Clayton E. Bailey is a partner and leads the Firm’s Dallas Litigation Group. Mr. Bailey has extensive trial and arbitration experience in complex litigations, and an impressive track record in federal and state appellate cases throughout the nation. Mr. Bailey has been named by his peers as a Future Rising Star in Texas in the 2012 edition of Benchmark Litigation and as a Texas Super Lawyer in Business Litigation. He is a member of numerous professional associations including invitation-only associations such as the Federal Bar Association and Litigation Counsel of America. He also serves on numerous committees such as the Dallas Bar Association's Judiciary and Fee Disputes Committees. Mr. Bailey graduated magna cum laude from Baylor University and cum laude from the Southern Methodist University School of Law, where he served as editor-in-chief of a law journal.

Practice Focus

Mr. Bailey’s practice focuses on the litigation and trial of complex tort and commercial litigation, including agribusiness matters under the Packers and Stockyards Act (PSA), contract disputes, business torts, antitrust, Racketeering Influenced Corrupt Organization Act (RICO), ERISA, trade secrets and employment-related litigation. Mr. Bailey’s litigation experience also includes successfully defending against putative class actions and claims involving numerous parties. Mr. Bailey has tried several cases in federal courts (both district courts and bankruptcy courts) and state courts (jury and bench trials) throughout Texas, Louisiana, and Oklahoma, as well as litigating cases in such states as Alabama, Arkansas, California, Georgia, and Mississippi. Additionally, he has significant experience briefing and arguing appeals before various federal and state appellate courts, including the Supreme Courts of Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas, various intermediate appellate courts throughout Texas and Louisiana, and the United States Courts of Appeals for the Fifth, Eighth, Ninth, Tenth and Federal Circuits.

Representative Legal Matters

• Represents numerous agribusiness entities in litigations throughout the nation and routinely advises these entities with respect to administrative matters and actions initiated by the United States Department of Agriculture—Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration.
• Successfully resolved administrative enforcement actions filed against two of the nation’s largest swine packers.
• Successfully obtained rehearing en banc before the United States Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, which resulted in the successful reversal of a district court’s and an earlier panel‘s decisions interpreting an antitrust statute.
• Persuaded the Louisiana Supreme Court to reverse the district court’s and intermediate appellate court’s interpretation and findings of liability against a client under the Louisiana Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law, which resulted in the vacatur of millions of dollars in treble damages and attorneys’ fees.
• Convinced the Mississippi Supreme Court to reverse and remand a jury verdict initially resulting in an award of $1.65 million.
• Persuaded a court to enter summary judgment in favor of a client with respect to RICO claims filed against an agribusiness company, a bank, an appraiser, a lawyer and a title company.
• Obtained numerous summary judgments in favor of clients in various ERISA cases filed throughout Texas.
• Obtained the dismissal of numerous antitrust and state law claims pled by a municipality seeking in excess of $28 million in damages.
• Secured the denial of a request for class certification in an antitrust conspiracy case involving the nation’s largest poultry producers.
• Defeated attempts by plaintiffs to certify a nation-wide and regional class action alleging PSA violations.
• Successfully obtained a directed verdict in favor of a client sued in Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana for various Louisiana state law claims.
• Forced a plaintiff to dismiss his lawsuit in its entirety against one of the nation’s largest insurance companies after the plaintiff presented his case against the insurer before a jury in an Oklahoma federal district court.

Professional Associations and Memberships

• Litigation Counsel of America, TheTrial Lawyer Honorary Society - Fellow
• American Bar Association - Agriculture and Food Committee of the Section of Antitrust Law
• State Bar of Texas - Member
• Dallas Bar Association - Judiciary and Fee Disputes Committee
• Federal Bar Association - Dallas Chapter
• The Trial Law Institute - Member

Admission

U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit~United States (2010)
U.S. Court of Appeals, Federal Circuit~United States (2010)
U.S. Supreme Court~United States (2008)
U.S. Court of Appeals, Tenth Circuit~United States (2002)
U.S. Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit~United States (1999)
U.S. Court of Appeals, Eighth Circuit~United States (1999)
U.S. District Court, Southern District of Texas~United States (1996)
U.S. District Court, Western District of Texas~United States (1996)
Texas Supreme Court~United States (1996)
Texas~United States (1996)
U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Texas~United States (1996)
U.S. District Court, Northern District of Texas~United States (1996)

Education

Southern Methodist University  (J.D. cum laude) (1996)
Baylor University  (B.A. magna cum laude) (1990)