David M. Gunn
Partner
,Direct: 713.951.6290
Fax: 713.951.3720
Direct: 713.951.6290
Fax: 713.951.3720

David Gunn specializes in appeals. For the past three decades, he has done nothing but handle appeals, in both state and federal court, and on both sides of the docket.
Although appeals once revolved around attorney oratory, today’s appellate courts do most of their work on the basis of written briefs, and a typical appellate judge has to read hundreds of those briefs every year. So David writes briefs that the reader will find both interesting and easy to follow.
Since arguing his first appeal in 1990, he has worked on briefs in hundreds of appeals and orally argued scores of them (arguing more than 25 times in the Texas Supreme Court). He has argued appeals as far east as Washington, D.C. and as far west as Denver, but most of his work takes place in the Fifth Circuit or in the Texas appellate courts. The subject matter of his work runs the spectrum of civil litigation – from oil and gas law to personal injury law to the law governing lawyers.
-
Representative experience
- Energy Transfer Partners, LP v. Enterprise Products Partners, 593 S.W.2d 732 (Tex. 2020)
- Golden Spread Elec. Coop. v. Emerson Process Mgmt., 954 F.3d 804 (5th Cir. 2020)
- Energy Intelligence Group, Inc. v. Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors, LP, 948 F.3d 261 (5th Cir. 2020)
- Endeavor Energy Resources, LP v. Cuevas, 593 S.W.3d 307 (Tex. 2019)
- ExxonMobil Corp. v. Ins. Co. of State of Pennsylvania, 568 S.W.3d 650 (Tex. 2019)
- United Scaffolding, Inc. v. Levine, 537 S.W.3d 463 (Tex. 2017)
- Ineos USA, LLC v. Elmgren, 505 S.W.3d 555 (Tex. 2016)
- Plains Exploration & Production Co. v. Torch Energy Advisors, 473 S.W.3d 296 (Tex. 2015)
-
Honors & Awards
- Lawdragon 500 Leading Litigators in America, Appellate, 2022 & 2024
- Recognized in Best Lawyers in America for Appellate Practice, Bet-the-Company Litigation and Commercial Litigation, 2005 – 2024
- Recognized by Benchmark Litigation as a Litigation Star – United States, Appellate, 2012 – 2021 and a Local Litigation Star – Texas, 2014 – 2023, National Practice Area Star, 2023
- Recognized in Chambers USA with a Band 1 ranking, the highest ranking attainable, in Litigation: Appellate (Texas), 2011 – 2023
- Selected by Thomson Reuters as a “Top 100 Super Lawyer – Texas,” “Top 100 Super Lawyer – Houston,” 2019-2020, 2022
- Named in Thomson Reuters Texas Super Lawyers – Appellate, 2003 – 2020, 2022 – 2023
- Benchmark Appellate – 5th Circuit Litigation Star, 2012
- Appellate Practice Lawyer of the Year – Houston, Texas’ Best Lawyers 2011
- “Lawyer of the Year – Appellate Practice”, Best Lawyers, 2011
-
Publications & Presentations
- Storming the Casteel: Reflections on 20 Years of Presumed Harm, 31st UT Annual Conference on State and Federal Appeals, 2021 (Panelist)
- An Examination of Dictum in Texas Opinions, 29th UT Annual Conference on State and Federal Appeals, June 2019, Austin, Texas
- Casteel: To Infinity and Beyond, 28th UT Annual Conference on State and Federal Appeals, June 2018, Austin, Texas
- Mandamus, State Bar of Texas 30th Annual Advanced Evidence & Discovery Course (2017)
- Hearsay, State Bar of Texas 27th Annual Advanced Evidence & Discovery Course (2014) (co-authored with Vincent Marable III)
- Preserving Error & Crafting the Jury Charge, State Bar of Texas 29th Annual Advanced Personal Injury Course (2013)
- “Unpublished Opinions Shall Not Be Cited as Authority”: The Emerging Contours of Texas Rule of Appellate Procedure 90(i), 24 St. Mary’s L.J. 115 (1992)
- Unsupported Points of Error on Appeal, 32 S. Tex. L. Rev. 105 (1990)
- Trademark Survey Evidence, 20 Tex. Tech. L. Rev. 1 (1989) (co-author with Lawrence E. Evans, Jr.)
-
Community Involvement
- Seven years as an elected city council member for Hilshire Village, Texas (after several years as an appointed member of the city’s Zoning Board of Adjustment)





September 1, 2022
September 18, 2020
January 31, 2020
May 6, 2019
February 20, 2019
August 21, 2018
March 20, 2018
June 30, 2017
June 27, 2017
January 25, 2016
October 18, 2015
July 8, 2015
May 28, 2015
March 26, 2015
February 5, 2015
October 21, 2014
October 21, 2014
October 19, 2014
April 1, 2013
October 23, 2012
February 9, 2012
September 9, 2023
September 9, 2023
August 8, 2023
June 6, 2023
January 1, 2023
October 10, 2022
October 10, 2022
September 9, 2022
August 8, 2022
August 8, 2022
June 6, 2022
June 6, 2022
October 10, 2021
September 9, 2021
August 8, 2021
December 12, 2020
October 10, 2020
October 10, 2020
September 9, 2020
August 8, 2020
April 4, 2020
September 9, 2019
August 8, 2019
September 9, 2018
August 8, 2018
February 2, 2018
David M. Gunn
Partner,
Houston
Direct: 713.951.6290
Fax: 713.951.3720
Direct: 713.951.6290
Fax: 713.951.3720

David Gunn specializes in appeals. For the past three decades, he has done nothing but handle appeals, in both state and federal court, and on both sides of the docket.
Although appeals once revolved around attorney oratory, today’s appellate courts do most of their work on the basis of written briefs, and a typical appellate judge has to read hundreds of those briefs every year. So David writes briefs that the reader will find both interesting and easy to follow.
Since arguing his first appeal in 1990, he has worked on briefs in hundreds of appeals and orally argued scores of them (arguing more than 25 times in the Texas Supreme Court). He has argued appeals as far east as Washington, D.C. and as far west as Denver, but most of his work takes place in the Fifth Circuit or in the Texas appellate courts. The subject matter of his work runs the spectrum of civil litigation – from oil and gas law to personal injury law to the law governing lawyers.
-
Representative experience
- Energy Transfer Partners, LP v. Enterprise Products Partners, 593 S.W.2d 732 (Tex. 2020)
- Golden Spread Elec. Coop. v. Emerson Process Mgmt., 954 F.3d 804 (5th Cir. 2020)
- Energy Intelligence Group, Inc. v. Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors, LP, 948 F.3d 261 (5th Cir. 2020)
- Endeavor Energy Resources, LP v. Cuevas, 593 S.W.3d 307 (Tex. 2019)
- ExxonMobil Corp. v. Ins. Co. of State of Pennsylvania, 568 S.W.3d 650 (Tex. 2019)
- United Scaffolding, Inc. v. Levine, 537 S.W.3d 463 (Tex. 2017)
- Ineos USA, LLC v. Elmgren, 505 S.W.3d 555 (Tex. 2016)
- Plains Exploration & Production Co. v. Torch Energy Advisors, 473 S.W.3d 296 (Tex. 2015)
-
Honors & Awards
- Lawdragon 500 Leading Litigators in America, Appellate, 2022 & 2024
- Recognized in Best Lawyers in America for Appellate Practice, Bet-the-Company Litigation and Commercial Litigation, 2005 – 2024
- Recognized by Benchmark Litigation as a Litigation Star – United States, Appellate, 2012 – 2021 and a Local Litigation Star – Texas, 2014 – 2023, National Practice Area Star, 2023
- Recognized in Chambers USA with a Band 1 ranking, the highest ranking attainable, in Litigation: Appellate (Texas), 2011 – 2023
- Selected by Thomson Reuters as a “Top 100 Super Lawyer – Texas,” “Top 100 Super Lawyer – Houston,” 2019-2020, 2022
- Named in Thomson Reuters Texas Super Lawyers – Appellate, 2003 – 2020, 2022 – 2023
- Benchmark Appellate – 5th Circuit Litigation Star, 2012
- Appellate Practice Lawyer of the Year – Houston, Texas’ Best Lawyers 2011
- “Lawyer of the Year – Appellate Practice”, Best Lawyers, 2011
-
Publications & Presentations
- Storming the Casteel: Reflections on 20 Years of Presumed Harm, 31st UT Annual Conference on State and Federal Appeals, 2021 (Panelist)
- An Examination of Dictum in Texas Opinions, 29th UT Annual Conference on State and Federal Appeals, June 2019, Austin, Texas
- Casteel: To Infinity and Beyond, 28th UT Annual Conference on State and Federal Appeals, June 2018, Austin, Texas
- Mandamus, State Bar of Texas 30th Annual Advanced Evidence & Discovery Course (2017)
- Hearsay, State Bar of Texas 27th Annual Advanced Evidence & Discovery Course (2014) (co-authored with Vincent Marable III)
- Preserving Error & Crafting the Jury Charge, State Bar of Texas 29th Annual Advanced Personal Injury Course (2013)
- “Unpublished Opinions Shall Not Be Cited as Authority”: The Emerging Contours of Texas Rule of Appellate Procedure 90(i), 24 St. Mary’s L.J. 115 (1992)
- Unsupported Points of Error on Appeal, 32 S. Tex. L. Rev. 105 (1990)
- Trademark Survey Evidence, 20 Tex. Tech. L. Rev. 1 (1989) (co-author with Lawrence E. Evans, Jr.)
-
Community Involvement
- Seven years as an elected city council member for Hilshire Village, Texas (after several years as an appointed member of the city’s Zoning Board of Adjustment)
September 1, 2022
September 18, 2020
January 31, 2020
May 6, 2019
February 20, 2019
August 21, 2018
March 20, 2018
June 30, 2017
June 27, 2017
January 25, 2016
October 18, 2015
July 8, 2015
May 28, 2015
March 26, 2015
February 5, 2015
October 21, 2014
October 21, 2014
October 19, 2014
April 1, 2013
October 23, 2012
February 9, 2012
September 9, 2023
September 9, 2023
August 8, 2023
June 6, 2023
January 1, 2023
October 10, 2022
October 10, 2022
September 9, 2022
August 8, 2022
August 8, 2022
June 6, 2022
June 6, 2022
October 10, 2021
September 9, 2021
August 8, 2021
December 12, 2020
October 10, 2020
October 10, 2020
September 9, 2020
August 8, 2020
April 4, 2020
September 9, 2019
August 8, 2019
September 9, 2018
August 8, 2018
February 2, 2018




