(HOUSTON) Munsch Hardt Kopf & Harr, P.C. (Munsch Hardt) announces the hire of four Houston-based construction attorneys: Robert (“Bob”) Hancock and Mason Hester as Shareholders and Tiffany Harrod and Teia Kelly as Associates. The fourth largest city in the country, Houston continues seeing unpresented growth, and Munsch Hardt has responded by more than doubling its construction practice in the Houston office in the last two years.
“Our Houston office continues to experience significant growth, and the addition of these four well-known construction attorneys makes for an exciting announcement,” said Phil Appenzeller, CEO of Munsch Hardt. “Prior to their addition, we welcomed Tom Barber and Adam Richie to the Firm as well. Each of our new team members operates at the top of their field by using great strength of tenured experience in the construction industry. While the team is engaged in a number of projects throughout the country, most notable is the largest water pipeline project in the country, as well as the largest Design-Build project in the country. We are confident our team will continue it reach new milestones for our construction team and clients, and we are honored to have chosen to build upon their practices at Munsch Hardt.”
Hancock recently served as a Director in the Construction and Surety section at Coats Rose law firm. His law practice includes general litigation, commercial litigation, mediation, arbitration and transactional matters, including representation of general contractors, subcontractors, owners and suppliers. For his clients, Hancock has performed numerous services, including contract negotiations, contract disputes, construction defect lawsuits, insurance coverage matters, personal injury cases, toxic tort matters and supervision of out of state litigation as outside general counsel. He received his Juris Doctorate from the Texas Tech University School of Law and a master’s degree from the Southwest Texas University. He was recognized by his peers and selected to the 2014, 2015 and 2016 Texas Super Lawyers list and to the 2006 Texas Super Lawyers Rising Stars list.
Harrod most-recently served as an associate in the Construction and Surety and Litigation sections at Coats Rose. Her law practice includes general litigation, commercial litigation and arbitration with an emphasis in construction disputes, employment disputes and maritime matters. She has handled personal injury Jones Act trials, construction arbitrations, mediations and settlements. Recently, she assisted in the negotiation of an advantageous settlement for a surety and a subcontractor in a $27 MM suit. Harrod received her Juris Doctorate from the South Texas College of Law. Prior to law school, she worked in the banking and insurance industries. Currently, she serves as a Council Member with the Houston Bar Association Construction Law Section.
Hester was among the first class of attorneys in Texas to achieve Board Certification in Construction Law from the Texas Board of Legal Specialization in 2016. In 2013, he was one of only three attorneys statewide who were elected by their fellow attorneys to a three year term on the statewide Governing Council for the State Bar of Texas Construction Law Section, serving on the Council through 2016. His experience includes the drafting and negotiation of multiple labor and material subcontracts for a $900 MM EPC construction project, as well as securing more than half of $1 MM in net payments to the client as first chair in a trial concerning fraud and Trust Fund Act violations, related to major university construction project. Hester graduated with honors from The University of Texas School of Law, where he excelled in courses in Construction Law and Construction Litigation; he received his undergraduate degree from The University of Texas at Austin, where he graduated with Special Honors in History and Liberal Arts Honors and was awarded an Undergraduate Research Fellowship Grant. Hester’s practice includes construction-related legal matters such as construction litigation, arbitration and transactions, as well as general litigation and arbitration. He has represented design professionals, owners, general contractors, subcontractors and sub-contractors/suppliers in a variety of construction-related transactions and disputes. Hester most recently served as a Director in the construction law group at the Coats Rose law firm in Houston.
Kelly’s practice focuses on complex commercial litigation and transactional matters, with an emphasis on the construction and energy industries. She regularly drafts and negotiates numerous types of agreements, including oilfield master service agreements (MSAs), construction contracts, corporate formation documents and commercial agreements, among others. Kelly was recently recognized by her peers for her litigation work and selected for the 2017 Texas Super Lawyers Rising Stars list. Prior to joining Munsch Hardt, Kelly was an associate on the Litigation team of a mid-size Houston-based law firm. She received her Juris Doctorate from South Texas College of Law, graduating magna cum laude. Upon graduation she received the Transactional Practice Certificate for her achievements and focus in transactional courses. Kelly received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Utah.