Biographies	vCard
Robert K. Wise

Mr. Wise is a founding member of Lillard Wise Szygenda PLLC. Since completing his clerkship for the Hon. Paul C. Weick of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, he has practiced law in Dallas, Texas, for more than thirty years. A former equity partner in the international law firm of Hunton & Williams LLP, Mr. Wise left Hunton to form Lillard Wise Szygenda, a boutique litigation firm focused on providing elite representation at economical rates.

Mr. Wise’s practice centers on trial and appellate litigation. He has tried more than thirty lawsuits and arbitrations and has argued more than thirty appeals in both Texas and federal appellate courts. His practice areas include: complex commercial litigation involving contract, misrepresentation, and breach of fiduciary duty claims, primarily in the energy, construction, banking, and real estate industries; construction-defects litigation; accounting-malpractice defense; and complex insurance-coverage claims.

Mr. Wise also is an accomplished writer, having taught legal writing at the Dedman School of Law of Southern Methodist University for five years and having published a number of law review articles on a variety of topics. Some of Mr. Wise’s trial and appellate accomplishments include:

• Clarified the law on the proper calculation of administrative penalties under Section 15.023 of the Public Utility Regulatory Act.  See PUC Docket No. 37634, Agreed Notice of Violation and Settlement Agreement Relating to Luminant Energy Company LLC’s Violation Of PURA § 39.151(j) and PUC Subst. R. 25.503(f)(2), Relating to Failure to Adhere to ERCOT Protocol 6.10.5.4(1) Concerning Load Acting as Resource Service Requirements, Order on Certified Issue at 3 (Feb. 25, 2010)

• Successfully defended a major electric generating company in an administrative proceeding seeking the largest fine ($171 million) ever imposed by the Public Utility Commission of Texas.

• Obtained favorable jury verdict in million-dollar breach of contract and fraud action brought against a major mid-stream natural gas company. 

• Successfully prosecuted a multi-million dollar claim for defective design and construction of one of the world’s state-of-the art, largest, and most expensive aggregate processing plants.

• Obtained a $2,000,000 jury verdict in a wrongful discharge and defamation action.

• Obtained $2.5 million summary judgment award on railway’s indemnity claim against Feed Mill operator related to railroad crossing accident. See Kan. City So. Ry. v. Pilgrim’s Pride Corp., 2010 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 30260 (W.D. La. March 29, 2010).

• Successfully handled derivate litigation for major electric utility.

• Successfully prosecuted antitrust and fraud claims involving coal leases worth billions of dollars for a major electric utility.

• Successfully defended a leading prestressed concrete pipe manufacturer against a multi-million dollar claim that the pipe supplied for a major water transmission pipeline was defective.

• Successfully represented several other pipe manufacturers in many multi-million dollar cases alleging design and manufacturing defects in prestressed concrete water pipe.

• Tried two multi-million dollar arbitrations seeking reimbursement under Directors’ & Officers’ liability insurance policies.

• Clarified Texas law on standing to sue accounting firms for negligent misrepresentation under Texas law.  See Compass Bank v. King, Griffin & Adamson, P.C., No. 3:01-CIV-2028-N, 2003 WL 22077721 (N.D. Tex. Sept. 5, 2003), aff’d, 388 F.3d 504 (5th Cir. 2004); Abrams Ctr. Nat’l Bank v. Farmer Fuqua & Huff, P.C., 225 S.W.3d 171 (Tex. App.–El Paso 2005).

• Represented a large natural gas company in many contract disputes resulting in recoveries and/or contract savings valued at more than one billion dollars.

• Successfully tried and handled many complex commercial disputes for a variety of corporate clients, including obtaining a favorable jury verdict against Enron after a six-week jury trial.

• Successfully handled ERISA class action for major electric utility.

• Argued appeals in the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the Third, Fifth, Ninth, and D.C. Circuits and most Texas courts of appeals.  Published opinions in appeals handled by Mr. Wise include: CQ Inc. v. TXU Mining Co., 565 F.3d 268 (5th Cir. 2009); Metromedia Energy, Inc. v. Enserch Energy Servs., Inc., 409 F.3d 574 (3d Cir. 2005); Friberg v. Kan. City So. Ry., 267 F.3d 439 (5th Cir. 2001); Abrams Ctr. Nat’l Bank v. Farmer Fuqua & Huff, P.C., 225 S.W.3d 171 (Tex. App.–El Paso 2005, no pet.); Larue v. Genescreen, Inc., 957 S.W.2d 958 (Tex. App.–Beaumont 1997).

Professional and Civic Affiliations

• Admitted in all Texas state and federal courts, the U.S. Third Circuit Court of Appeals, the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, the Northern District of California, the Eastern District of Michigan, and the Northern District of Ohio.

• Member, State Bar of Texas

• Member, Dallas Bar Association; Chairman and Vice Chairman, Legal-Ethics Committee

• Member, American Bar Association, Litigation Section and Business Law Section

Publications and Speeches

• Author, Administrative Penalties Against Electricity Market Participants Under the Texas Public Utility Regulatory Act, Baylor L. Rev. (forthcoming Fall 2010)

• Co-Author, First Refusal Rights Under Texas Law, 62 Baylor L. Rev. 433 (2010)
  

• Co-Author, Of Lies and Disclaimers – Contracting Around Fraud Under Texas Law, 41 St. Mary’s L.J. 119 (2009)

• Co-Author, Negligent Misrepresentation in Texas: The Misunderstood Tort, 40 Tex. Tech L. Rev. 845 (2008)

• Author, Mediation in Texas: Can the Judge Really Make Me Do That?, 47 S. Tex. Law Rev. 849 (2006)

• Author, Demand Futility in Shareholder-Derivative Litigation Under Texas Law, 28 Tex. Tech L. Rev. 59 (1997)

• Author, The Lawyer-Witness Rule: A Comparison of a Lawyer's Ability to Be Both Witness and an Advocate Under the Texas Code of Professional Responsibility and the Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct, 31 S. Tex. L. Rev. 651 (1990)

• Author, Note, Binding Interest Arbitration in the Public Sector: Is it Constitutional?, 18 Wm. & Mary L. Rev. 787 (1977)

• Speaker, Dallas Bar Association clinics on various subjects

Education

• J.D., William & Mary School of Law, Editor, William & Mary Law Review, 1977

• B.A., Marietta College, magna cum laude, 1974

• Clerk, Hon. Paul C. Weick, Judge of U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit

• Legal Writing Instructor at Dedman School of Law of Southern Methodist University

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