Devon H. Decker

ddecker@kmd.law     (888) 855-1276 x 113

Devon Decker is Senior Counsel and the Director of Litigation at Kearney, McWilliams & Davis, PLLC.

Devon has over 35 years of experience in product liability, oil field litigation, construction defects, negligence, maritime, employment, medical, and commercial matters in both state and federal courts. Mr. Decker is board certified in Personal Injury Trial Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization and served as product liability and injury defense counsel for many of his clients.

Mr. Decker has represented clients and defended their interests in and outside of Texas, including pro hac vice appearances in Alabama, Iowa, Mississippi, New Jersey, New Mexico, and South Carolina. He has an AV Preeminent Rating, the highest available, from the Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory.

Outside of the firm, Mr. Decker has been a long-time volunteer and former Mast Captain on the tall ship ELISSA, the official Tall Ship of the State of Texas sailing out of Galveston, Texas. Mr. Decker has also served as a Member of the Board of Directors of the A.D. Players, a professional theatre company in Houston.

Devon Decker is admitted to practice before the United States District Courts for the Northern, Southern, and Eastern Districts of Texas, all State Courts of Texas, the United States Courts of Appeal for the Fifth and Federal Circuits, the United States Court of Federal Claims, and the Supreme Court of the United States. He is based in the Houston, Texas, office for Kearney, McWilliams & Davis, PLLC.

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Education

• J.D., South Texas College of Law Houston, 1983, Honors
• B.A., Theatre, Baylor University, 1974

Representative Cases

• Products Liability:
  • Lead counsel for lighting equipment manufacturer in wrongful death and property damage suit following plastic plant fire
  • Counsel for electrical equipment manufacturer in complex, multi-party lost profits claim following power outage at plastics manufacturing plant
  • Successfully defended manufacturer of lighting equipment in wrongful death suit arising from electrocution of a maintenance worker
  • Counsel for distributor of a hyperbaric chamber involved in an explosion giving rise to a wrongful death lawsuit
  • Lead counsel for manufacturer of LP gas hose in multi-party lawsuit for burn injuries following hose rupture
• Oil Field Litigation:
  • Lead defense counsel for oilfield equipment manufacturer arising from an explosion and fire on a drilling platform offshore of Brazil, resulting in multiple wrongful death and personal injury claims
  • Lead counsel for drilling contractor in defense of wrongful death claim brought by family of casing crew
  • Represented oilfield operators, contractors, service providers and equipment manufacturers in many multi-party personal injury claims onshore and offshore in both state and federal courts.
• Tire Litigation:
  • Defense counsel for designer and manufacturer of tire tread in litigation arising from bus rollover accident resulting in 17 deaths, 37 personal injuries and 169 claimants
  • Defense counsel for designer and manufacturer of tire tread in litigation arising from SUV rollover accident resulting in 4 deaths and 1 personal injury claim
  • Twenty years of experience as National Product Liability Counsel for franchiser of commercial truck tire retreading process and manufacturer of tire retreading equipment and products
  • Served as defense counsel in dozens of tire and tire servicing equipment lawsuits alleging negligence and strict product liability in both state and federal courts, including cases in Alabama, Arkansas, California, Florida, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, Ohio, and South Carolina
• Construction Litigation:
  • Lead counsel for general contractor in multi-party wrongful death lawsuit arising from electrocution during construction project at NASA facility
  • Lead counsel for general contractor in multiple wrongful death claims arising from the construction of a convention center
  • Represented contractors in multiple lawsuits alleging construction defects in both state and federal courts
• Admiralty and Maritime Litigation:
  • Lead defense counsel for platform operator in personal injury and property damage claim resulting from collision between fishing boat and mooring buoy
  • Lead defense counsel for platform operator in multi-party personal injury claim arising from alleged “sour gas” exposure
  • Counsel for stevedore in many cargo and personal injury claims in both state and federal courts