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Judy Kostura’s passion is helping others. For over forty years, she has devoted her professional life to representing individuals, consulting with colleagues, teaching professional legal seminars, and serving as court-appointed guardian ad litem for injured children.
The first of her family to graduate college, Judy received a bachelor’s degree from the University of Texas at Austin, working her way through college and law school as an assistant Sergeant at Arms for the House of Representatives. She obtained her law degree from the University of Texas Law School in 1980. After the first five years on her own in a general civil practice, representing family law clients, writing wills and probating them, and handling real estate closings, Judy found her calling in personal injury law. She achieved a $1.1 million dollar jury verdict in 1995 on behalf of a motorcyclist hit by a man with only $20,000 in liability insurance coverage and then collected most of the judgment from the defendant’s liability carrier. A much smaller trial court verdict, forcing a health insurer to treat her injured client fairly, resulted in the Austin Court of Appeals affirming her client’s trial court verdict in 1995. These dual victories resulted from a practice of faithfully pursuing justice from insurers that refuse to honor their obligations.
Pursuing the health insurer at trial and on appeal triggered the start of Judy’s expertise in health insurance subrogation law. For nearly thirty years, Judy has helped her clients keep more of their personal injury recovery by requiring their health insurers to put their insureds first. When the Texas Supreme Court altered the law to tip the scales in favor of health insurers in a 2007 court opinion, Judy lobbied the Texas Legislature to reform Texas health insurance subrogation law. Those efforts contributed to improvements for local governmental employees in 2007 and more sweeping reform in 2013. Judy received an award from the Texas Trial Lawyers Association for Legislative Contributions to insurance reform in 2013: the award included three Texas flags, one flown on the date the House of Representatives passed the 2013 law, one flown when the Senate passed it, and the flag flown the day the governor signed the bill into law. The consumer protection organization, Texas Watch, honored Judy with their Champion of Justice award in 2019, and the Texas Trial Lawyers Association in presented her with their Lifetime Achievement Award in 2023.
Colleagues from around the state have hired her to assist their injured clients; her generosity in sharing with colleagues led to recognition by the Texas Trial Lawyers Association in 2006 with the John Howie Spirit of Mentorship Award and the inaugural Capital Area Trial Lawyers’ Scott Ozmun Trial Lawyer of the Year award in 2011.
State District Courts in counties across the state have appointed her as a guardian ad litem to help injured children preserve their settlement funds. Her work has resulted in savings of millions of dollars for injured children.
Texas attorneys must obtain continuing legal education every year to remain current on the ever-changing aspects of the law. Judy is a frequent lecturer on various personal injury topics, including how to present information to maximize the recovery of compensation for clients; ethics topics; standards for proving evidence on appeal; changes in the law regarding the discovery and admission of medical evidence; and health insurance subrogation and liens in personal injury cases. She has taught at seminars for the American Assn of Justice, Texas Trial Lawyers Association, University of Texas School of Law, State Bar of Texas, University of Houston Law School, South Texas College of Law, Texas Advanced Paralegal Seminar, Capital Area Trial Lawyers Association, Austin Bar Association’s Ultimate Trial Notebook; South Plains Trial Lawyer Assn., Texas Academy of Family Law Specialists; Houston Trial Lawyers Association, and others. Her decades of participation in seminars prompted the State Bar of Texas to award her with the Gene Cavin Award for Continuing Education during the Advanced Personal Injury Seminar in 2022, the equivalent of a lifetime achievement award in continuing legal education.
Judy is a member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum and has been recognized as a Texas Monthly Super Lawyer continuously since 2015, with additional selection as a Texas Monthly Top 50 Texas Women and Texas Monthly Top 50 Lawyer in Central/West Texas in 2016 and a Texas Monthly Top Women Attorneys in Texas 2021. She is thrilled to join forces with Sorrels Law to open their Central Texas office.
Recognized as a Rising Star in 2019, 2020 and 2021 by Texas Super Lawyers, Phil is also a Fellow in the Texas Bar Foundation. Prior to becoming a lawyer, taught in the Houston Independent School District at an inner-city middle school. He also served as a bandmaster and musician on Norwegian, Celebrity, Holland America and Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines. He is admitted to the Fifth Circuit, Southern District of Texas and Western District of Texas in the federal court system.
Phil lives in Houston with his wife and their two young boys. When not working, Phil can be found coaching or assisting with his kids’ sports, enjoying Houston’s vibrant arts scene with his wife, or cheering on the Astros.
J.D., University of Virginia School of Law
M.A., The Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies
B.A., Washington & Lee University, Politics
Randy is the past President of the Texas Association of Civil Trial and Appellate Specialists, and past Chair of the Fellows of the Texas Bar Foundation. He has served as the President of the Houston Bar Association, President of the Houston Trial Lawyers Association, President of the Houston Trial Lawyers Foundation, Vice President of the Texas Trial Lawyers Association, Trustee of the Texas Bar Foundation, Director of the State Bar of Texas (two terms), Commissioner of the Equal Access to Justice Commission, Trustee of the Texas Supreme Court Historical Society, and is currently on the Board of Directors at South Texas College of Law Houston.
Randy started his legal career at Fulbright & Jaworski, where he represented doctors, hospitals, insurance companies, and businesses in the state of Texas who were accused of civil wrongdoing. He graduated Magna Cum Laude from South Texas College of Law Houston in 1987, where he was on the Law Review and was a member of the nationally recognized Board of Advocates. South Texas College of Law Houston has honored Randy with its highest honor— the Dean’s Medal, as well as its Public Service Award (the inaugural award). South Texas College of Law Houston has renamed its legal clinics The Randall O. Sorrels Legal Clinics, which represents 15,000 square feet of new, state-of-the-art facilities to bring together clients with unmet legal needs and students who are eager to work with those clients under the direct supervision of their professors. In 2018, South Texas College of Law Houston honored Randy with the Distinguished Alumni Award.
Prior to law school, Randy graduated Magna Cum Laude from Houston Baptist University— where he was recognized as an NCAA Academic All-American in 1984. He attended HBU on a soccer scholarship, and the soccer field at the university now carries his name— Randall O. Sorrels Field. While at school, he was recognized as the Outstanding Student in both Political Science and Speech Communications. In the greatest honor, the university gives to alumni, Randy was named as HBU’s Outstanding Alumnus of the Year for 2009, and he continues to be involved in alumni events and meetings.
Randy is married to his law partner, Alex L. Farias-Sorrels, and considers her one of the smartest lawyers he knows. He is also a father of five children and one granddaughter. His oldest daughter is a teacher and helps with the Sorrels Law communications efforts. His second daughter is a speech language pathologist in New York. His twin son and daughter are law students at the University of Texas. And his youngest son is in a Montessori program.
He has published numerous articles, including:
He lives in Bellaire, Texas with his wife Carol, and has two adult children. He is an avid cyclist and consumer of political news. He and Carol are active members at Christ the King Presbyterian Church.
You can trust that the Sorrels Law team of attorneys and staff has the experience and the skills to meticulously and strategically handle your case. We know what we are doing and we will guide you every step of the way. Ask us any question and call us at any time.
©2024, Sorrels Law. All Rights Reserved.
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