Houston Business Litigation Attorneys

On This Page

• Business Disputes We Handle
• When the Other Side Stops Paying or Performing
• When a Business Partnership Breaks Down
• When an Employee or Competitor Takes What's Yours
• How a Business Dispute Moves Forward
• Why Hendershot Cowart P.C.?
• Business Litigation FAQs

We represent Texas businesses and their owners in a wide range of commercial disputes, including these:

Contract and payment disputes

• Breach of contract – claims for nonpayment, nonperformance and breached agreements, whether you are pursuing a claim or defending one.
• Supply and vendor disputes – delayed deliveries, defective goods and suppliers that fail to perform.
• Franchise disputes – conflicts between franchisors and franchisees over royalties, territories and termination.
• Insurance coverage disputes – denied or underpaid claims, including business interruption claims.
• M&A and transaction disputes – post-closing disputes over earn-outs, representations and warranties, and purchase price adjustments.
• Cease and desist letters – preparing letters that protect your rights and responding to letters you receive.

Owner, partner and shareholder disputes

• Partnership disputes – deadlocks, buyouts and disagreements over control, distributions and management.
• LLC member disputes and business dissolution – member expulsions, wind-ups and owner exits.
• Breach of fiduciary duty – self-dealing, diverted business opportunities and misuse of company funds.
• Shareholder oppression – minority owners denied access to information, distributions, or a role in management.
• Piercing the corporate veil – holding owners personally liable when a company is used to avoid its obligations.

Competition, employees and intellectual property

• Non-compete violations – enforcing non-compete agreements and defending against them.
• Employee poaching and client poaching – former employees or partners soliciting your staff and customers.
• Trade secret theft – misappropriation of customer lists, pricing, processes and other confidential information.
• Trademark and copyright infringement, and patent infringement defense – protecting your brand and creative work, and defending against infringement claims.

Fraud and claims against your business

• Fraud and misrepresentation – transactions induced by false statements or concealed facts.
• Business torts – interference with contracts and business relationships, and other wrongful conduct that causes business losses.
• Fraudulent transfers – recovering assets moved to avoid a debt or judgment.
• Cryptocurrency fraud – tracing and recovering misappropriated digital assets.
• Defense against deceptive trade practices claims, ADA lawsuits, broker-dealer claims and claims involving solar sales.

Related court procedures and practice areas

The right procedural tools can protect your business early and shape where and how a dispute is decided. Our litigation team is well-versed in these court procedures and dispute resolution tools:

• Injunctive relief – to stop harmful conduct quickly, while the dispute moves through litigation
• Pre-suit depositions under Texas Rule 202 – to uncover facts before you file a lawsuit.
• Removals and special appearances – to challenge which court hears your case.
• Arbitration and mediation – to resolve a dispute outside the courtroom, often faster and at lower cost.
• Civil litigation – to pursue or defend claims in state and federal court that may or may not be related to a business dispute.
• Civil and administrative appeals – to seek to overturn an unfavorable ruling.

We also litigate disputes in other areas of our practice, including construction disputes, healthcare litigation, probate and estate disputes, and bankruptcy and creditors' rights.

You have made the calls, sent the emails, and documented what was agreed. The other party still has not paid, performed, or responded.

At that stage, a letter from an attorney often changes the dynamic. A well-built demand letter lays out what's owed, what the contract says, and what happens next. Many disputes resolve at this stage. When they don't, we can file suit and pursue the claim through mediation, arbitration, or trial.

Before you commit to litigation, we help you weigh its cost against what you stand to recover and the other party's ability to pay. If the other side files for bankruptcy, our Houston creditor bankruptcy attorneys can help you protect your claim.

If your business has been sued, the deadline to respond is already running. In Texas, a defendant generally must file an answer by 10 a.m. on the Monday after 20 days from being served. Miss that deadline, and the court can enter a default judgment against you. If you have received a demand letter, have an attorney review it before you respond.

Learn more about breach of contract disputes, supply and vendor disputes, and cease-and-desist letters, or read our guide to suing for breach of contract in Texas.

A partnership dispute rarely starts with a lawsuit. It often begins with a locked account, a decision made without your input, or the discovery that a partner has been taking more compensation than agreed. These disputes are also personal, because they involve someone you built a business with.

"Disputes between partners tend to be based on money – someone isn't getting paid enough, someone isn't getting distributions, or one member is spending company funds on personal matters." 

– Katie Cowart, Attorney and Shareholder

Not every partnership dispute needs to go to court. Some owners want a clean, negotiated exit that protects what they've built. Others need to stop a partner whose conduct is harming the business. We handle both, and we help you decide which path fits your goals.

Acting early matters. The longer a dispute continues, the greater the risk that funds leave the business or records are lost. When a partner is actively causing harm, we can ask a court for a temporary restraining order to freeze transfers or restore your access. Co-owners also have rights under Texas law even without a signed operating agreement.

Learn more about partnership and shareholder disputes, LLC member disputes, breach of fiduciary duty, and shareholder oppression, or read what to do when your business partner is stealing.

A key employee resigns, joins a competitor within days, and begins contacting your customers. A former partner leaves with your client list. In these situations, each day of delay can strengthen the other side's position.

We act quickly to protect your business. That can mean a cease-and-desist letter, a temporary restraining order to stop the use of your confidential information, or a lawsuit for the damage already done, which in some cases includes a claim against the new employer.

"A big area for us is trade-secret and non-compete litigation – whether it's an employee leaving who's bound by a non-compete, or a bad actor who downloads a list of your clients and starts soliciting them. We go after them, and possibly their new employer, to protect our client's confidential and trade-secret information." 

– Brady Dunlop, Attorney

We also represent employees and businesses on the other side of these disputes. If you have been accused of violating a non-compete, you may have defenses to the claim – starting with whether the agreement is enforceable as written. Texas courts often narrow an overbroad restriction rather than enforce it word for word, and many restrictions don't meet the requirements Texas law sets.

Learn more about non-compete violations, trade secret theft, employee poaching, client poaching, and injunctive relief.

Every dispute is different, but most follow the same path. Here's how the process works:

1. Define what a win looks like. We start by asking what success means for you – recovering money, keeping a customer, exiting a partnership, or simply making a problem go away. The answer shapes the strategy.
2. Protect your position. We secure documents and communications early. If money or confidential information is actively at risk, we can seek a temporary restraining order, sometimes within days.
3. Try to resolve it early. A demand letter or a direct negotiation with the other side's attorney resolves many disputes before a lawsuit is filed. When facts are hidden, Texas also allows a pre-suit deposition under Rule 202 to investigate a claim before filing.
4. Mediate or arbitrate. Many business contracts require mediation or arbitration. Even when they don't, a mediated settlement is often faster and less costly than trial.
5. Litigate when it's necessary. We try business cases in state and federal court, and before arbitrators. Along the way, early motions and summary judgment can narrow or end a case before trial.
6. Appeal or collect. After a judgment, we handle appeals and the work of enforcing a judgment in Texas.

"A win doesn't always mean going to trial. There are wins throughout the process – defeating an early motion to dismiss, getting claims thrown out on summary judgment, or reaching a resolution both parties can live with and move forward." 

– Sarah M. Vida, Attorney and Shareholder

When a dispute threatens your business, you need a firm that understands both the agreements at the center of it and the courtroom where it may be decided.

We Build It, and We Defend It

Most firms either do deals or do litigation. We do both. That matters in a dispute. When we litigate a buy-sell agreement, a non-compete, or a vendor contract, we're examining the same types of documents we draft every week. We know which clauses courts enforce, which ones fail, and where the other side's agreement has gaps. And when the dispute is over, we can help you put better agreements in place so it doesn't happen again.

Nearly 40 Years of Texas Experience

We've practiced Texas business law since 1987. We've seen how business disputes play out in Texas courts and arbitrations, and that experience helps us anticipate what comes next in yours.

In the past five years alone, we have:

• Resolved more than 900 business disputes and litigation matters
• Reviewed or drafted hundreds of business contracts
• Helped launch close to 250 Texas businesses and overseen 120 business transactions, mergers, or acquisitions.

Our law firm has been recognized by these publications and legal journals:

• Houston Chronicle Best of the Best, Finalist, Commercial Litigation and Corporate Law, 2022, 2024, and 2026
• Best Law Firms, Litigation – Health Care, Houston Metropolitan Area, Best Lawyers, 2026 Edition
• Chambers and Partners, Chambers Spotlight Texas Guide, 2026

Counsel You Can Understand, at a Price You Can See

We explain every step in plain English and lay out our fee arrangement up front, so you know what the first step costs before you commit. Learn more about how we charge.

Serving Houston and Texas

We're based in Houston and represent businesses throughout the greater Houston area, including Katy, Sugar Land, Richmond, Rosenberg, Pearland, Conroe and The Woodlands, with offices in Austin and San Antonio by appointment.