The Good Fight
State Bar of Texas President Joe K. Longley on eradicating injustice.
Interview by Patricia Busa McConnico
When Joe K. Longley visited the 153rd District Court of Tarrant County for “Civics Day” during junior high, he watched a case unfold between a beauty shop and a client who claimed her scalp was burned while having her hair dyed. This was the first time Longley had been in a courtroom—and had met a lawyer. The ninth grader, who had a large personality and enjoyed being around people, was mesmerized. Longley watched the woman tell her story and the opposing counsel test it, and he realized that at the end of the day, there would be a winner and a loser. That’s when he knew he wanted to be a trial lawyer.
Longley was born in West Plains, Missouri, where his mother was
living while his father served as a B-17 pilot during World War II. By
the time the war was over, Longley and his family had moved to Fort
Worth, where he spent the next 12 years growing up in the public school
system and having some fun along the way. “My personality is outgoing,
which I got from both my mom—a born ‘horse trader’—and my dad, who never
met a stranger and who everyone referred to as their ‘best friend,’”
Longley said. “As a result, I could sing, dance, and tell jokes.”
After graduating from Arlington Heights High School, Longley moved to
Austin to attend the University of Texas, where he majored in marketing
because “it involved people, advertising, and sales.” During his time as
an undergrad, he began working at the Capitol in Lt. Gov. Preston
Smith’s office. The following year, he landed a position in Gov. John B.
Connally’s office, which he held while attending law school at UT. His
interest in government continued after graduation, and he stayed in
Austin working for the Office of the Attorney General for a year before
moving to Corpus Christi to work in private practice.
Above from left: Joe K. Longley at age 2 while living in Rapid City,
South Dakota; as a youth, Longley played Little League baseball for the
West Side Lions in Fort Worth; the young Longley graduated from
Arlington Heights High School in Fort Worth and then headed to Austin to
attend the University of Texas.
He soon found his way back to Austin, working as a solo practitioner
and later founding the partnership of Longley & Maxwell with Philip
K. Maxwell for 25 years. Longley became a fixture at the Capitol, where
he was instrumental in drafting numerous pieces of legislation,
including the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Consumer Protection Act,
or DTPA; amendments to the Texas Insurance Code Chapters 541 (unfair
practices), 542 (prompt payment of claims), and 544 (unfair
discrimination); and the Texas Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. In
2005, he went out on his own and has been practicing solo ever since.
On June 22, Longley will be sworn in as president of the State Bar of
Texas at the bar’s annual meeting in Houston. Longley recently talked
with the Texas Bar Journal about his career, role models, and
plans as president of the State Bar.
Above from left: Longley as an undergraduate at the University of
Texas at Austin, where he studied marketing; Longley getting sworn in as
an attorney by
Texas Supreme Court Justice Joe R. Greenhill in 1969.
Who is your legal role model or mentor and what
impresses you most about him or her?
There are three—and
they were all in Corpus Christi, where I practiced during 1971: the late
Judge James “Jim” DeAnda, who taught me compassion for my client—as well
as for my opponent on the other side; William R. “Bill” Edwards, who
taught me to prepare, prepare, prepare; and Frances “Sissy” Farenthold,
who helped crystalize my political beliefs into an unapologetic
progressive.
What lesson or experience has most impacted the way you
practice?
I’d say the demise of jury trials in civil cases
through tort reform of consumer, policyholder, and injured persons’
rights under the rule of law.
What do you like most about your practice area and
why?
In recent years, I have enjoyed dealing with the “big
picture” through representation of collective clients in class actions.
I was class counsel to 12.5 million class members in my last class
settlement.
What is the biggest challenge and what is the biggest reward
of working as a solo practitioner?
The biggest challenge is
that you cannot get sick. The biggest rewards are the personal contact
and relationships you develop with your clients—as well as greater
financial rewards through no splitting of fees.
You have a history of getting things done and working with the
Legislature. What gets you motivated and how do you motivate
others?
My motivation is seeing injustice and trying to eradicate it. Some
examples can be found in various Texas laws such as the DTPA (consumer
protection); Texas Insurance Code Chapters 541 (unfair practices), 542
(prompt payment of claims), and 544 (unfair discrimination); the Texas
Home Solicitation Act [Texas Bus. & Com. Code]; the Texas Fair Debt
Collections Practices Act and Consumer Credit remedies [Texas Finance
Code]; and various Landlord-Tenant remedies [Texas Property Code]; and
last, but not least, the Texas Sunset Act [Texas Gov’t Code].
My ability to motivate others has largely been financial—as in the
provisions for the award of attorney’s fees in all of these laws (with
the exception of the Sunset Act) in which I played a major role in
obtaining passage through the Legislature.
What do you think the legal profession will look like 50 years
from now?
Lord, I haven’t a clue. If you had told me in
1976 that my first fax machine would morph into the communications we
have today I would, of course, not have understood a word you were
saying. Having said that, let me say I hope in 50 years there will be
some method whereby someone can use “matter” transfer and time travel to
go back to 1969 and start erasing all of my losses at the
courthouse.
Name your three absolute favorite things to do on the
weekend.
Being alive in Austin, Texas, with my beautiful
wife, Maggie; spoiling our five grandchildren with food and fun; and
watching Rangers and Astros baseball.
You have talked about transparency a great deal. What else
will you be focusing on this year as State Bar president?
Helping President-elect Randy Sorrels keep a steady hand on the bar
budget to hopefully implement another 5 percent ($2 million) reduction
from the general fund budget like we enjoyed last year. Randy will be
the incoming chair of the State Bar of Texas Budget Committee.
If you could try a case with any lawyer (dead or alive), who
would it be and why?
Bill Edwards. He and I sometimes tried
two jury trials a week. He was amazing to watch—always stressing his
three P’s: preparation, presentation, and persistence.
Describe yourself in five words.
Friendly, fair,
persistent, and firm.TBJ
