Experience

• Board Certified, Personal Injury Trial Law, Texas Board of Legal Specialization, 1985; Recertified 1990, 1995, 2000, 2005, 2010 and 2015
• Distinguished Credentialed Mediator, Texas Mediator Credentialing Association
• Conducted hundreds of mediations in nearly every area of civil litigation
• Lead counsel in more than 100 jury trials
• Lead counsel in more than 100 mediations, and hundreds of settlements
• Over 35 years litigation experience, representing plaintiffs and defendants, individuals, families, small businesses, professionals, corporations, insurance companies and governmental entities in civil litigation matters
• Over 30 years law firm management experience
• Over 30 years experience negotiating and drafting commercial leases, construction and other commercial contracts
• Over 20 years mediation and arbitration experience, in matters involving personal injury/wrongful death, product liability, commercial disputes, appellate, real estate, employment, contracts, toxic tort and mass tort, probate and professional malpractice
• Elected to American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA), 2007
• Best Lawyers In America
• Martindale Hubbell Peer Review Rating: AV Preeminent 5.0 out of 5
• Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyers in the U.S.
• AVVO rating: Superb 10.0 out of 10
• Texas Super Lawyer 2007-2021
• Named to Houstonia Magazine’s 2015, 2017, 2019, and 2020 list of the Top Lawyers in Houston.
• Who’s Who In American Law

Professional Licenses and Associations

• Admitted, State Bar of Texas and Supreme Court of Texas, 1977
• Admitted, U.S. District Courts for Southern and Eastern Districts of Texas, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, U.S. Court of Claims
• Sustaining Life Fellow, Texas Bar Foundation
• Sustaining Life Fellow, Houston Bar Foundation
• Elected to American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA),  2007
• Member of Association for Conflict Resolution
• HBA Alternative Dispute Resolution Committee
• University of Houston Honors College Advisory Board
• University of Houston Speech and Debate Society Hall of Fame

“I believe in mediation because my experience as both an advocate and a mediator has shown me that it is a cost effective and beneficial means of settling legal disputes without the risk and expense of trial or arbitration. I have found that the commitment of time and effort by the mediator is often the difference in reaching a settlement. I make that commitment in every case. I promise each party and attorney that I will not waste their time, but I also will not prematurely declare an impasse merely because of some discouraging obstacle to settlement, or because we’re near the end of the day. And if a case does not settle on the day of mediation, I give my personal commitment to all parties to continue to work with the attorneys toward settlement after mediation, for as long as it takes.”

– Ron Bankston

Click here to download a PDF of Ronald G. Bankston’s Professional Resume

Empl0yment

• Bankston & Associates, PC, Mediation and Civil Litigation, April 2012 – present
• Houston Urban Debate League, President & CEO, February 2012 to present (Founding Board Member and Chair/Co-Chair of the Board of Directors 2008-2011)
• Kane Russell Coleman & Logan PC, Partner and Member of Board of Directors, September 2008 – March 2012
• Godwin Pappas Ronquillo 2006 – August 2008
• Bankston Riley LLP/Bankston & Associates, P.C./Bankston & McDowell, L.L.P. 1983 – 2006
• Fulbright & Jaworski, 1977 – 1983
• Rice University, Academic Advisor and Lead Instructor – Rice University Paralegal Program, 2005 – 2011
• Texas Commission For Lawyer Discipline, State Bar of Texas, Special Assistant Disciplinary Counsel, 1995 – Present

Publications/Presentations

• Distinguished Faculty Houston Bar Association Continuing Legal Education Programs
• Guest Lecturer and Instructor in Trial Advocacy, University of Houston Law Center
• Invited Lecturer on Personal Injury, Product Liability, Premises Liability, Construction Liability, Water Park and Aquatic Safety Liability, Rental Equipment Liability, Litigation Ethics and Mediation
• Publications include:
• Personal Injury Forms: Discovery & Settlement (James Publishing, 2007)
• The New Litigator’s Guide to Trial Practice (“Courtroom Ethics” and “Lessons From Seasoned Litigators”) NBI Seminar Presentation and Written Materials January 2008
• Stowers Today: Settlement Demands and Settlement Responses , University of Houston Law Center 2007
• Advanced Personal Injury Trial Law Seminar Fall 2007
• Seminar Presentation, Houston, Texas, October 2007
• Plaintiff’s Personal Injury: Practice Tips and Application (“Understanding the Law of Damages” and “Basics of Civil Practice, Procedure and Discovery” ) NBI Seminar Presentation and Written Materials, Houston, Texas, February 2007;
• “Legal Affairs: Using Mediation Rather Than Litigation To Reduce Your Legal Expenses,” Smart Business Magazine, September 2006
• Construction Site Safety Issues: Seeing Yourself As Trial Lawyers Do; “Public Safety Laws For Texas Architects, Engineers and Construction Professionals,” Seminar Presentation and Written Materials, Houston, Texas, February 2006

Education

• University of Houston, Bates College of Law – JD 1977
• University of Houston – BA 1974
• Harvard School of Public Health, Office of Continuing Education – Health Effects of Asbestos: Pulmonary Anatomy & Physiology, X-Ray Interpretation and Epidemiology of Mesothelioma, Lung Cancer and Other Malignancies: 1986
• Attorney-Mediators Institute, Houston, Texas
  • Basic Mediator Training, January 1996
  • Skills Based Mediation Seminar, October 1997
  • Advanced Mediator Training, November 1997
• Center for Litigation Risk Analysis
  • Litigation Risk Analysis, November 1997
• Texas Bar Continuing Legal Education
  • Effective Negotiation and Mediation Advocacy 1999
  • Latz: Five Golden Rules of Negotiation 2004
  • Tips, Tricks and Traps of Mediation and Negotiation Ethics 2005