Fred S. Wilson

Legal Experience

Mr. Wilson began his legal career as a Briefing Attorney for the Texas Fourth Court of Appeals choosing to prosecute serious criminal matters for several years as an Assistant District Attorney in Harris County, Texas (Houston). Thereafter, Mr. Wilson spent 20 years handling complex litigation, real estate transactions, and contract issues for the Union Pacific Railroad Company. In this role, Mr. Wilson routinely tried cases to verdict as a first chair litigator while also serving as consulting counsel to his operating partners in Texas and in multiple other states.

A primary area of Mr. Wilson’s practice is defending claims of personal injury brought by railroad employees under the Federal Employers Liability Act (FELA). FELA is a unique provision of federal law and under its terms a railroad can never delegate its duty to provide its employees a reasonably safe workplace. As such, contractors and other vendors working with a railroad may find themselves placed in the position of a railroad defendant based upon the facts of the case or pursuant to contractual agreements. A non-railroad defendant in such a position needs experienced FELA counsel, there are few practicing attorneys in Texas with more courtroom experience dealing with the intricacies of FELA than Fred Wilson.

Additionally, Mr. Wilson has extensive experience in the drafting and enforcement of contracts. Previously, Mr. Wilson oversaw the drafting, updating, and maintenance of contractual agreements across 23 states in his daily representation of a Class I railroad.

Mr. Wilson has tried multiple serious cases to verdict and is responsible for bringing hundreds of cases to final judgment. He has argued before the Texas Supreme Court and in the Courts of Appeal. He is comfortable representing his clients across the State of Texas, including all federal courts. He brings almost 30 years of courtroom experience to each case he handles, with extensive experience in preparing and arguing pre-trial motions, motions for summary judgment, motions for directed verdict, jury charges, and complex discovery disputes.

Prior Professional Experience

Union Pacific Railroad Company, 2000 – 2019

Taylor & Warren, LLP, 1999-2000

Harris County District Attorney’s Office, 1994-1999

Fourth Court of Appeals, 1993-1994

Speeches and Publications

Wrongful Adoption: A Guide to Impending Tort Litigation in Texas, 24 St. Mary’s L.J. 273

Barnes v. Glen Theatre, 23 St. Mary’s L.J. 563

CLE Presentations:

2015 – TO THE CLOUD!: Ethical Concerns in a Digital World

2013 – ETHICS, CRADLE TO GRAVE: Investigation-Discovery-Trial

2013 – THE DEVIL IS IN THE DETAILS: The Rise of Standard Crossing Specifications

2012 – HYDRAULIC FRACTURING: “Fracking”, Friend or Foe?

2010 – A BRAVE NEW WORLD: The Railroad Whistleblower Statute

2010 – TRUCKIN’: Using Regulatory Guidelines In Your FELA Defense

2009 – WHEN THINGS GO WRONG: An Ethical Perspective

2008 – AND YOU THOUGHT IT WAS A CROSSING CASE: When a Crew Goes to the Dark Side

2008 – ETHICS IN THE COURTROOM: How to Behave and Why

2007 – WHOSE BED HAVE YOUR BOOTS BEEN UNDER?: Model Rule 4.2 Revisited

2006 – ETHICS AND E-DISCOVERY: A Crash Course

2005 – CAN I GET A WITNESS?: Communication with the Railroad Employee