Mr. Watson’s practice focuses primarily on chapter 11 business bankruptcy reorganizations, chapter 7 business bankruptcy proceedings, creditors’ rights, and commercial litigation.

Mr. Watson has participated in chapter 11 and chapter 7 proceedings in bankruptcy courts throughout Texas, and also in the Northern District of Ohio, Western District of Arkansas, District of Delaware and the Southern District of New York.  Mr. Watson has assisted chapter 7 and chapter 11 business debtor clients and creditors in the Northern, Southern, Eastern, and Western Districts of Texas.  He has confirmed chapter 11 plans for e-commerce, healthcare, energy, and construction companies in chapter 11 bankruptcy cases in the Northern, Southern and Western Districts of Texas.  He has also handled distressed transactions for debtor entities outside of bankruptcy.

He has also successfully assisted entrepreneurs and companies with filing business chapter 7 cases in bankruptcy courts in the Northern and Eastern Districts of Texas.  Mr. Watson has also represented trustees and liquidating trustees in bankruptcy proceedings.  Aside from representing distressed companies and trustees, Mr. Watson has represented lending institutions, a regulator, trade creditors, a creditors’ committee, and ad hoc committees in chapter 11 bankruptcy cases.  Most recently, Mr. Watson served as counsel for the creditors’ committee in the Fore Machine, LLC, et. al chapter 11 bankruptcy case. He has also handled adversary proceedings in bankruptcy cases as well as commercial litigation in state and federal courts.

Mr. Watson began his legal career as a law clerk to Chief Bankruptcy Judge, Kathy A. Surratt-States of the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Missouri in St. Louis, Missouri.  After completing his four-year clerkship, Mr. Watson joined the Dallas office of a large law firm for nearly five years where he concentrated his practice on restructuring troubled companies, creditors’ rights and bankruptcy related litigation.  Mr. Watson later became the founding shareholder of his own law firm where he continued to focus his practice primarily on restructuring troubled businesses and creditors’ rights.  Prior to joining Cantey Hanger LLP, Mr. Watson was a partner at another law firm in Fort Worth.

Mr. Watson served as a council member of the State Bar of Texas, Bankruptcy Section for eight years prior to stepping down in 2021.  Mr. Watson is also a member of the Dallas Bar Association, J. L. Turner Legal Association, Tarrant County Bar Association, American Bankruptcy Institute and the Dallas Business Club.  Besides his professional affiliations, Mr. Watson serves as a board member of the Metropolitan YMCA of Fort Worth.  He is also an active member of Scouts B.S.A. (formerly Boy Scouts of America) where he serves as an adult leader.  Mr. Watson is a member of the Arlington/Grand Prairie Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. and the Arlington Seventh-Day Adventist Church.

Board Certified in Labor and Employment Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, rated “AV Preeminent” by Martindale-Hubbell, and Chair of the Firm’s Labor and Employment Practice, Ms. Hallmon is a 1996 graduate of Baylor University and received her Juris Doctor degree from Baylor University School of Law in 1999.

A career-long employment law litigator, Ms. Hallmon strives to offer her clients practical solutions to the variety of challenges that arise in the modern workplace, specifically focusing her practice on the prosecution and defense of a variety of state and federal employment law matters, including harassment and discrimination, retaliation, wage and hour disputes and restrictive covenants prohibiting competition. In addition to providing representation in litigation and a wide range of administrative proceedings and investigations, Ms. Hallmon also counsels clients on litigation avoidance through effective employment practices and compliance. Ms. Hallmon was admitted to the State Bar of Texas in May of 1999 and is also admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, and each of the U.S. District Courts for the four Districts of Texas.  Ms. Hallmon is a Life Fellow of the Texas Bar Foundation and a Fellow of the Tarrant County Bar Foundation.

Ms. Hallmon began her practice with the Law Offices of David Fielding in March 1999, becoming a partner in January 2005. In September 2015, after nearly 11 years of serving clients together as Fielding, Parker & Hallmon, Ms. Hallmon, Mr. Fielding and Mr. Parker brought their labor and employment law practice to Cantey Hanger.

Ms. Hallmon currently serves on the Boards of Directors of both the Firm, and of Meritas Law Firms Worldwide.

Tim Davis is a member of the Litigation Section. He represents a diverse group of clients in healthcare, employment, and commercial cases.  As well, Mr. Davis devotes a significant portion of his practice to the representation of government and political entities, and churches and religious non-profits.

In law school, Tim won both of his school’s oral advocacy competitions as a first year law student and went on to be an editor of the law review. Tim and his wife, Lindsay, live in Southlake and attend the Hills Church.

Tim is licensed in Texas, Kentucky, and Ohio.

Philip advises and represents clients in all forms of commercial and business disputes and litigation.  Philip’s experience includes contract disputes, business torts, fiduciary litigation, oil and gas disputes, insurance coverage, trade secrets, trademark prosecution and infringement, copyright infringement, environmental litigation, construction and design defects, real estate disputes, and civil rights and First Amendment litigation.  Philip actively promotes pro bono programs both within the firm and in the Fort Worth legal community. Before joining Cantey Hanger, Philip served as law clerk to the Honorable Michael H. Schneider, U.S. District Judge (retired) for the Eastern District of Texas.

Derek represents clients in a wide range of civil lawsuits and helps his clients solve problems.

A particular area of focus for Derek is federal-court litigation.  Prior to joining Cantey Hanger, Derek served for three years as law clerk to the Honorable Terry R. Means, U.S. District Judge for the Northern District of Texas, Fort Worth Division.  Derek currently serves on the Court Advisory Committee for the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas.

Derek is also an appellate practitioner, having argued numerous cases before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.

Other areas of emphasis within Derek’s practice include qui tam litigation under the False Claims Act, insurance-coverage litigation, contract disputes, construction-related litigation, and serving as de facto general counsel for small businesses and organizations.