• Obtained a take-nothing summary judgment out of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Dallas Division, on behalf of an attorney in a legal malpractice case, on the eve of trial. The Court concluded that the plaintiff failed to carry her evidentiary burden as to whether the attorney owed a duty to the plaintiff at the time the legal injury occurred, as well to whether the attorney’s conduct proximately caused the plaintiff’s injury.

 

Affiliations, Activities and Accomplishments

 

Mr. Batchelor is a member of the Tort and Insurance Practice Section of the American Bar Association, Dallas Bar Association and the Christian Trial Lawyers Association.

 

Mr. Batchelor is admitted to practice law in California (2000) and Texas (2004).  He is also admitted to practice in the United States District Courts for the Northern (2001) and Central (2000) Districts of California, and the United States District Courts for the Northern, Southern, Eastern and Western Districts of Texas (2004).

 

Mr. Batchelor has been recognized by his peers as one of the top 2% of young lawyers under the age of forty in Texas, earning him recognition as a “Texas Rising Star” within the legal industry by Texas Monthly magazine (2009, 2011, 2013)

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Mr. Batchelor has been recognized as a Texas Super Lawyer, Insurance Coverage (2022-2023).

 

Presentations and Publications

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• Speaker, Author, Presenter “Litigating and Proving the Cardinal Change Defense,” Surety Claims Institute, Williamsburg, Virginia 

• Speaker, Author, Presenter “Construction Contract Remedies,” Lorman Education Services, Fort Worth, Texas 

• Speaker “Remedies for Dealing With Performance Disputes During an Ongoing Construction Project,” Lorman Education Services, Dallas, TX.

• Speaker, “Construction Contracts,” Lorman Education Services - Seminar, Fort Worth, TX (2008).

• Co-author, “2004 Surety Law Update”, Surety Claims Institute - Annual Meeting, Hot Springs, VA.

• Co-author, “Texas Surety Law Deskbook - 2nd Edition.”

 

Education

 

Mr. Batchelor received his J.D. (2000) from Pepperdine University School of Law. While attending law school, he served as Literary Editor of the Pepperdine Law Review and as Vice Chairman of the Pepperdine Moot Court Board. He earned his B.S. (1993) from Abilene Christian University.