PREMISES LIABILITY

Dodson Law Offices has successfully defended premises liability cases, including slip and falls from substances on floors, defectively designed stairs, and dangerous conditions on industrial work sites.

FIRST PARTY INSURANCE CLAIMS

Dodson Law Offices has experience in a multitude of first party insurance cases, including home owner arson cases, home burglaries, theft of vehicles and jewelry, death of livestock, and other insurance claims.

INSURANCE DEFENSE

Dodson Law Offices has extensive experience in insurance defense cases, including claims of negligence, personal injury, wrongful death, motor vehicle accidents, products liability, design defects, manufacturing defects, breach of warranty, failure to warn, industrial accidents, toxic torts, bad faith litigation, premises liability, contractor liability, assault and battery, malicious prosecution, false imprisonment, uninsured/underinsured issues, indemnity, and construction.

BAD FAITH LITIGATION

Dodson Law Offices has experience in defending insurance companies in bad faith litigation in both state and federal court, and Mike Dodson was counsel in the reported bad faith appellate case styled Rumley v. Allstate Indem. Co., 924 S.W.2d 448 (Tex. App. – Beaumont 1996, no pet.) (Named insured, who asserted claim against spouse, thereby becoming a third party claimant, had no standing to assert a claim for breach of the duty of good faith and fair dealing).

BUSINESS AND CONSUMER LITIGATION

Dodson Law Offices has experience in business and consumer litigation, including formation of contracts, and breach of contract, breach of implied warranty of merchantability, breach of implied warranty of fitness for a particular purpose, deceptive trade practices, fraud, wrongful repossession, lender liability, and mechanic and materialmen liens. 

ADOPTIONS

Dodson Law Offices handles adoptions, name changes, correction of birth certificates, and other family related matters.

WILLS

Dodson Law Offices drafts wills and living wills, powers of attorney, and handles other probate matters

APPEALS

Dodson Law Offices is experienced in handling appeals. Mike Dodson and Dodson Law Offices has been involved in the following reported appellate decisions:

Temcharoen v. United Fire Lloyds, 293 S.W3d 332 (Tex. Appl. - Eastland 2009, pet. denied) -- Hurricane Rita insurance claim involving the application of the anti-technicality stature to void a policy when an insured admittedly manufactured receipts seeking re-imbursement of additional living expenses.

In re Seven-O Corporation, 289 S.W.3d 384 (Tex. App. - Waco 2009, original proceeding) - Mandamus proceeding to disqualify an attorney who was representing both the plaintiffs and third party defendants in the same case.

Am. Type Culture Collection v. Coleman, 83 S.W.3d 801 (Tex. 2002), cert denied 2003) (Teamed with Washington, D.C. and Brazoria County counsel) – Approximately 1800 U.S. military veterans, alleging exposures to biological and chemical agents during the Persian Gulf War, filed suit in Brazoria County, Texas, against non profit biomedical research institute from Maryland, for supplying anthrax and other biological materials to Iraq. Supreme Court ordered case dismissed for lack of personal jurisdiction.

In re Cooper, 47 S.W.3d 206 (Tex. App. – Beaumont 2001, no pet.) – Court of Appeals found trial court abused discretion in finding attorney client privilege waived through execution of assignment.

Childs v. Haussecker (sub. nom. Humble Sand & Gravel, Inc. v. Martinez), 974 S.W.2d 31 (Tex. 1998) – Silicosis case. Texas Supreme Court established criteria for limitations defense in latent occupational disease cases.

Harrod v. Grider, 701 S.W.2d 937 (Tex. Civ. App. – Beaumont 1985, no writ) - Summary judgment in favor of a parent host to a child social guest was proper where there was no exception to the general rule that the host owed the social guest only a duty not to injure him by willful, wanton, or gross negligence.

MEDIATIONS

In addition to his experience in litigation, Mike Dodson received his mediator training at the A.A. White Dispute Resolution Institute at the University of Houston, College of Business in 1998, and completed additional training through the Jefferson County Dispute Resolution Center in 1999.

His background in a wide range of litigation areas makes him especially well suited to serve as a mediator. He has represented both plaintiffs and defendants, and understands the dynamics and issues involved in both sides of the docket. He has extensive experience in all aspects of personal injury trial law, including automobile accidents, premises liability, products liability, dram shop, intentional torts such as assault and battery, ands he has special expertise in toxic torts. In addition, he has experience in civil and commercial cases, breach of contract, construction, fraud, RICO, insurance coverage, insurance bad faith, and other civil matters. He has mediated cases from personal injury to employment issues to construction disputes to business related matters.