Biography

Clients trust Brandon Allen to thoroughly understand any complex matter he faces, to outwork his opponents, and to deliver favorable results without unnecessarily combative behavior. Brandon has successfully handled complex commercial cases across industries. He has successfully tried construction, energy, intellectual property, legal malpractice defense, real estate, and wills/estate cases, for example. He is a go-to attorney for large construction cases and energy disputes. Legal 500 has recognized Brandon’s strong track record in Energy Litigation. He has achieved successful outcomes in high-stakes cases for clients such as Quintana Energy, Energy Transfer Partners, Wood Group Mustang, Zachry Construction, and Beazley Group. Driven by the desire to make things right, Brandon explores every detail in a dispute and has been known to turn challenging cases around completely in favor of his clients.

Brandon graduated from The University of Texas School of Law with High Honors after serving as Editor-in-Chief of the Texas Law Review and assisting Professor Charles Alan Wright with his industry leading federal procedure series. Brandon then clerked for Judge Royce C. Lamberth of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Brandon co-founded Reynolds Frizzell LLP, which has repeatedly been named a Top Ten Litigation Boutique in America by Benchmark Litigation.

Representative Matters

Zachry Construction Corp. v. Port of Houston Authority

Counsel for plaintiff, a major construction contractor, in a three-month jury trial that the Texas Supreme Court later described as “hotly disputed at almost every turn.” The jury awarded plaintiff over $23 million on plaintiff’s claims concerning its construction of the defendant’s wharf facility and rejected the defendant’s $15 million counterclaims. In 2016, on remand to the court of appeals after a favorable result in the Texas Supreme Court, the verdict was affirmed in full.

Enterprise Texas Pipeline v. Energy Transfer Partners

Counsel for the defendant, a major pipeline company, in a four-week jury trial involving defendant’s operation of a major natural gas transmission pipeline.  The jury awarded plaintiff only 0.5% of the $400 million in damages it sought.  The case then settled favorably.

Duncan Litigation Investments v. Baker Donelson Bearman Caldwell & Berkowitz

Counsel to defendant, a prominent national law firm, in a legal malpractice suit brought by a litigation funding venture created to fund cases arising out of the Deepwater Horizon incident.  When plaintiff lost some of its claims against its co-venturer in an underlying arbitration, plaintiff then sued Baker Donelson, claiming that it negligently caused plaintiff’s alleged arbitration losses.  Plaintiff sought $48 million in damages.  After securing a pre-trial summary judgment in its favor on various claims, Baker Donelson proceeded to and fully prevailed in a seven-day bench trial in federal court on plaintiff’s remaining claims.  The Court issued a take-nothing judgment in favor of Baker Donelson.

USPL v. Rover

Counsel for plaintiff in its pipeline construction dispute with Rover Pipeline, an affiliate of Energy Transfer. The multi-week bench trial reportedly resulted in the sixth largest bench trial verdict in the United States for the year. The case ultimately settled on a confidential basis on appeal.

Bouknight v. Llanelly

Counsel for defendant, title owner to real estate, against claims brought by plaintiff, who requested that the Court declare him the owner of the property at issue. After a jury trial on the merits and post-trial proceedings, the Court entered final judgment in our client’s favor and ordered that plaintiff pay defendant’s attorneys’ fees. The case is currently on appeal.

Pocahontas Litigation

Counsel for plaintiffs, some of the largest forestland owners in the Appalachian area of the U.S., in their claims against a nationwide leader in commercial forestry-related investments. The lawsuit occurred in McDowell County, West Virginia. We prevailed: (1) in the West Virginia Supreme Court against the Defendants’ motion to have the case transferred; (2) in the trial court after a full evidentiary hearing and in the West Virginia Supreme Court on Defendants’ early motion for preliminary injunction; (3) in the trial court and West Virginia Supreme Court on various last-minute motions Defendants filed that would have delayed the trial of the dispute; and (4) in the trial court on Defendants’ motions to dismiss and for summary judgment. The case settled on a confidential basis shortly before trial.

Port Freeport v. Goldston Engineering, Inc. et. al.

Counsel for plaintiff, a governmental entity, in its claims arising from the design and construction of its wharf facility in Freeport, Texas. Plaintiff collected approximately $19.6 million through the litigation and insurance claims process, with the litigation recovery representing over 100% of plaintiff’s actual damages.

Wood Group Mustang Inc. v. Freeport LNG Expansion L.P.

Counsel for plaintiff, a worldwide engineering contractor, in a dispute with Freeport LNG, the owner of a liquefied natural gas facility. Wood Group filed suit to collect on approximately $4 million in unpaid bills. Freeport LNG counterclaimed asserting approximately $18 million in damages related to horizontal directional drilling work. Wood Group filed a motion for summary judgment at the case’s outset on the vast majority of Freeport LNG’s alleged counterclaim damages. The Court granted Wood Group’s motion. Thereafter, Freeport LNG paid Wood Group’s outstanding bills. The remainder of the case settled in a confidential settlement agreement.

Enterprise Products Operating LLC, et al. v. Wood Group Mustang Inc. et al.

Counsel for the defendant, a major pipeline construction design and inspection firm, in a suit filed by plaintiff alleging over $43 million in damage arising from defects in ten liquids pipelines in Port Arthur, Texas. After a series of hearings in which the Court struck over eleven of Enterprise’s experts, and after the firm filed a spoliation motion seeking dismissal of all claims, the case settled on favorable terms for the defendant.

B.L. Harbert International, LLC v. Chemtex International, Inc. et al.

Lead arbitration and counsel for plaintiff, a major construction contractor, in its claims against the owners of one of the largest plastics plants in the world.  After initiating proceedings in both state court and arbitration, successfully forced defendants to pay plaintiff nearly the entirety of the amount claimed, over $7 million.

In re Carter Testamentary Trust

Lead counsel on behalf of a beneficiary of family testamentary trust against the trustee and the co-beneficiaries of the trust over the distribution of proceeds from the trust. After a bench trial, the client prevailed, entitling him to a favorable distribution of trust proceeds.

Anadarko E&P Onshore, LLC v. Michigan 4-H Foundation et al.

Lead counsel for the defendant, a non-profit charitable organization, in a suit filed against it by a major oil company. Acknowledging in its 59-page opinion that “this case is complex,” the federal district court granted our motion to dismiss the defendant from the case.

Union Oil Company of California v. Osprey Petroleum Company, Inc. and Pintail Petroleum

Counsel for plaintiff in a case involving a dispute over oil and gas wells drilled in the Gulf of Mexico. Defendants counterclaimed and sought $350 million in damages from the plaintiff. Successfully obtained the dismissal of all of our opponents’ claims on summary judgment. The case thereafter was resolved favorably and confidentially.