Love, Sarah M.

Justin Welch has been practicing since 1997 and focuses on commercial litigation. Commercial litigation is a broad term that refers to resolution of a variety of business disputes. The following are examples of the types of disputes Mr. Welch has handled:

• Construction defects, both residential and commercial;
• Collection of commercial debts, especially on behalf of construction contractors, both at the general and subcontractor level;
• Trademark and copyright infringement;
• Theft of trade secrets;
• Breach of employee noncompete agreements, on behalf of employees and employers;
• Discrimination suits on behalf of employers;
• Suits by and against real estate agents and brokers;
• Investment fraud;
• Suits to partition real estate;
• Engineering malpractice and negligence;
• Real estate title and easement disputes;
• Homeowner's association disputes, both on behalf of homeowners and associations;
• Defense of employers against employee wage and compensation claims; and,
• Will contests.

Resolution of a dispute does not always involve going to trial, or even filing suit. Indeed, the goal is always to resolve the dispute before it escalates into actual litigation. However, if the matter must be litigated, Mr. Welch has the expertise and experience to take it through trial. And, if the matter is appealed, Mr. Welch has successfully handled state and federal appeals.

Mr. Welch's practice also involves a significant amount of transactional work; that is, the drafting of contracts and other documents, including governmental filings, necessary to facilitate a client's business. For example, Mr. Welch has registered over 100 trademarks for clients, including well known brands such as Kerbey Lane Cafe and Republic Tequila. He also handles copyright registrations to protect clients' valuable intellectual property. He drafts licensing and assignment agreements for copyrights and trademarks, allowing clients to better capitalize on their intellectual property. And, he routinely drafts employee noncompete, nondisclosure, and nonsolicitation agreements.

And, unlike some attorneys whose practice focuses purely on drafting documents, Mr. Welch is able to incorporate his experiences from litigation. This allows him to better foresee issues that may arise in a dispute, and draft an enforceable agreement.
Mr. Welch was born in Fort Worth and reared in Tyler. He received his B.B.A. in accounting from Baylor University in 1991, graduating cum laude. Following graduation, he worked as an audit associate with the public accounting firm, Coopers & Lybrand, now PriceWaterhouseCoopers, and then as a litigation support associate with BDO Seidman. Mr. Welch passed the CPA exam on his initial sitting in 1991, and was licensed as a CPA in 1994 following a two year practice requirement. He allowed his license to become inactive once he began practicing law.

Mr. Welch attended the University of Texas School of Law, receiving his juris doctor and admission to the Texas State Bar in 1997. He is also licensed to practice before several Texas federal courts, the U.S. Federal Court of Claims in Washington, D.C., and the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans.

He joined Blazier, Christensen, Bigelow & Virr, P.C., in January 2001.