LONGVIEW, Texas – Acclaimed courtroom lawyers Johnny Ward and Wesley Hill of Longview, Texas-based Ward, Smith & Hill, PLLC, are being recognized as two of the country’s top attorneys in the 2016 edition of Benchmark Litigation.
Mr. Ward was named a Litigation Star by the publication, and Mr. Hill earned the Future Star designation. Both were recognized for their work in intellectual property litigation.
Benchmark Litigation honors the leading lawyers in the U.S. based on information collected by the publication’s panel of journalist researchers in telephone interviews with attorneys from across the country.
Mr. Ward has represented clients in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas and other jurisdictions for years. Earlier this year, he helped win a $31.5 million patent infringement verdict for client DataQuill Ltd. in an Eastern District case against China-based ZTE Corp., the country’s second-largest supplier of prepaid mobile devices.
Mr. Hill similarly is well-known for his work representing clients in the Eastern District and elsewhere. His name was added to the firm’s moniker earlier this year at Ward, Smith & Hill, where he has tried more than a dozen cases since being named as a partner in 2009. In July, he helped the surviving family members of Dallas inventor Charles Freeny Jr. win a $9.25 million patent infringement verdict in the Eastern District against Arkansas-based Murphy USA Inc. over technology used in fuel pricing systems.
In addition to the recent Benchmark Litigation honors, Mr. Ward and Mr. Hill regularly are recognized in peer-review guides based on their work for clients, including both earning the AV-Preeminent rating from Martindale-Hubbell. Mr. Ward has been honored in the annual Texas Super Lawyers list of the state’s top attorneys since it debuted in 2003, and Mr. Hill has been named to the companion Texas Rising Stars list since 2011.
Longview, Texas-based Ward, Smith & Hill, PLLC, has tried more than 350 cases to verdict, earning a national reputation in high-stakes claims involving complex commercial litigation, intellectual property law, oil and gas matters, bad faith insurance claims, and serious personal injury claims. The firm frequently assists lawyers nationwide in complex cases before Texas juries.
