Christopher “Chris” Derden joined Adams and Reese in 1995. He focuses his practice in environmental, insurance, commercial and oil and gas law, particularly the defense of mass tort, toxic tort and product liability litigation, as well as the defense and prosecution of commercial and class action litigation involving serious injuries and death matters.
Chris manages key client relationships. As national coordinating counsel to various oil and gas and petrochemical companies, he directs clients’ nation-wide dockets of mass-tort litigation matters.
His significant contributions include:
Managing mass tort dockets across multiple jurisdictions.
Coordinating administrative resolutions/settlements for large claimant inventories.
Defense of environmental tort actions, including occupational exposures, from initial investigation, administrative hearings and representation before OSHA through civil trial and appeal.
Chris has been instrumental in growing the Houston office and served for eight years as the Houston Partner in Charge. He coordinates the summer associate program in Houston and is a member of the firm’s Attorney Recruiting Committee. He presents frequently on various aspects of mass-tort litigation and risk management procedures. He has also devoted significant time and effort to charitable organizations including Habitat for Humanity and the firm’s HUGS program.
