McDowell Hetherington LLP is proud to announce that three of its lawyers – Kate Easterling, Blaire Bruns Johnson and William Thomas — have been named to the 2017 Texas Rising Stars list.

The annual list of Texas’ top up-and-coming lawyers is based on a statewide poll of attorneys. Nominees must be age 40 or younger or have been in practice for fewer than 10 years. Only 2.5 percent of Texas attorneys are included in the list, which appears in the April 2017 editions of Texas Monthly and Texas Super Lawyers Magazine.

Ms. Easterling, a senior attorney in the Houston office, was recognized as a “Rising Star” in business litigation — making her a six-time Texas Super Lawyer Rising Star. Ms. Easterling handles commercial disputes, energy litigation, tort claims, and personal injury claims across the country.

Ms. Johnson, a partner in the Houston office, has achieved great results for the firm’s clients in an array of civil litigation, including financial services litigation; life, health and disability insurance litigation; employment-related litigation; oil-and-gas industry litigation; and stop-loss insurance litigation. Particularly, Ms. Johnson has a growing practice in ERISA disputes both in Texas and across the country. This is Ms. Johnson’s third time to be recognized as a “Rising Star” in insurance coverage.

Mr. Thomas is an associate in the Houston office. His complex and national litigation practice involves disputes related to energy, construction, commercial contracts, insurance, and consumer protection statutes. He was recognized as a “Rising Star” for his litigation work in energy.