Employment Attorney and Business Litigator
Elliot Kudisch advocates for and advises our clients in employment, commercial litigation, and construction. Elliot represents businesses in matters concerning contract and complex commercial disputes, noncompete and trade secret litigation, civil appellate litigation, government agency investigations, class actions, and employment discrimination claims.
Prior to joining the firm, Elliot was a litigation associate practicing in the appellate, civil rights, employment, and commercial disputes sectors. He also served a one-year term as a law clerk for Chief Judge Randy Crane of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas and was a judicial intern for The Honorable Michael Engelhart in the 151st Judicial District Court in Harris County, Texas.
Elliot is fluent in Spanish.
Areas of Practice
- Employment Litigation
- Commercial Litigation
- Appellate Litigation
Bar and Court Admissions
- Texas
- New York
- District of Columbia
- U.S. District Court, Northern, Southern, Eastern and Western Districts of Texas
- U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit
Representative Experience
- Defeated an injunction bid in New York Supreme Court to secure a $708 million bond sought by the New York City Commissioner of Social Services against small-business charter bus companies executing a public contract with the State of Texas. The Supreme Court then granted our motion to dismiss the complaint, finding that the statute underlying the Commissioner’s lawsuit was unconstitutional. The Commissioner later withdrew its appeal.
- Obtained pretrial summary judgment on a 9-year-old unpaid-rent claim against a commercial tenant, followed by a unanimous trial verdict against the tenant for property damage. The total judgment, including attorney’s fees, exceeded $750,000.
- Secured a favorable settlement on behalf of a residential solar panel broker in a highly contentious Telephone Consumer Protection Act class action case with client exposure in the hundreds of millions.
- Obtained a Fourteenth Court of Appeals opinion affirming a summary judgment win on behalf of our multi-family landlord-client in a housing discrimination suit.
- Obtained a favorable Fourteenth Court of Appeals opinion on an issue of first impression involving a third-party beneficiary of a lien release.
- Defeated a temporary restraining order attempt in Williamson County, Texas against a hospice client for alleged noncompetition and trade secrets claims. Then obtained a rare denial of a pre-suit discovery petition seeking a deposition and documents from a hospice employee in Brazos County.
- Thwarted a preliminary injunction attempt by a major nationwide HVAC competitor to protect trade secrets it alleged were taken by a former employee who joined our client.
- Primary author of at least ten sets of appellate briefs and dispositive motions in 2024, including an amicus brief filed in the Supreme Court of Texas.
- Obtained a favorable settlement in a complicated set of EEOC claims against a European general contractor accused of sexual harassment, kickback, employing undocumented workers, and harboring undocumented individuals.
- Second chaired an appellate oral argument before the First Court of Appeals.
- Steered numerous transactions on behalf of a medical group expanding its practice to addiction and recovery facilities across Texas, Florida, and Mississippi.
- Represented employers in commercial, governmental, and employment disputes before state and federal courts, as well as administrative agencies.
- Counseled private businesses and units of local government regarding compliance with applicable law and workplace issues, policies, and practices.
Education
- Georgetown University Law Center, Washington, D.C.
- J.D. – 2017
- The Georgetown Law Technology Review, Vol 1, Staff Editor
- The Georgetown Law Weekly, Executive Editor
- University of Houston, Houston, Texas
- B.A. – 2014
Professional Associations and Memberships
State Bar of Texas
Houston Bar Association
- Appellate Section
- Labor & Employment Law Section
- Individual Rights & Responsibilities Section
- Continuing Legal Education Committee
- Equity & Inclusion Committee
Houston Young Lawyers Association
Bar Association for the Fifth Federal Court
Federal Bar Association – Southern District of Texas Chapter
Mexican American Bar Association of Houston
Hispanic Bar Association of Houston
American Subcontractors Association – Houston, Golf Committee
Georgetown Law Alumni Admissions Interview Program (AAIP)
Georgetown Law Clerkship Mock Interview Program (CMIP)
Professional Recognition
“Texas Rising Star,” as presented by Super Lawyers, a Thomson Reuters Business, in Texas Monthly, Employment Litigation: Defense, 2024
Houston’s Top Lawyers – Labor & Employment, Houstonia Magazine, since 2022
Speeches & Publications
“Updates in Employment Law,” Golf Course Builders Association of America, Presentation Summer Conference 2024
“Employment Law Update,” Earth Shaping Newsletter, Golf Course Builders Association of America, June 2023
“Updates in Employment Law,” Earth Shaping Newsletter, Golf Course Builders Association, March 2023
“Texas Regulating Background Checks on Construction in Public Schools,” AM Monthly Law Alert, September 2023
“Robotic Systems Compel OSHA to Consider Revising Lockout/Tagout Standard,” AM Monthly Law Alert, April 2023
“Updated FCRA Consumer Rights Required Notice is Now Available,” AM Monthly Law Alert, April 2023
“Your February OSHA Update,” AM Monthly Law Alert, February 2023
“The FTC Proposes Ban on Noncompete Agreements,” GCBAA Earth Shaping News, Winter Edition 2023
“What Texas Employers Need to Know About Austin’s CROWN Act,” AM Monthly Law Alert, July 2022
