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Image: Paul R. Genender

Paul R. Genender

Partner, Litigation Department

Dallas

Phone: 1(972) 936-7470
Fax: 1(972) 936-7370

Houston

Phone: 1(713) 860-7320
Fax: 1(713) 353-3320

Overview

Paul R. Genender is a partner in the Complex Litigation and Arbitration practice, chair of the Texas Commercial Litigation practice, and co-chair of the Dallas and Houston offices at Paul Hastings. Mr. Genender is a seasoned trial lawyer with an established track record of courtroom success representing plaintiffs, defendants, debtors, and creditors.

Mr. Genender represents clients in a wide range of business disputes, including antitrust, breach of contract, business fraud, breach of fiduciary duty, unfair and deceptive trade practices, unfair competition, securities fraud, non-competes and restrictive covenants, and misappropriation and theft of trade secrets matters. He also counsels clients on antitrust compliance, board governance, fiduciary duty and other business law issues, and pre-lawsuit dispute resolution options.

Mr. Genender represents companies across industry sectors, including financial services, health care, chemicals, real estate, retail, business services, energy, and telecommunications, as well as non-profits, family trusts, and professional associations. He has extensive experience in all aspects of restructuring litigation.

Mr. Genender has been recognized for many years for his work by leading national and regional business publications. Since 2021, Chambers USA has ranked him as one of the top commercial litigators in Texas, where clients note that he has “immense business acumen” and “superior intellectual skills matched with an equally impressive command of the law and an uncompromising commitment to winning,” is “a fantastic and hard-working litigator who goes to battle for his clients,” is an “outstanding lawyer, who is extremely smart, diligent, and prepared,” and is a “very persuasive litigator” who is “comfortable in court and a strategic thinker.” In 2021, he was recognized as an MVP for Trials by Law360. He is also recognized by The Legal 500 US (2017, 2020-2023), The Best Lawyers in America (2007-2024), D Magazine (2004-2023), and Texas Super Lawyers (2004-2024). 

Mr. Genender is actively engaged as a leader in a number of professional, civic, and educational organizations. From 2013 until 2022, he served on the Board of Visitors of Duke University School of Law. He was President of the Alumni Board of St. Mark’s School of Texas from 2019 through 2021 and in 2019 was elected to the Board of Trustees of St. Mark’s School of Texas, where he has served on its Executive Committee since 2021. Mr. Genender served for many years on the Board of Trustees of Temple Emanu-El in Dallas and has chaired its legal committee since 2011 (providing pro bono counsel). In 2019, he received the President’s Award from Paul Quinn College, a historically black college in Dallas, Texas, for his “outstanding contribution and support” of the school’s mission. In 2020, Mr. Genender was appointed General Counsel of the statewide board of the Texas General Counsel Forum. His pro bono work includes authoring an amicus brief to the U.S. Supreme Court on behalf of various law professors in Ivy v. Morath, a case seeking to protect the rights of deaf citizens to receive driver’s education in Texas.

Additionally, Mr. Genender has held a number of leadership positions within the Dallas Bar Association, including Vice-Chair and Co-Chair of the Bench Bar Committee and the Judiciary Committee. He is a 2007 graduate of the Leadership Dallas Class of the Greater Dallas Chamber of Commerce and served as one of three class advisors to the 2008 Leadership Dallas Class. Mr. Genender is a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation, the Texas Bar Foundation, and the Dallas Bar Foundation. In 2020, he was appointed to the Board of Directors of the Dallas Women Lawyers Association (DWLA) Foundation and was honored by the DWLA as the recipient of its James E. Coleman, Jr. “Her Champion Award,” in recognition of his support and dedication to advancing women in the legal profession.

Prior to joining Paul Hastings, Mr. Genender was a litigation partner at another international law firm. He was also a coordinator of the firm-wide commercial disputes practice group at another prior firm.

Mr. Genender received his J.D. in 1994 from Duke University School of Law, where he served as Notes Editor of the Duke Journal of Comparative and International Law. He received his A.B., magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, in 1991 from Duke University.

Recognitions

  • Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in America for Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights/Insolvency and Reorganization Law and Commercial Litigation, 2025
  • The Legal 500 US, Recommended for General Commercial Disputes (2024)
  • Chambers USA, Band 2, Texas Litigation: General Commercial
  • Law360, Trials MVP (2021)
  • The Legal 500 US, Recommended for Intellectual Property: Trade Secrets
  • Dallas Women Lawyers Association, James E. Coleman, Jr. “Her Champion Award” (2020)
  • Texas Super Lawyers, “Super Lawyer” for Business Litigation (2004-2024)
  • The Best Lawyers in America, “Best Lawyer” for Commercial Litigation (2007-2024)

Education

  • Duke University School of Law (J.D., 1994)
  • Duke University (A.B., magna cum laude, 1991)

Representations

Trial and Arbitration Experience

  • Obtained complete no liability defense jury verdict for client in protracted real estate dispute including final judgment awarding attorney's fees as prevailing party (June 2024).
  • Lead trial counsel for former CEO of a healthcare company accused of breach of fiduciary duty and where damages sought in excess of $250 million. Obtained complete summary judgment in favor of client from Delaware federal court (June 2024).
  • Obtained multimillion dollar jury verdict for all requested damages and final judgment for national staffing company in real estate dispute, including recovery of attorney's fees (February 2024).
  • Lead trial counsel in successful defense of Apple in consumer class action brought in the Eastern District of Texas.
  • Lead counsel representing Alaska Airlines in connection with resolving a high-profile dispute (pending in the Federal District Court in Dallas) with Southwest Airlines, Delta Airlines, and the City of Dallas involving use of the finite number of gates at Dallas Love Field. 
  • Lead trial counsel for Visa, Inc. in federal court antitrust litigation brought by a competitor alleging unlawful monopolization in the debit market (Southern District of Texas).
  • Securing a dismissal, with prejudice and without leave to amend, in the Southern District of Texas on behalf of senior executives of Anadarko Petroleum in a securities class action arising out of an explosion at an oil well in Colorado. The dismissal was affirmed by the Fifth Circuit in December 2019.
  • Complete jury verdict as lead trial counsel for a former CFO and minority shareholder as plaintiff in Texas state court litigation involving direct claims for breach of contract against a Texas-based oil and gas company and its parent corporation, as well as successfully defending counterclaims for breach of fiduciary duty and fraud. Following a six-week jury trial, secured an eight-figure verdict and final judgment, including attorneys’ fees (recognized by Texas Lawyer in its “Texas Verdicts Hall of Fame” and was the second largest contract verdict in Texas in 2011).
  • Winning a complete defense jury verdict for the nation’s largest bakery in a putative antitrust price-fixing class action involving the Texas bread industry for the years 1977-1993, in which a 52,000-member class sought $1 billion in damages. The jury verdict of no liability, reached after a three-week trial, was later upheld on appeal by a Texas appellate court.
  • Winning a complete defense jury verdict as lead trial counsel for Compex Technologies, L.L.C. after a two-week trial in Dallas federal court where the plaintiff sought in excess of $40 million in damages arising from contract and complicated misappropriation of intellectual property claims.
  • Lead trial counsel for plaintiff real estate industry client securing a seven-figure jury verdict (and defeating all counterclaims) following multi-week trial in 101st Judicial District Court in Dallas of complex real estate development and partnership dispute, which involved claims for breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, and defamation.
  • After multi-week jury trial, obtained multi-million-dollar plaintiff jury verdict and final judgment on behalf of the owner of trademarks of non-alcoholic beer labels in breach of contract and breach of fiduciary duty litigation.
  • As lead counsel, secured a $10+ million arbitration award – after liability was established by a favorable summary judgment ruling – in favor of a healthcare industry client in a dispute arising out of the breach of a technology service contract with a vendor.
  • Successful defense of a national commercial aggregates company by obtaining summary judgment in an arbitration proceeding based on the principle that a seven-figure liquidated damages clause sought to be enforced by plaintiffs was an impermissible penalty. The arbitration panel consisted of three retired Dallas County Judges and their unanimous ruling eliminated all of plaintiffs’ claims ten days prior to the scheduled hearing.
  • Obtaining a favorable arbitration award denying all of claimants’ claims against client VarTec Telecom in a complex dispute involving more than $300 million after two-week expedited proceeding in Washington, D.C.
  • Represented Sheridan Healthcare Corporation and its subsidiaries and affiliates in multiple cases in South Florida against Aetna involving underpayment of healthcare claims.
  • Lead trial counsel for a national retail industry client in a jury trial of a complex lease dispute brought by a landlord in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas (McAllen Division), obtained substantial recovery of attorneys’ fees, and earlier prevailed on all other claims on summary judgment.
  • On behalf of a national retail client, won summary judgment (including recovery of attorneys’ fees) in the Southern District of Texas against a contractual counterparty in connection with a $300 million distribution center. The result was confirmed on appeal to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Notable Bankruptcy Litigation and Trial Experience

  • Lead litigation counsel for the Unsecured Creditors Committee in the WeWork bankruptcy.
  • Lead litigation counsel to Talen Energy Supply, LLC, a power generation and infrastructure company in North America, in its Chapter 11 cases with approximately $5 billion in funded debt obligations.
  • Lead litigation counsel to Speedcast International Limited and its affiliates, a provider of remote communications and IT services, in their Chapter 11 cases, including a contested confirmation trial (December 2020-January 2021) and other successfully litigated contested matters post confirmation (including one affirmed by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals).
  • Lead litigation counsel to Basic Energy Services, Inc., one of the nation’s largest oilfield service companies with more than 2,400 employees, in connection with its Chapter 11 cases and sale of substantially all of its assets.
  • Lead litigation counsel to J. Crew Group, Inc. and its debtor-affiliates, one of the nation’s premier clothing retailers with approximately $2 billion in funded debt and 13,000 employees, in their Chapter 11 cases (August 2020).
  • Lead litigation counsel to CEC Entertainment, Inc. and its affiliated debtors, an American franchisee company with iconic brands Chuck E. Cheese and Peter Piper Pizza with locations across 47 states and 16 foreign countries and territories, in their Chapter 11 cases, including in connection with successful rent abatement litigation (June-December 2020).
  • Lead litigation counsel to UTEX Industries, Inc., the market-leading sealing component design and manufacturing firm, and its debtor-affiliates in their pre-packaged restructuring addressing more than $700 million of funded debt, including successful trial against post-emergence claim by former employee (June 2021).
  • Lead litigation counsel to Fieldwood Energy, a Gulf of Mexico offshore energy exploration and production company, in connection with its second Chapter 11 cases with approximately $1.8 billion in debt, including successful trial against BP Exploration to compel repair of an underwater loop system (February 2021) and contested confirmation trial (June 2021).
  • Lead litigation counsel to Exide Holdings, Inc. and its debtors-affiliates, a global lead-acid batteries manufacturing company, in their Chapter 11 cases, including a first of its kind global settlement with the Department of Justice and more than 10 state regulators to resolve hundreds of millions of dollars of Exide’s historical environmental liabilities at more than 20 dormant locations using five mediators and successful confirmation trial against the state of California (October 2021) (upheld on appeal).
  • Led the litigation team for EP Energy Corporation and its affiliated debtors, a public oil and natural gas exploration and production company, in their Chapter 11 cases involving approximately $4.9 billion in funded debt obligations, including in successful trials over contested backstop/plan support agreements (November 2019) and contested plan confirmation (February/March 2020).
  • Led the litigation and trial teams representing Sears Holdings, a prominent global retailer, in various contested trial matters surrounding its Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings, including obtaining approval of a $5.2 billion sale of all or substantially all of Debtors’ assets (February 2019), defeating Section 507(b) surcharge claims of between $500 million and more than $1 billion asserted by lienholders (July 2019) (upheld on appeal by both the SDNY and 2nd Circuit), and successful confirmation of the Debtors’ contested Chapter 11 plan (October 2019) (SDNY).
  • Led the litigation team representing Claire’s Stores, Inc., one of the world’s leading specialty retailers of fashionable jewelry, accessories, and beauty products, in connection with its Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization in Delaware (March-October 2018).
  • Led the litigation and trial team representing CHC Group Ltd., a helicopter services company that provides transportation to offshore oil and gas platforms, in various contested litigation matters surrounding its Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings, including approval of contested plan support/backstop agreements (November 2016), confirmation and emergence (2017) (Dallas).
  • Led additional litigation and trial teams representing other debtors and creditors in contested matters for Kingfisher Midstream, LLC, DAK Americas LLC, Central Grocers, Paragon Offshore, Azure Midstream Partners, Chisolm Oil & Gas Operating LLC, and CTI Foods, LLC.

Other Recent Representative Experience

  • Representing the National Athletic Trainers’ Association (NATA) in major antitrust litigation against the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) in federal court in Dallas involving allegations that the APTA unfairly restricted athletic trainers from practicing manual therapy and gaining access to continuing education courses on manual therapy. The case was settled, and the parties entered a Joint Statement on Cooperation.
  • On behalf of a joint venture consisting of The Retail Connection and Colonial Properties Trust, obtained a favorable settlement of litigation brought in Dallas County which encumbered our clients’ commercial real estate valued at over $70 million, thereby enabling our clients to secure a sales contract and, ultimately, to close on the sale of the property.
  • Representing News Corp Star US, LLC (News Corp Star) and Star India, obtained a dismissal with prejudice for failure to state a claim in 2013 in a major dispute in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas regarding an advertising agreement.

Matters may have been completed before joining Paul Hastings.

Practice Areas

Litigation

Complex Litigation and Arbitration

Securities Litigation

Intellectual Property

International Arbitration

Compliance & Regulatory Counseling


Languages

English


Admissions

New York Bar

Texas Bar


Education

Duke University School of Law, J.D. 1994

Duke University, A.B. 1991