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About Victor Thomas
Vic Thomas leads the Appellate Section of Sorrels Law. He has been Board Certified in Civil Appellate Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization since 1988 and has 38 years of experience as a litigator plus seven years as an attorney for a Texas appellate court. He served the 14th Court of Appeals in Houston twice, first as a Research Attorney from 1983 to 1985 handling complex civil appeals, and later as a Central Staff Attorney from 2016 to 2020 responsible for original proceedings and permissive appeals. Before joining Sorrels Law he worked at firms of all sizes, including his own 30-lawyer firm, a large Texas firm, a large international firm, and a plaintiff's firm that has recovered billions for its clients.
He has handled over 80 appeals in Texas, Louisiana, and federal appellate courts, including the United States Supreme Court. His plaintiff-side successes include the Fifth Circuit's affirmance of a $71 million arbitration award for a reckless breach of an international oil and gas farm-out agreement, a $44 million arbitration award for securities fraud and minority shareholder oppression claims, and an appellate reversal rendering a $4.35 million judgment for the family of a man who died in a motel fire. He has held Martindale-Hubbell's highest peer review rating since 2000, and graduated magna cum laude from Baylor University with a B.B.A. in Economics and Finance before earning his J.D. from SMU Dedman School of Law.
Proven verdicts and settlements
On September 7, 2019, Ulysses Cruz, a 48-year-old United Airlines ramp worker serving as a wing walker at George Bush Intercontinental Airport, was struck from behind by an Allied Aviation Fueling Company of Houston van whose driver said the morning sun was in his eyes. Cruz was paralyzed from the chest down and suffered a stroke two days later that cost him the use of his dominant right arm. After a two-week trial before Judge Ravi Sandill, a Harris County jury on October 25, 2021 found Allied 70 percent and driver Reginald Willis 30 percent at fault and awarded Cruz, his wife and their two children $352.7 million in compensatory damages. Judge Sandill conditioned denial of a new trial on a $117.5 million remittitur of noneconomic damages, which the family accepted, and an amended judgment of about $235.3 million was signed February 7, 2022. Allied appealed, the parties reached a confidential mediated settlement, and on July 18, 2023 the First Court of Appeals vacated the judgment and dismissed the case at the parties' joint request.
Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Each case is unique and depends on its own facts.
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