EXPERIENCE MATTERS

JUDGE KERRIGAN

An Experienced and
Effective Arbitrator and Mediator

Patricia J Kerrigan PC
281-825-9736

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Judge Patricia J Kerrigan

Judge Kerrigan has been mediating and arbitrating complex commercial, energy, and employment matters since 2017. She brings 24 years of experience as a trial lawyer and 10 years as a District Court Judge to her practice; from this, she has developed a keen understanding of the law and the dynamics of a trial.  Importantly, her background gives her the ability to develop efficient cost-conscious discovery protocols for arbitrations and to effectively handle discovery disputes. She encourages cost saving devices, such as the use of witness statements and affidavits rather than depositions. She also works with counsel to tailor her time and involvement to where it is necessary by encouraging the parties to resolve issues and limiting unnecessary conferences.  At the same time, she understands that her involvement early in a discovery or other case dispute works to resolve the issue more economically.  In short, she is committed to make the lawyers and the process work efficiently and economically as well as her own role.  Her arbitration experience includes cases raising fiduciary duty issues, business divorces, midstream and upstream energy disputes, contract disputes, executive employment disputes, employment discrimination and sexual harassment.  Due to her background in healthcare, she also handles healthcare related matters, such as medical malpractice and medical partnership disputes.

Her mediation practice includes the same subject matter areas as her arbitration practice, but she is often asked to mediate torts, personal injury and insurance disputes.  Judge Kerrigan firmly believes that a well-prepared mediator will successfully impact the outcome of a mediation so she takes the time needed to review and understand the submitted materials and often engages in pre-mediation telephone conferences with counsel.  If a case does not settle, she will often follow up and monitor the status of the trial preparations to determine if an opportunity for further negotiations develops. In an appropriate situation, she will offer a Mediator’s Proposal.  She completed the University of Houston AA White Dispute Resolution Center mediation training and qualified for credentialing with the Texas Mediator Credentialing Association. She has been certified in Early Dispute Resolution.  

Credentials & Associations

Judge Kerrigan has been on The American Arbitration Association’s (AAA) Commercial, Energy and Employment Roster of Arbitrators and Mediators since 2017 and has often been selected as an arbitrator in employment arbitrations with Judicial Workplace Arbitrations (JWA). She has also served as an arbitrator with the International Institute for Conflict Prevention and Resolution (CPR). At the request of counsel, she has served in independent arbitrations and by request of counsel, approved by court order, also as a Special Judge under Rule 151 of the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code. She has served as an arbitrator in over 120 cases and as a mediator in over 270 cases. 

Because Judge Kerrigan has always respected and been interested in science, she was delighted and honored in 2015 to be invited to participate in the National Courts and Science Institute – Los Alamos Judicial Science Program and also in The Advanced Science and Technology Adjudication Resource Judge Fellow Program. She was  honored to be named Trial Judge of the Year by the Texas Association of Civil Trial and Appellate Specialists and named the Best Civil Court Judge by the Houston Press.  She is currently a Senior District Court Judge (Retired) and still sits as a Civil Court Judge by appointment.  

During her 25 years as a trial lawyer (who loved trying cases), she was invited to become a member of The American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA) where she has remained active, serving as President of the local chapter, Chair of the local Diversity Committee and currently as a Director on the ABOTA National Board of Directors. She was the first woman President of the Texas Association of Defense Counsel and of the Association of Defense Trial Attorneys and was active for many years in the Defense Research Institute, serving as a Board Member and Treasurer.  Despite the fact that much of her work as a trial attorney was in representing Defendants in civil litigation, the Plaintiffs’ Bar recognized her neutrality as a Judge and supported her re-election campaigns and still often select her for ADR. She has served on numerous Texas State Bar committees, including as Chair of Volume 1 of the Pattern Jury Charge Committee and is a Fellow of the Houston and Texas Bar Foundations.  In her trial practice, she served as National Coordinating Counsel on various product lines for a major manufacturer and on the National Litigation Team for a manufacturer of children’s products as well as on the National Trial Team for a medical device manufacturer.  Judge Kerrigan is a member of the American Leadership Forum Class of XVIII.

Education, Employment & More

Judge Kerrigan graduated from Boston University and then received her JD from the University of Houston Law Center where she served as Chief Justice of the Advocates, the law school’s moot court organization.  After graduation, she worked at Fulbright & Jaworski LLP, now Norton Rose Fulbright, where she became a partner in 1992.  In 1997, she co-founded Werner, Kerrigan & Ayers LLP, where she remained until appointed as Judge of the 190th District Court in Harris County, Texas in 2007. 

Prior to law school, Judge Kerrigan was an RN working in various hospitals and medical centers in the Boston area before moving to Texas.

Her hobbies include hiking, skiing, art and music – she sang with the Writ Kickers, a country and western band and currently sings with the St. Andrew’s Choir. 

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