Family Law

• Guardianship
  Advising and assisting executors, administrators, trustees, and guardians with the administration of estates, management of property, handling of claims, and annual accountings

Criminal Law

• Fraud
  Health Care Fraud and Abuse Matters including Advice on the Anti-Kickback Laws (Illegal Remuneration), Fraud, False Claims Act (including Qui Tam Claims), “Stark” Advice and Defense

Business and Corporate Law

• Business Formation
  Potter Minton represents a wide range of clients in a comprehensive list of business law matters. Our attorneys represent both large and small clients from entrepreneurs to small startup companies to large publicly held businesses with multi-state and international operations. Potter Minton attorneys provide a comprehensive range of service for our business clients, from routine contract negotiation, preparation and review, to business formation issues, including entity selection and governance, to structuring and implementing mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, reorganizations, dissolutions, recapitalizations and other highly complex business transactions. We enlist attorneys from other departments, as necessary, to advise clients in areas such as employee benefits, labor and employment law, creditor’s rights, land use and litigation. If you have a business law issue, our attorneys possess the experience and expertise to provide the proper guidance at a satisfactory and predictable cost.
• Business Disputes
• Business Transactions
  Most commercial transactions include the risk that a customer or another party to a contract may experience financial difficulties and may file bankruptcy. Our attorneys advise clients in the planning, structuring, and documentation of business formations and commercial transactions in order to protect our clients from the adverse effects of insolvency or bankruptcy.
• Limited Liability Companies
  Business Organizations (corporations, limited partnerships, limited liability companies, series LLCs and joint ventures) –formation, termination, merger, conversion, buy-sell agreements, governance, management and operation, opinion letters •Sale and Acquisition of Businesses and Professional Practices –equity sales, mergers and asset sales
• Intellectual Property
  Potter Minton is well known for its work in the field of intellectual property litigation. We represent businesses of all sizes and in every industry in disputes concerning patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets. Our lawyers have handled hundreds of patent cases and tried dozens of them to verdict in the federal courts of the Eastern District of Texas. Additionally, our lawyers are recognized leaders in the Eastern District bar association, the rules advisory committee, and the inns of court. Whether we are serving as lead or local counsel, that wealth of knowledge and experience is of great benefit to our clients, both strategically and economically.
• Antitrust

Employment Law

• Employment Discrimination
• Employment Contract
  Mr. Bufe assists Texas employers with a wide variety of employment/personnel matters, including preparation of employment contracts, personnel policies, separation agreements and guidance concerning personnel actions, employment-related training of supervisors and representation of employers in litigation. Mr. Bufe regularly handles civil litigation in Federal and State Courts; in Arbitration; and before various Regulatory Agencies. Throughout his career he has handled over 100 bench trials (including Arbitration); over 25 jury trials; and over 25 appeals of various civil actions. Much of his litigation experience has involved employment disputes. He has also handled complex commercial matters, including trials before the U.S. Bankruptcy Court where he has served as a Chapter 7 Trustee in the Eastern District of Texas. He also regularly participates in Federal Court litigation involving intellectual property disputes.
• Employment Litigation
• Sexual Harassment

Property Law

• Real Estate Litigation
  Potter Minton represents a wide variety of clients in the full range of legal services with respect to real estate matters. We guide our clients through the real estate transaction from start to finish. Our clients have learned the value of an experienced real estate attorney assisting with due diligence, drafting documents, reviewing agreements, negotiating terms, properly structuring the transaction and creating entities. When a client is faced with those legal challenges unique to real estate, we draw from our experience in providing steady counsel and providing creative and efficient legal solutions.
• Premises Liability
• Construction Litigation
  When construction disputes or defaults occur, we have the necessary experience and resources to promptly investigate and negotiate with all parties involved. Our talents as trial and transactional lawyers, combined with our abilities in mediation and arbitration, assist clients by resolving claims and disputes promptly and economically.
• Real Estate Transactions
• Eminent Domain
  The eminent domain process is unique, and requires a full understanding of the differences this type of legal matter presents in relation to other types of litigation.
• Land Use and Zoning

Health Law

• Personal Injury
  Mike Jones tries lawsuits in state and federal courts.  In publications, he has been designated as a “go to” lawyer for Fortune 500 companies in intellectual property litigation.  His clients include such entities as Amoco; Alcatel-Lucent USA, Inc.; Apple; Cisco; Fair Interests and Fair Oil Company; General Motors; Google; Halliburton; Intel; Samsung; Texas Lawyers Insurance Exchange and Verizon.  His trial experience is unusually broad and extensive and includes a wide variety of civil trials involving intellectual property, oil and gas, defamation, antitrust, lender liability, breach of fiduciary duty, fraud, trusts and estates, construction, medical malpractice and personal injury. He has successfully tried cases to verdict for both plaintiffs and defendants.  On the plaintiff side, he has obtained a verdict reported in the Top Ten Verdicts and Settlements by Verdict Search Texas.  On the defendant side, he has obtained numerous defense verdicts including both noninfringement findings and invalidity findings in patent cases in the Eastern District of Texas.
• Medical Malpractice
  Mr. Minton, former senior partner and shareholder, is Of Counsel at Potter Minton. An accomplished lawyer with more than fifty years of experience, Mr. Minton specialized in litigation, medical malpractice, oil and gas, real estate, general business, and mediation. Mr. Minton was awarded the 2006 Justinian Award by the Smith County Bar Association in recognition of his professional excellence, exemplifying integrity, leadership, service to the community, and service to the legal profession.
• Auto Accidents

Trusts and Estates

• Estate Planning
  Potter Minton’s estate planning and probate shareholder, Glenn Thames, and paralegal Linda Slayter took part in this year’s WILLS FOR HEROES event in Longview, which was sponsored by the Northeast Texas Association of Paralegals. Thames and Slayter joined other local attorneys and paralegals from NTAP on May 6, 2023 to provide veterans and their spouses with essential legal documents free of charge.
• Wills
• Trusts
• Power of Attorney
  A properly written will is important to ensure that your property passes as you intend and that your loved ones are able to settle your final affairs without unnecessary trouble and expense. However, it is equally important to have an advanced directive, a medical power of attorney and a durable power of attorney appointing someone to act for you in the event you are unable to speak for yourself, even for a short period of time. When an accident or illness happens, having your plan in place provides your loved ones with assurance that they are acting according to your wishes. While some may need more complex planning, everyone needs at least a basic estate plan.
• Probate

Finance Law

• Bankruptcy
• Foreclosure
  In addition to bankruptcy services, our attorneys are skilled in the enforcement of creditors’ rights. Our clients include various banks and other financial institutions, insurance companies, leasing and finance companies, and other entities interested in preserving and enforcing their rights as creditors. Our attorneys routinely advise creditors regarding their rights and remedies under the Uniform Commercial Code, represent creditors in the foreclosure of real and personal property, advise parties in secured transactions, and address all areas of commercial loans.