Partner

Austin

Office:

jhicks@buchalter.com

Bar Admissions

Texas, New York

Overview

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James Hicks is a Partner in the Firm’s Austin office and a member of the Litigation practice group. His representative clients include owners/developers, contractors, financial institutions and utilities.

Mr. Hicks practice focuses on the representation of clients in a wide variety of construction, real estate and commercial disputes and regulatory enforcement matters. He also enjoys helping clients avoid trouble through thoughtful business formation, contracts, and compliance.

Mr. Hicks has been litigating since 2012, achieving successful results in state and federal court, arbitration proceedings, and appeals. He has extensive experience with public projects and government agencies, having handled eminent domain cases, land-use matters, bond claims, False Claims Act litigation, immigration enforcement, and administrative law proceedings. His background also includes insurance-defense, insurance coverage and employment law.

Mr. Hicks primarily works on construction defect and delay claims, lien and bond claims, and other payment disputes. As needed, for creditor clients, he pursues debtors in post-judgment enforcement, foreclosure, bankruptcy, or receivership. He is committed to learning continuously and staying abreast of changes affecting construction, real estate development, businesses, and governmental entities, so that he can better serve his clients.

  • Recovered $1,000,000 arbitration award on behalf of a general contractor against the owner of a luxury apartment complex and a $1,500,000 settlement on behalf of a general contractor against the owner/manager of an office building.
  • Reached favorable settlements on behalf of property owners in construction defect matters.
  • Successfully defended an appeal of a no-evidence summary judgment in the Austin Court of Appeals on behalf of an architect who was sued by his former employer.
  • Obtained a $300,000 summary judgment in Texas on behalf of a New York-based manufacturer and successfully defended the debtors’ appeal of the judgment in the San Antonio Court of Appeals.
  • Won motions to dismiss several False Claims Act lawsuits, where each defendant was sued for millions of dollars in damages.
  • Successfully defended licensees from license revocation in Administrative Law Judge hearings at the State Office of Administrative Hearings and at the Texas Commission on Licensing and Regulation.
  • Assisted in winning a defense verdict for a highway construction contract in a wrongful death case.

Admissions

  • Texas
  • New York
  • All State Courts of Texas
  • All State Courts of New York
  • U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas
  • U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas
  • U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas
  • U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas

Education

  • Cornell Law School, J.D.
  • Duke University, B.A. in Public Policy

  • American Bar Association Excellence Certificate, Land Use and Local Government Law

  • American Bar Association
  • State Bar of Texas
    • Construction Law Section
  • Austin Bar Association
  • Dallas Bar Association

  • Austin Chapter of the Associated General Contractors of America
  • Associated Builders and Contractors of Central Texas

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