Michael Hawash is a veteran trial lawyer with extensive experience in litigation, mediation, arbitration, and early dispute resolution. His distinguished legal career, which spans more than three decades, involves representing both plaintiffs and defendants across various business sectors and industries. His practice arease include construction, insurance claims and coverage, bad faith, professional malpractice, breach of contract, deceptive trade practices, and other high-stakes business disputes. Fully credentialed to practice in all Texas federal and state courts, Michael also has the privilege of pro hac vice admission in numerous other states. Michael excels in alternative dispute resolution. He is adept at steering parties towards solutions that are both cost-effective and time-efficient, utilizing traditional and dynamic mediation techniques as well as the early dispute resolution protocols of the EDR Institute. A significant aspect of Michael’s practice is arbitration, handling cases under the rules of the American Arbitration Association (AAA), Judicial Arbitration & Mediation Services (JAMS), and the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC). He is proud to be a panel arbitrator for the American Arbitration Association, focusing on commercial and construction disputes. In addition to his law practice, Michael is a passionate educator, serving as an adjunct professor at the University of Houston Law Center. He imparts his knowledge through courses in alternative dispute resolution advocacy and frequently lectures on various legal subjects at law schools and bar associations around the nation. Outside the realm of law, Michael pursues his passion for military history, spending his free time visiting and studying historical battlefields worldwide.

Education

The University of Houston, Doctor of Jurisprudence, 1994
The University of Texas at Austin, B.A. in Government, 1991
The University of Texas at Austin, B.A. in History, 1991

Honors & Awards

Texas Super Lawyers – since 2011 (Thomson Reuters)
Texas Super Lawyers Top 100 Attorneys in Houston – 2014-2015 (Thomson Reuters)
Ranked “Superb” by Avvo

Admitted

State Bar of Texas
United States District Court for the Southern, Northern, Eastern and Western Districts of Texas
United States Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals

Special Licenses/Certifications/Qualifications

Distinguished Mediator - Texas Mediator Credentialing Association
Certified Mediator – AA White Dispute Resolution Center
Trained Neutral – EDR Institute
Commercial & Construction Panel Arbitrator - American Arbitration Association
Adjunct Professor – University of Houston Law Center

Publications

Michael Hawash, The Future of Alternative Dispute Resolution (Houston Bar Association ADR Conference, May 2022)
Michael Hawash & Paul Clote, An Introduction to Early Dispute Resolution (UT CLE, Labor & Employment Law Conference, May 2022)
Michael Hawash, Peter Silverman & Anne Jordan, Early Dispute Resolution: Protocols for Smarter Processes & Swifter Outcomes (American Bar Association, Advanced Mediation & Advocacy Skills Institute, November 2021)
Michael Hawash, Zealous Advocacy & Zealous Problem Solving: A Lawyer’s Ethical Duties in Mediation (The Houston Lawyer, September 2021)
Michael Hawash & Judge Jim Kovach, No Jury, No Trial, No Problem: A New Form of Dynamic Mediation Is Helping to Unclog Harris County’s Civil Dockets, The Houston Lawyer (January 2021)
Michael Hawash, Early Dispute Resolution Comes of Age During the Pandemic, Just Resolutions (American Bar Association 2020)
Michael Hawash & Peter Silverman, An Introduction to Early Dispute Resolution (Association of Attorney Mediators Annual Conference, 2020)
Michael Hawash, Normandy, The Magnificent Eleven and Mediation (https://houstonmediation.com/ 2019)
Michael Hawash, Foreword, Turning Point: Recollections of Russian Participants and Witnesses of the Stalingrad Battle (Leaping Horseman Books, 2008)
Michael Hawash, What Every Game Developer needs to Know About Intellectual Property Rights, Computer Gaming World (January 1999)
Michael Hawash, How to Start and Grow Your Own Computer Game Development Company, (1999)
Michael Hawash, The Ultimate Online Lawsuit, Computer Gaming World (November 1998)
Co-Author with Peter A. McLauchlan, Recent Developments in Admiralty Jurisdiction, 18 Tul. Mar. L. J. 262 (1994)

Lectures

Instructor, How to Analyze Risk, Value Cases & Settle Early, American Arbitration Association (November 2023)
Visting Lecturer, Alternative Dispute Resolution, South Texas College of Law (November 2023)
Speaker, EDR: A Proven Process to Settle Cases Early, Equitably and Economically, Houston Bar Association (November 2023)
Panelist, Arbitration and Insurance, American Arbitration Association (September 2023)
Speaker, Early Dispute Resolution for Mediators, Frank Evans Center for Conflict Resolution (August 2023)
Instructor, Applying Tried & Proven Early Dispute Resolution Strategies, American Arbitration Assoc. (May 2023)
Panelist, Mediation Analytical Settlement Tools, American Arbitration Association (March 2023)
Panelist, Impasse Management, Advanced Mediation & Advocacy Skills Institute, American Bar Association (Nov. 2022)
Instructor, Resetting the Bar: Using Early Dispute Resolution to Resolve Disputes Economically & Fairly, American Arbitration Association (November 2022)
Instructor, Risk Analysis & Decision Trees, New York State Unified Court System (June 2022)
Speaker, The Future of Alternative Dispute Resolution, Houston Bar Association ADR Conference (May 2022)
Visiting Lecturer, Mediation Advocacy, University of Houston Law Center (2022)
Instructor, Impasse Management: Analytical Tools & Techniques, Southern California Mediation Association (November 2021)
Panel Member, Early Dispute Resolution, Advanced Mediation & Advocacy Skills Institute, American Bar Association (November 2021)
Instructor, Early Dispute Resolution Neutral Certification & Training, EDR Institute (June 2021)
Panel Member, The Future of Alternative Dispute Resolution, American Arbitration Association (March 2021)
Speaker, An Introduction to Early Dispute Resolution, Association of Attorney Mediators Annual Conference (September 2020)

Industry Groups

American Bar Association, Committees on Alternative Dispute Resolution and Early Dispute Resolution
Association of Attorney-Mediators
EDR Institute, Board of Directors
Federal Bar Association
Houston Bar Association
Texas Association of Mediators
Texas Mediator Credentialing Association

Hawash Cicack & Gaston LLP Verified Firm

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