Jody S. Sanders

BIOGRAPHY

Jody S. Sanders obtains his clients’ goals by telling their stories and legal arguments through concise, well-written legal briefing and informative and persuasive oral presentations. His effective legal writing has been recognized by his clients, colleagues, co-counsel, and opposing counsel. But, successful presentations are only part of the process. He also ensures the best outcome by preparing strategies that bring success in litigation and throughout the appellate process—whether in state or federal court. His approach focuses on identifying key legal issues that streamline the litigation process to achieve clients’ goals while avoiding unnecessary expense.

Mr. Sanders’s experience includes all stages of litigation in trial courts throughout the state, as well as appeals and original proceedings in Texas’s intermediate courts of appeals, the Texas Supreme Court, and federal appellate courts. Mr. Sanders is called frequently to assist other litigators in drafting dispositive motions, ensuring error preservation, and handling trial and post-trial proceedings to prepare for a potential appeal.

Mr. Sanders also represents clients in a variety of administrative and arbitration proceedings. His experience includes frequent representations of clients appealing property tax determinations before county appraisal districts, representing clients in state-level administrative proceedings, and representing clients in both the attorney and judicial disciplinary systems. He also has represented clients in a variety of arbitration forums.

Mr. Sanders’s practice is wide-ranging and has included cases involving commercial disputes and litigation, energy law, personal injury matters, family law, probate litigation, government contract disputes, products liability actions, securities arbitrations, administrative tax proceedings and litigation, bankruptcy litigation, and appeals, property disputes, and a wide variety of declaratory and injunctive actions.

In addition to his legal practice, Mr. Sanders co-hosts the Texas Appellate Law Podcast, sharing insights and expertise with fellow legal professionals and enthusiasts.

EXPERIENCE AND HIGHLIGHTS

• In re Breviloba, LLC, No. 21-0541, 2022 WL 2282598 (Tex. June 24, 2022) (orig. proceeding) (per curiam)
• Payne v. BNSF Railway Company, No. 02-21-00425-CV, 2022 WL 2753626 (Tex. App.—Fort Worth July 14, 2022, no pet.)    
• Fisher v. BNSF Railway Company, No. 02-21-00369-CV, 2022 WL 2753398 (Tex. App.—Fort Worth July 14, 2022, no pet.)
• RKI Expl. & Prod., LLC v. Ameriflow Energy Servs., LLC,  No. 02-20-00384-CV, 2022 WL 2252895 (Tex. App.—Fort Worth June 23, 2022, no pet.) (mem. op.)
• Great W. Drilling, Ltd. v. Pathfinder Oil & Gas, Inc., No. 11-14-00206-CV, 2020 WL 373096 (Tex. App.—Eastland Jan. 23, 2020, pet. dism’d) (mem. op. on remand)
• Malinski v. BNSF Ry. Co., 805 F. App’x 579 (10th Cir. 2020)
• Stallion Oilfield Servs. Ltd. v. Gravity Oilfield Servs., LLC, 592 S.W.3d 205 (Tex. App.—Eastland 2019, pet. denied)
• CLC Roofing, Inc. v. Helzer, 594 S.W.3d 414 (Tex. App.—Fort Worth 2019, no pet.
• Pathfinder Oil & Gas, Inc. v. Great W. Drilling, Ltd., 574 S.W.3d 882 (Tex. 2019) 
• BNSF Ry. Co. v. Baca, No. 02-17-00168-CV, 2018 WL 1528573 (Tex. App.—Fort Worth March 29, 2018, no pet.)(mem. op.)
• BNSF Ry Co. v. Epple, No. 07-15-00355-CV, 2016 WL 7010581 (Tex. App.—Amarillo June 2, 2017, pet. denied)
• BNSF Ry. Co v. Phillips, 485 S.W.3d 908 (Tex. 2015)
• Sinclair v. Estate of Ramirez, No. 10-14-00157-CV, 2015 WL 3534156 (Tex. App. Waco—June 4, 2015, no pet.) (mem. op.)
• BNSF Railway Co. v. Wipff, 408 S.W.3d 662 (Tex. App.—Fort Worth 2013, no pet.)
• Mitchell v. Ballard, 420 S.W.3d 122 (Tex. App.—Texarkana 2012, no pet.)
• In re Woo Young Med. Co., No 02-12-00263-CV, 2012 WL 30262769 (Tex. App.—Fort Worth July 27, 2012, orig. proceeding [mand. denied]) (mem. op.)
• Parks v. AT&T Mobility, LLC, et al., No. Civ-09-202-D, 2012 WL 4382194 (W.D. Okla. Sept. 25, 2012), reconsideration denied, 2013 WL 952214 (W.D. Okla. Mar. 11, 2013)
• IASIS Healthcare Corp. v. Apollo Physicians of Tex., P.A., No. 13-10-00173-CV, 2011 WL 4998644 (Tex. App.—Corpus Christi Oct. 20, 2011, no pet.)
• Martin v. Martin, No. 02-08-490-CV, 2010 WL 2331448 (Tex. App.—Fort Worth 2010, pet. denied)
• French v. Law Offices of Windle Turley, P.C., No. 02-08-273-CV, 2010 WL 744794 (Tex. App.—Fort Worth March 4, 2010, no pet.)
• Winegar v. Martin, 304 S.W.3d 661 (Tex. App.—Fort Worth 2010, no pet.)
• In Rosenbaum, Adversary No. 09-4023, 2010 WL 1856344 (Bankr E.D. Tex. May 7, 2010), aff’d, 2011 WL 4553440 (ED. TX Sept. 29, 2011)
• Defended client in a jury trial seeking to foreclose an aircraft lien
• Obtained a $1.3 million award in a securities arbitration proceeding
• Obtained $740,000 summary judgment for client in breach-of-contract case
• Represented local university in a property tax dispute with Appraisal District; case settled with no tax liability to client
• Successfully represented local non-profit in administrative appeal of tax dispute
• Overturned $13 million summary judgment against client
• Successfully obtained dismissal of all grievance charges against Texas attorney after evidentiary hearing and obtained affirmance by Texas Board of Disciplinary Appeals

AFFILIATIONS

• Texas Bar Foundation, Fellow
• Tarrant County Bar Foundation, Fellow
• Eldon B. Mahon Inn of Court, Member
• State Bar of Texas Appellate Section Council, 2021-2024
• Tarrant County Bar Association, Member
  • Appellate Section, Chair, 2016-2017
• Reading Partners North Texas, Board, 2022-2025
• Board of Directors for Community Hospice of Texas, Member
• The Appellate Advocate, State Bar of Texas Appellate Section
  • Managing Editor, 2017-2018
• Leadership ISD’s Tarrant County Civic Voices, Fellow, 2017-2018

HONORS

• Best Lawyers in America®, 2024, 2025
• Texas Super Lawyers, Thomson Reuters, 2022-2024
• Top Attorney, Fort Worth Magazine, 2013-2020, 2022-2024
• Top Attorney, 360 West magazine, 2017-2024
• Texas Super Lawyers Rising Stars, Thomson Reuters, 2013-2020
• Top 100 Texas Super Lawyers Rising Stars, Thomson Reuters, 2019-2020

EDUCATION

• University of Houston Law Center, J.D., magna cum laude, 2005
  • Order of the Barons
• Texas Christian University, B.A., cum laude, 2001

ADMISSIONS

• State Bar of Texas
• U.S. Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit
• U.S. Court of Appeals, Eighth Circuit
• U.S. Court of Appeals, Tenth Circuit
• U.S. District Court, Northern District of Texas
• U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Texas
• U.S. District Court, Western District of Texas

SPEECHES & PUBLICATIONS

• Co-Author, Don’t be the case with a broken record, The Present and Ready Blog, February 2024
• Co-Author, Procedural Rule Changes Resulting from the Regular Legislative Session, State Bar of Texas Litigation Section News for the Bar, January 2024
• Co-Host, Happy Holidays and Parting Thoughts for 2023, Texas Appellate Law Podcast, December 2023
• Co-Host, Handling Post-Conviction Death Penalty Cases Pro Bono | McKenzie Edwards, Texas Appellate Law Podcast, December 2023
• Co-Host, Addiction and the Recovery Journey for Lawyers | Brian Cuban, Texas Appellate Law Podcast, November 2023
• Co-Host, Emerging Ethical Issues for Lawyers Using AI | Derek Bauman, Texas Appellate Law Podcast, November 2023
• Co-Host, A Longtime Trial Judge’s View from the Appellate Bench | Justice Gisela Triana, Texas Appellate Law Podcast, November 2023
• Co-Host, Inside the Fourth Court of Appeals’ Clerk’s Office | Michael Cruz, Texas Appellate Law Podcast, October 2023
• Speaker, “Appellate Attorney Fees Update,” State Bar of Texas Advanced Civil Appellate Practice, September 2023
• Co-Host, Taking Control of Your Practice by Setting Boundaries| Kiele Linroth Pace, Texas Appellate Law Podcast, July 2023
• Co-Host, How to Become Board-Certified in Civil Appellate Law | Kelley Morris, Texas Appellate Law Podcast, June 2023
• Co-Host, Systems and the Emergence of AI in Law Practice | Ernie Svenson, Texas Appellate Law Podcast, June 2023
• Co-Host, Understanding the SCOTUS Shadow Docket | Steve Vladeck, Texas Appellate Law Podcast, June 2023
• Co-Host, A Lawyer’s Guide to Blockchain and Cryptocurrency | Nelson Ebaugh, Texas Appellate Law Podcast, May 2023
• Co-Host, The Portia Project Podcast Crossover Episode | M.C. Sungaila, Texas Appellate Law Podcast, April 2023
• Co-Host, Walking the Walk on Lawyer Well-Being | Bree Buchanon, Texas Appellate Law Podcast, March 2023 
• Co-Host, Bringing Family Law Expertise to SCOTX | Justice Debra Lehrmann, Texas Appellate Law Podcast, February 2023 
• Host, The Evolution of Texas Appellate Practice | David Keltner, Texas Appellate Law Podcast, January 2023
• Speaker, “Attorneys’ Fees in Texas:  Welcome to the Lodestar State,” Texas Bar Business Disputes CLE, September 2022
• Speaker, “Taking the ‘I’ Out of Mistakes on Appeal,”  Texas Bar Civil Appellate 101 CLE, September 2022
• Speaker, Error Preservation in Voir Dire: The Jury Shuffle and Other Jury-Selection Dance Moves,” Texas State Bar’s Advanced Civil Trial CLE, July 2022
• Speaker, “Effectively Using Appellate Counsel at Trial,” Tarrant County and Dallas Bar Associations Joint Appellate Seminar, April 2022
• Speaker, “Texas Rule of Civil Procedure Rule 91a and the Texas Citizens Participation Act,” Hidalgo County Bar Association Appellate Section CLE, March 2022 
• Moderator, “Conversation with Justices From Houston’s Fourteenth Court of Appeals,” Tarrant County Bar Association CLE, November 2020
• Moderator, “Brain Break with Fifth Court Dallas,” TCBA Appellate Section, October 2020
• Speaker, “Textual Healing: Winning Cases on Contract and Statutory Construction,” Texas Bar CLE Business Disputes Course, September 2020
• Speaker, “Supersedeas Issues in the Appellate Courts,” Texas Association of Appellate Court Attorneys Meeting, September 2020
• Speaker, “Fiduciary Duties,” Texas Bar CLE’s Advanced Civil Trial Course, July 2020
• Speaker, Supersedeas Bonds, Tarrant County Bar Association, Appellate Law, Brown Bag Seminar Series, 2020
• Speaker, “Statutory and Common Law Chapter 33 Issues Working Their Way Up,” Texas Bar Advanced Civil Appellate Practice CLE, 2018
• Speaker, “Permissive Appeals, I’d Like to Phone a Friend for Trial Judges,” Texas Center for the Judiciary Judicial Education Conference, 2018
• Speaker, Permissive Appeals, Texas Association of Appellate Court Attorneys CLE, 2018
• Speaker, “Court of Appeals May I?  Getting the Court to Take (or Reject) a Permissive Appeal,”  Tarrant County Bar Association Appellate CLE, 2018
• Speaker, “Chapter 33:  A One-Stop Statute for Your Damage Awards,” Texas Bar CLE Damage in Civil Litigation Course, 2018
• Author, “Damages in Business Litigation,” Texas Bar CLE Business Disputes Course, 2017
• Author, “The Texas Citizens Participation Act:  A Litigator’s New Best Friend or Worst Enemy?,” The Advocate, State Bar of Texas Litigation Section, Volume 80, 2017
• Author, “The Texas Citizens Participation Act,” Corporate Counsel Review, Volume XXXVI 53, 2017
• Speaker, “How to Avoid (or Give) and Anti-SLAAP?,” Texas Bar CLE Advanced Civil Appellate Practice Course, 2016
• Speaker, “Findings of Fact & Conclusions of Law: Do They Really Matter?,” Texas Bar CLE, Advanced Civil Trial Course, 2016
• Moderator, “A Conversation with the Staff Attorneys,” Tarrant & Dallas County Bar Associations’ Joint Appellate Seminar, 2015
• Author, “Interlocutory Appeals,” Civil Appellate Practice 101, 2015
• Speaker, “Jumping the Gun: Interlocutory and Permissive Appellate Proceedings,” Tarrant County Bar Association Brown Bag Seminar, 2015
• Author, “Property Tax Appraisal Protests:  What’s the Appeal?, “The Network, 2013
• Speaker, “Challenges for Cause in the Jury Selection Process: When A Person Can/Can’t be Rehabilitated Judicial Perspective,” Texas Bar CLE 34th Annual Advanced Civil Trial Course, 2011
• Speaker, “Trying Cases to the Trial Court Findings of Fact & Conclusions of Law Update,” State Bar College 13th Annual Summer School, 2011
• Speaker, “Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law Update,” Tarrant County Bar Association Bench Bar Conference XVIII, 2011
• Speaker, “Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law: Do They Really Matter?,” Texas Bar CLE Handling Your First Civil Appeal, 2011
• Speaker, “Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law: Do They Really Matter?,” TCBA Appellate Section Disposition Without a Jury, 2011
• Co-Author, “Findings of Fact & Conclusions of Law: Do they Really Matter?,” Texas Bar CLE, 2010
• Speaker, “The Taxman Cometh: Current Issues and Strategies to Avoid Loss of a Real Property Exemption,” Independent Colleges & Universities of Texas Annual Meeting, 2010
• Co-Author, “Respondent’s Strategies in the Supreme Court,” Texas Bar CLE, 2009