Archive for the ‘News’ Category
Three AZA Partners Named to Lawdragon’s 2025 list of 500 Leading Energy Lawyers
HOUSTON – AZA partners Todd Mensing, Tim Shelby and John Zavitsanos were named for the first time to Lawdragon’s 2025 list of the nation’s 500 Leading Energy Lawyers. This is the fourth year Lawdragon has chosen a top 500 in the energy sphere. “The Energy 500 reflects the historic strength of a handful of firms […]
Todd Mensing Again Named to Lawdragon’s 500 Leading Lawyers in Environmental Law
HOUSTON – AZA name partner Todd Mensing has been named to Lawdragon’s list of The 2025 Lawdragon 500 Leading Environmental Lawyers – The Green 500. Lawdragon says honorees are “lawyers who spend their lives helping address our world, whether on behalf of a corporation that delivers energy or develops homes, or an organization that fights […]
AZA Gets Lawyer’s Discrimination Lawsuit Against Post Oak Hotel Tossed
HOUSTON – A federal judge this week dismissed personal injury lawyer Willie Powells’ lawsuit against the Post Oak Hotel that claimed he was asked to remove a baseball cap only because he is Black, even though the hotel’s dress code bans baseball caps, beanies and bucket hats. U.S. District Judge Lee Rosenthal tossed the […]
Jury Gives Maverick a Multimillion-Dollar Win Over ExxonMobil Subsidiary
HOUSTON – AZA client Maverick Natural Resources won a $5.6 million breach of contract victory over ExxonMobil subsidiary XTO Energy, which had asked for $33 million but took nothing. The jury heard three days of testimony in Harris County Judge Donna Roth’s court regarding back-and-forth claims that the two companies owed each other millions from […]
Three AZA Partners on 2025 Lawdragon 500 Leading Lawyers in America List
HOUSTON – AZA co-founders Joe Ahmad and John Zavitsanos and their partner Daryl Moore have been named to the 2025 Lawdragon 500 Leading Lawyers in America list. Messrs. Ahmad and Zavitsanos were cited for their excellence in commercial litigation, and Mr. Ahmad, who represents executives in employment matters, was also named for his expertise in […]
AZA Wins Take-Nothing Judgment from Jury for Ex-Directors of Chinatown Plaza
HOUSTON – AZA lawyers convinced a Harris County jury to award nothing on a million-dollar claim against former board directors of the largest shopping plaza in Houston’s Chinatown. The former directors of Dun Huang Plaza Association Inc. were sued by their largest tenant Lily He and her company Sun9028 Inc. The claim was for fraud […]
AZA Files Golf Course Lightning Strike Wrongful Death Lawsuit
ATLANTA – A greater Atlanta area golf course negligently failed to warn golfers of an approaching storm in any of the regularly accepted ways and let a golfer tee off before he was struck by lightning trying to run back to the clubhouse. The September lightning strike death of 29-year-old Raymond Baxter Jr. at […]
Firefighter Settles with City of Houston in Revenge Porn Case
HOUSTON – Houston City Council today approved an $850,000 settlement with a female firefighter whose supervisor obtained an intimate video made for her husband and secretly watched it for years. The vote settled the city’s portion of the litigation filed by former Houston Fire Department Capt. Melinda Abbt. In November 2023, a jury awarded her […]
AZA Social Media Influencer Case Featured in The New York Times
In The New York Times story “Can You Copyright a Vibe?” reporter Sandra E. Garcia writes about two Texas influencers, one an AZA client, fighting an unprecedented legal battle in Austin federal court over their online similarities. AZA lawyers represent Alyssa Sheil, who was sued by another Instagram and TikTok poster who alleged that their […]
AZA Names Bai, Poelker and Turkevich as New Partners
HOUSTON – Weining Bai, Kyle Poelker and Paul Turkevich have been named new partners at AZA. All three have been named Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch by The Best Lawyers in America, as Texas Rising Stars by Thomson Reuters’ Super Lawyers, or were named to both lists. “This is a talented trio of new […]
Ben & Jerry’s Sues Corporate Parent Over Gaza Stance Censorship
NEW YORK – The board of the Vermont-based premium ice cream company Ben & Jerry’s has once again sued its corporate parents for breaching contractual agreements by censoring and blocking the board’s efforts to support a cease fire and peace for the crisis in Gaza. In 2022, the brand known for its social awareness confidentially […]
AZA Honored by Best Law Firms for 13th Year and in Multiple Categories
HOUSTON – AZA is being recognized for the 13th year among the Best Law Firms in Houston by The Best Lawyers in America. This year, it is honored as a Tier 1 Houston firm for its appellate work and in five categories of litigation – commercial, intellectual property, employment law for management, construction and personal […]
Benchmark Litigation 2025 Honors AZA and Three Partners for Excellence
HOUSTON – Benchmark Litigation, a legal rating service which has recognized AZA since 2016, once again has honored the firm and partners Joe Ahmad, Jason McManis and John Zavitsanos. Messrs. Ahmad and Zavitsanos are listed as “Litigation Stars,” Mr. Ahmad for his work primarily representing executives in employment issues and Mr. Zavitsanos for his trial […]
AZA’s $41M Verdict Makes Another National List of Top 100 Verdicts for 2023
HOUSTON – An AZA unanimous jury verdict for a Houston-based energy company was named among the 2023 Top 100 Verdicts in the United States complied by TopVerdict.com. The $41.8 million win from a South Texas jury in an oil and gas trespass case against Energy Transfer was also on The National Law Journal’s Top 100 […]
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