About Terry Yates

Terry Yates is Of Counsel at Kherkher Garcia and a seasoned trial lawyer with extensive civil and criminal litigation experience. Born and raised in Texas City, Texas, he is a 1987 graduate of the University of Texas at Austin and received his J.D. from the University of Houston Law Center in 1989. He began his career at the Harris County District Attorney's Office under DA Johnny Holmes and left in 1994 to enter private practice. Terry is Board Certified in Criminal Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization (1995) and in Criminal Trial Advocacy by the National Board of Trial Advocacy (1999).

In June 2001, he graduated from the Trial Lawyers College in Jackson Hole, Wyoming under Gerry Spence, and later joined Spence's staff as a teacher. He has handled high-profile matters including the defense of former HPD Captain Mark Aguirre, Astros players Charlie Hayes and Ken Caminiti, and Texas Supreme Court Justice David Medina. He is an Associate Judge for the City of West University Place and a legal analyst for ESPN radio.

Proven verdicts and settlements at Kherkher Garcia

These results are credited to Kherkher Garcia. A result appears under an attorney's own name only when a published source names them as counsel on the case.

$200 millionVerdict

A Philadelphia jury in May 2005 awarded two women a combined $200 million for heart-valve injuries caused by Wyeth's fen-phen diet drugs, with Steve Kherkher of Williams Bailey (now Kherkher Garcia) leading the trial, before a judge granted Wyeth's post-trial motion and the case resolved through a confidential settlement.

Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, Pennsylvania · 2005Medical MalpracticeRead the full story →
$15 millionVerdict

A Harris County jury awarded $15 million to the husband and two sons of a longtime hospital nurse struck and killed while crossing the street to an employer parking lot, with Steve Kherkher among the trial team for the family.

133rd District Court, Harris County, Texas · 2018Wrongful DeathRead the full story →
$12.45 millionVerdict

Jim Hart won a $12.45 million jury verdict for a Houston couple severely injured when a New Prime tractor-trailer rear-ended their sedan on I-45, though the Texas Supreme Court later reversed on procedural grounds and remanded for a new trial.

129th District Court of Harris County, Texas (Alonzo v. John, No. 14-20-00148-CV, affirmed Fourteenth Court of Appeals March 29, 2022) · 2019Truck AccidentsRead the full story →

Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Each case is unique and depends on its own facts.

Practice areas

Education

University of Houston Law Center
J.D., 1989
University of Texas at Austin
Undergraduate, 1987

Bar admissions & credentials

State Bar of Texas, admitted 1989

Other attorneys at Kherkher Garcia

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Proven verdicts and settlements from other Houston firms

The Lanier Law Firm
The Lanier Law Firm
$4.85 Billion Vioxx MDL Settlement for Heart-Attack and Stroke Victims
The Buzbee Law Firm
The Buzbee Law Firm
$1.1 Billion Verdict for Child Left Brain-Damaged by Oil-Fortune Heir
Arnold & Itkin
Arnold & Itkin
$2.07 billion · Cobb County Jury Awards John Barnes $2.065 Billion in Roundup Cancer Trial
Williams Hart & Boundas
Williams Hart & Boundas
$15.3 billion · Texas Recovers $15.3 Billion From Tobacco Industry in Landmark 1998 Settlement
The Ammons Law Firm LLP
The Ammons Law Firm LLP
$812 Million Verdict for Family of Worker Killed in Pecos Chemical Plant Explosion, Part of $1.6 Billion

Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Each case is unique and depends on its own facts.