James (“Jim”) Lowery is a Partner in the Dallas office of GRSM and a member of the Environmental & Toxic Tort, Commercial Litigation, Trucking and Transportation practice groups. He has achieved favorable verdicts in several high-risk cases on behalf of multiple clients in asbestos, silica, talc, and other catastrophic injury litigation. Jim first chaired more than 60 trials in multiple jurisdictions, including Texas, New York, Pennsylvania, Florida, Massachusetts, Delaware, Ohio, Maryland, Louisiana, Virginia, Illinois, California, Iowa, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Mississippi. He obtained defense verdicts in pro-plaintiff jurisdictions, such as Madison County, Illinois, Beaumont and Orange Counties in Texas, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Los Angeles and Oakland, California.
Representative Experience
- Trial counsel for equipment manufacturer in seven-week jury trial in Oakland, California, resulting in defense verdict for major firm client.
- Lead trial lawyer representing a diversified industrial product manufacturer in asbestos mesothelioma wrongful death claim in the Madison County, Illinois. After nearly four hours of deliberation, the jury returned a unanimous defense verdict on behalf of the client.
- Lead trial counsel representing a construction company in a wrongful death, gross negligence asbestos trial in Beaumont, Texas. Jury returned an 11-1 defense verdict in favor of the client.
- Lead trial counsel representing a concrete company in a three plaintiff, catastrophic injury truck crash case in Brownsville, Texas. The jury returned an 11-1 defense verdict in favor of our client. Verdict upheld on appeal to the Thirteenth District of Texas, Corpus Christi-Edinburg.
- Lead trial counsel for a diversified manufacturing client in asbestos mesothelioma matter. In May 2008, after a three-month trial, the jury returned a plaintiff’s verdict but only allocated 2 percent against the client. In August 2012, the California Court of Appeal reversed the judgment and remanded the matter to the trial court for entry of judgment notwithstanding the verdict in favor of the client.
- Lead trial attorney for a diversified manufacturing client in asbestos mesothelioma case. After a multi-week trial, and despite plaintiff’s asking for an eight-figure verdict, the jury returned a damages phase verdict for only $123,000, assigning a 1/8 share to the client ($15,375). The plaintiff’s counsel dismissed their claim against the client prior the start of the liability phase of this trial.
- Why Developing and Presenting Alternative Exposure Evidence is Vital to the Defense of Asbestos and Talc Cases, Mealey's Litigation Report, June 2021
- Commentary: The Scourge of Over-Naming in Asbestos Litigation: The Costs to Litigants and the Impact on Justice, Mealey's Asbestos Reporter, January 19, 2018
- Contributing Author, Daubert and Frye Challenges to Expert Testimony, Expert Witness Answer Book, 2012-2015
- How to Settle a Case When You Don't Have all the Answers, GRSM Legal Education Conference, New York and Hartford, May 2019
- Defending Mass Torts and Products Liability Lawsuits, GRSM Legal Education Conference, New York and Hartford, May 2019
- Featured Presenter, Utilizing Bankruptcy Trust Evidence in Asbestos Trials, Defense Research Institute Asbestos Medicine Seminars, Austin, Texas, November 2018
Admissions
- Texas
- Florida
- New York
- Pennsylvania
- U.S. District Court, Eastern, Western, Northern, and Southern Districts of Texas
- U.S. District Court, Western, Northern, and Southern Districts of New York
- U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania
- U.S. District Court, Southern District of Florida
Memberships
- Texas Bar College
- Defense Research Institute
- The Florida Bar
- State Bar of Texas
Community Involvement
- Youth Baseball Coach
Education
- J.D., University of Notre Dame Law School
- B.A., University of Notre Dame
Honors
- Best Lawyers in America® distinction in Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Defendants (2014-2025)
- AV Preeminent®, Martindale-Hubbell