Hon. Dan Hinde

Houston, TX

Judge Dan Hinde served as the Judge of the 269th District Court of Harris County, Texas for over 10 years. Over that time, he tried 290 cases and resolved over 15,000 lawsuits. He is Board Certified in Civil Trial Law and is the Chair of the Pattern Jury Charge Oversight Committee of the State Bar of Texas, responsible for reviewing new editions of the Texas Pattern Jury Charges.

During his 10+ years on the bench, Judge Hinde tried several workplace-injury, nonsubscriber, and employment cases, as well as numerous other personal-injury, wrongful-death, medical-malpractice, and catastrophic-injury cases. He also tried numerous industrial- and residential-construction cases, trade-secret claims, noncompete suits, and internal business disputes—and much more. He continues to serve frequently as a visiting judge in the trial courts of Texas.

After leaving the bench, Judge Hinde turned to mediating and arbitrating civil cases of virtually all types. He has mediated or arbitrated several workplace-injury, nonsubscriber, and employment cases, as well as personal- and catastrophic-injury suits, complex commercial matters, construction claims, internal business and partnership disputes, noncompete cases, and trade secret and copyright suits. He is a member of several arbitration panels, including the AAA Employment, Commercial, Complex Commercial, Consumer, and Energy Arbitration Panels.

Judge Hinde performs both in-person and virtual (Zoom) arbitrations and mediations.

Education +-

The University of Texas School of Law; Austin, TX

JD

1997
Texas A&M University; College Station, TX

BS Electrical Engineering

1994
Civil Trial Law (Texas Board of Legal Specialization)

Board Certified

Experience +-

State District and County Courts

Visiting Judge

2022 - Present
Mediator, Arbitrator, Special Master

2022 - Present
Schiffer Hicks Johnson PLLC

Partner

2019 - 2022
296th District Court, Harris County, Texas

Judge

2008 - 2018
Steel Sturm, P.L.L.C

2008
Vinson & Elkins, L.L.P.

1999 - 2008
Dallas County D.A.'s Office

Assistant District Attorney

2003
U.S. District Judge Sim Lake, S.D. Tex.

Law Clerk

1997 - 1999

Memberships/Affiliations +-

American Arbitration Association Roster of Arbitrators

Member
Civil Jurisprudence (Texas Center for the Judiciary)

College for Judicial Studies
Texas Pattern Jury Charges—Oversight Committee, State Bar of Texas

Chair

2020 - Present
Texas Center for the Judiciary

Director

2017 - 2018
Cybersecurity Subcommittee, State Judicial Committee on Info. Tech.

Co-Chair

2019 - Present
Pattern Jury Charge Oversight Subcommittee on Fiduciary Duty

Chair

2016 - 2018
Jury Committee, Harris County Board of District Judges

Chair

2017 - 2018
Technology Committee, Harris County Civil District Courts

Chair

2013, 2015-2018
Rules Committee, Harris County Civil District Courts

Chair

2013 - 2014
Pretrial Subcommittee, State Bar of Texas Court Rules Committee

Chair

2012 - 2013
Houston Bar Association Federal Practice Section

Chair

2009 - 2010
American Law Institue

2020 - Present
Houston Bar Association
American Bar Association
Federal Bar Association
Aggie Bar Association
Texas Association of Civil Trial and Appellate Specialists
College of the State Bar of Texas
Pro Bono College of the State Bar

2003 - 2004
Texas Bar Fellows
State Judicial Committee on Information Technology, State of Texas

2014 - Present
Texas Center for the Judiciary

Board of Directors

2017 - 2018
Texas Center for the Judiciary

Finance Committee

2016 - 2017
Texas Center for the Judiciary

Judicial Resources Committee

2012 - 2013
State Bar of Texas

2007 - 2013

Honors/Awards +-

Outstanding Legal Article Award for “What Law Applies?” (Houston Bar Foundation)

2013

Seminar/Speaking/Authoring +-

Publications

“What’d I Miss? An Update on the Texas Pattern Jury Charges,” 31st Annual Conference on State and Federal Appeals, June 10, 2021
“Special Judges Could Relieve Local Civil Trial Backlog,” Houston Bus. Journal, Apr. 26, 2019
“The Jury Charge,” Civil Appellate Practice 101, Sept. 2017 (update of conference material)
“Motions for Continuance,” The Advocate, Fall 2015
“A Glossary of Common Trial Objections,” The Houston Lawyer, July/Aug. 2013
“What Law Applies?” The Houston Lawyer, July/Aug. 2012
“The Use of iPads by Judges,” In Chambers, Fall 2011
“Conflicts of Privilege,” Pretrial Practice and Discovery, Winter 2006
Note, “Consensual Sentencing in the Magistrate Court,” 75 Texas L. Rev. 1161 (1997)

Judicial and CLE presentations

“What’d I Miss? An Update on the Texas Pattern Jury Charges,” 31st Annual Conference on State and Federal Appeals, June 2021
“Jury Charges: Perspectives from the Bench and Bar,” HBA Appellate Section, July 2020
“The Courts’ Role at the Apex of State Power: Public Health Restrictions in the Time of Pandemics,” Houston and Austin Chapters of the Federalist Society, April/May 2020
“Polishing Your Evidence: Technology in the Courtroom,” HBA Bench-Bar Conference, 2019
“Trying Your Maritime Case in State Court,” 26th Annual Admiralty and Maritime Law Conference, Sept. 2017
“Litigation on the Gulf Coast,” Panel Discussion, Marine and Energy Law Conference, Oct. 2017
“The Jury Charge,” State Bar of Texas Civil Appellate Practice 101 Seminar, Sept. 2017
“The Ins and Outs of Early Dismissal,” Texas Regional Judicial Conferences, 2017
“Effective Voir Dire,” several times over many years
“Implementing, Enforcing, and Amending Discovery Orders,” 2016 Texas Reg’l Judicial Confs.
“Objection!” Litigation Section, Houston Bar Association, 2015
“60 Apps in 60 Minutes,” 2015 HBA Bench-Bar Conference; 2012 Texas Judicial Conference
“iJudging,” Texas Annual Judicial Conference, 2013; Texas Regional Judicial Conferences, 2012
“There’s an App for That,” Advanced Civil Trial Course, 2012
“Service in the Third Branch,” George H.W. Bush School of Public Service, Texas A&M University, 2010
“Interactive Briefs,” DRI Annual Meeting, Oct. 2008
“Using Treater Depositions to Win the Battle of the Experts,” DRI Drug & Medical Device Seminar, May 2007