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Practice Areas:
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Business and Corporate Litigation, Catastrophic Personal Injury, Family Law |
Gregory Godkin’s law practice focuses on the representation of both national and international corporations, who are leaders in their respective industries, as well as individuals in the areas of Family Law, Business Litigation and Catastrophic Personal Injury. Gregory Godkin’s notable cases include defending a corporation with his partner in which the plaintiff sought more than $20 million in damages. After a two-week trial, the jury returned a verdict in favor of the defendant. Gregory Godkin has also defended a refinery in a mass tort lawsuit involving over 1,000 plaintiffs in which a settlement was reached. The settlement averaged less than $100.00 per plaintiff even though documentation connected the firm’s client’s chemicals with the facility where the alleged toxic exposures occurred; representing a teacher whose husband had been killed by a drunk driver and was left without life insurance benefits due to an error by the insurance underwriters. Said underwriters paid three times the value of the life insurance policy in settlement after Gregory Godkin demonstrated through early discovery the acts of bad faith on the company’s part. In addition, Gregory Godkin has represented an individual who received incorrect legal advice and thereby had a $256,000.00 default judgment against him. Gregory Godkin, who was retained by the client after the default judgment was entered and after all rights to appeal were expired, aggressively prosecuted a cause of action against the parties who had obtained the default judgment in an attempt to negotiate down the money owed. Gregory Godkin’s tactic to pro-actively prosecute the cause of action led to negotiations resulting in a very favorable result whereby the defaulting party paid approximately half of the non-appealable, domesticated default judgment.
Gregory Godkin’s Family Practice, entails representing clients, many of who are high-wealth individuals, in divorce and child custody disputes. Gregory Godkin was involved in one of Harris County’s largest divorce cases in recent history where tens of millions of dollars were sought by his client’s former spouse. After weeks of trial, a very favorable settlement was reached, both in terms of a monetary settlement and disputed child custody issues. Because high-wealth client(s) require atypical representation, Gregory Godkin has at his disposal jury consultants, forensic accountants, financial planners and steps to insure confidentiality so as to provide the client with a full range of services to best protect his or her interests in their time of need.
Gregory Godkin, who grew up in Beaumont, Texas, received his undergraduate degree from the University of Texas at Austin with Special Honors in 1994. Gregory Godkin received his law degree from Vermont Law School in 1997. Gregory Godkin is licensed to practice before the United States District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of Texas, and all courts, trial and appellate, within the State of Texas. Gregory Godkin is a member of the State Bar of Texas, the Houston Bar Association, where Gregory Godkin served on the Administration of Justice Committee, the Fort Bend County Bar Associate, the Maritime Law Association of the United States, and the Southeastern Admiralty Law Institute. Gregory Godkin has been voted one of Houston’s “Best Lawyers” and “Top Lawyers under 40” in H-Texas Magazine, and has been an invited speaker at the Houston Mariner’s Club. Gregory Godkin’s article titled “Preparing for a Storm: Protect Company Before the Lawsuit Hits” was published in the Houston Business Journal. Additionally, Gregory Godkin has been accorded the highest rating available by the Martindale-Hubbell Legal Directory. The ratings are obtained by peer reviews from judges and other practicing attorneys who are familiar with the work of the lawyer under consideration. As an “AV”-rated lawyer, Gregory Godkin’s peers have rated his legal abilities as an “A,” which signifies a rating of “very high to preeminent.” As to his general ethical standards rating, his peers have given him a “V” designation, which stands for “very high.” Both ratings are the highest ratings awarded by Martindale-Hubbell.
