Kathryn L. Ward Partner
- Houston
- 281.907.8320
- .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
- V-Card
Kathy has over 25 years of complex litigation experience, including extensive knowledge of the following practice areas: transportation; product liability; first and third-party insurance claims involving wrongful death, personal injury, property damage, premises liability, and bad faith claims; environmental/toxic torts including asbestos, silica benzene and mixed dust cases; and other commercial litigation. She has successfully resolved many thousands of wrongful deaths, first party property damage / bad faith cases, and toxic exposure cases over her career. Her current docket consists of wrongful death claims, catastrophic injury cases and other complex civil litigation.
Kathy is a native Houstonian. She is an active parishioner of Saint Laurence Catholic Church in Sugar Land, TX. She is a member of Theresians International, Spiritual Springs Community where she currently serves as the Team Leader. She has participated in Endow’s Apostolic studies and routinely attends Adult Faith Formation book studies and other educational series. She enjoys participating in book clubs, and playing bridge and pokeno with her friends; attending music concerts; travel; and engaging in outdoor hiking and swimming adventures. She is a recent widow after a thirty-three year marriage. She has two wonderful adult sons and one daughter-in-law.
Services
- Litigation
Education
- South Texas College of Law, J.D., 1989
- The University of Texas at Austin, B.S., 1984
Admissions
- State Bar of Texas
- United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas
- United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas
- United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas
Representative Experience
- She has had excellent success at effectively managing high volumes of significant and diverse personal injury claims.
- Kathy has successfully resolved many multi-million dollar claims with significant liability. One of the larger cases involved a transportation company in a quadruple death / three bodily injury matter brought in East, Texas involving twelve claimants represented by seven well financed plaintiff firms with aggravated driver liability facts. The collective demands after the first round of mediations was more than $65,000,000. The truck driver is serving a 40-year prison term. All but one case was settled within initial evaluations. Trial of the last plaintiff’s death case began, but was continued by the trial court after the team moved to exclude liability evidence. The remaining plaintiff settled very favorably thereafter.
- Kathy has been repeatedly engaged to represent of a variety of transportation, freight and heavy equipment industry clients in litigation, inclusive of wrongful deaths and personal injuries involving: tractor trailers, tanks, intermodals, mixers, cranes, dump trucks, garbage trucks, refrigerator trucks, and buses which is one of the highest compliments she has received.
- She has had the privilege of defending premise owners, employers, contractor, oil field supply company, and product and equipment manufacturers in toxic tort litigation throughout Texas, in actions based on exposures to silica, asbestos, benzene, talc, manganese and other chemicals.
- Kathy defended wire & cable manufacturer in asbestos product liability litigation in which she successfully obtained non-suits of more than 1,000 Texas asbestos cases, never paying a cent while getting them off the word processor.
- She has served as national coordinating counsel for manufacturer of nickel and cobalt alloys in mass tort litigation including coordination of local counsel and managing corporate documents nationwide.
- She has been entrusted with representation of business clients, including medical practices in a variety of contractual and commercial disputes, including collection matters.
- She has represented various insurance carriers in property damage / bad faith litigation claims resulting from wind, hail storms and hurricanes.
- Kathy has had many successes and achievements personally and professionally over the years from: excelling in Texas high school debate; earning leadership positions in Tri Delta where she cultivated lifelong friendships; appointed Articles Editor for the law review; being elected as the equity managing shareholder for a mid-size law firm for three years; a thirty plus year marriage; and raising two sons.
Professional Activities
- State Bar of Texas – Litigation Section
- Houston Bar Association
- Member, ALFA International, The Global Legal Network
- Served as regular contributor to Defense Research Institute’s Daubert Online publication related to expert qualification issues in the Fifth Circuit
- Member St. Thomas More Society of Galveston-Houston
- Member Claims and Litigation Management (CLM) Alliance
- Associate Member Houston Claims Association (HCA)
Publications & Speeches
- “Scaly Lizards on the Run in Texas: Texas Enacts HB19 to Help Cage the Reptile in Commercial Motor Carrier Cases and Additional Considerations” presented to Dallas Claims Association – Dallas, TX, November 17, 2021
- “Success is Not Tied to One Path” Presented at Keller Williams Heritage’s 6th Annual Ladies Night Out – San Antonio, TX, August 26, 2021
- Served on Program Committee of National Association of Women Lawyers 2018 Dallas, TX Conference
- “I Bet You Didn’t Know: The “Ins and Outs” of Ethical Decisions, that Might Surprise the Most Ethical of You” Houston Claims Association – Houston, TX, March 19, 2014
- “Defense and Trial Strategy in Welding Fume Manganese Litigation” – Chicago, IL, April 12, 2006
- “A Practical Guide to Understanding Texas 2005 Legislation and Multi-Litigation” Resolute Management, Inc. – Philadelphia, PA., June 22, 2005
- “Successful and Efficient Claims Handling Practices for Managers and Upper Level Management” The National Manufacturing Week Conference – Chicago, Il., March 7, 2005