Current Employment Position(s)

Principal

Lawyer Overview

Chad Ruback is the youngest appellate lawyer ever to have been named one of "The Best Lawyers in Dallas" by D Magazine. Chad’s rapid success can be attributed to the fact that he has limited his practice to handling appeals and trial court motions likely to be at issue on appeal.

Since the time that Chad completed his service as a briefing attorney at the Fort Worth Court of Appeals, he has been amassing experience representing both plaintiffs and defendants on appeal, regardless of whether they won or lost at trial. He has also dedicated himself to drafting trial court motions with an eye to winning at trial and having those wins be upheld on appeal.

Chad has served as president of the 2,400-member Dallas Association of Young Lawyers and on the board of directors of the 10,000-member Dallas Bar Association.

After receiving degrees from U.T. and S.M.U., Chad Ruback served as a briefing attorney to the Fort Worth Court of Appeals. Chad spent several years working in the appellate section of a medium-sized insurance defense firm before being recruited by Godwin Gruber’s appellate section. In 2005, Chad left Godwin Gruber to open his own appellate law practice.

A former chairman of the Judiciary Committee of the Dallas Association of Young Lawyers, Chad has been elected to seven consecutive terms on the DAYL Board of Directors. Chad served as DAYL Treasurer in 2003, Vice President in 2004, President Elect in 2005, and President in 2006.

Areas of Practice

• Appellate

West Practice Categories

Federal Appellate Practice, State Appellate Practice

Bar Admissions

• Texas, 1997
• U.S. Court of Appeals 5th Circuit, 1998
• U.S. Court of Appeals Federal Circuit, 2005
• U.S. Court of Appeals District of Columbia Circuit, 2005
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces, 2005
• U.S. Court of Veterans Appeals, 2005
• U.S. Supreme Court, 2005

Professional Associations and Memberships

• Dallas Association of Young Lawyers, 2006 (President)
• Dallas Association of Young Lawyers, 2005 (President-Elect)
• Dallas Association of Young Lawyers, 2004 (Vice-President)
• Dallas Association of Young Lawyers, 2003 (Treasurer)
• Dallas Association of Young Lawyers, 2001 - 2007 (Board of Directors)
• Dallas Bar Association, 2005 - 2006 (Board of Directors)

Honors and Awards

• National Merit Scholar
• Recipient of Most Outstanding Director Award, Dallas Association of Young Lawyers, 2001
• Named one of the "Best Lawyers in Dallas" by D Magazine (1 of 8 lawyers selected in the "appellate" category), 2008

Past Employment Positions

• Fort Worth Court of Appeals, Briefing Attorney to Justice Lee Ann Dauphinot, 1997 - 1998
• McCauley, Macdonald, Devin & Huddleston, P.C. n/k/a Macdonald Devin, P.C., Appellate Attorney, 1998 - 2001
• Godwin Gruber, L.L.P. n/k/a Godwin Pappas Ronquillo, L.L.P., Appellate Attorney, 2001 - 2005

Education

• Southern Methodist University School of Law, Dallas, Texas, 1997
  J.D.
• University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas, 1994
  Bachelor of Business Administration

Published Works

• Meet the Judicial Candidates, Dallas Business Journal, October 13, 2006
• High Court Halts Double-Dipping Recovery Claims, Texas Lawyer, August 29, 2005
• Preservation of Error: It's More Than Shouting "Objection!", The Dicta, October, 2003

Address

8117 Preston Road
Suite 300
Dallas, TX 75225-6347

Phones

(214) 522-4243

Faxes

(214) 522-2191

Emails

chad@appeal.pro

Websites

http://www.appeal.pro