Michael Clinton – Trial Lawyer
Michael R. Clinton joined Zehl & Associates after practicing law at two other prestigious law firms in Houston. He is a trial lawyer whose practice for the past decade has been solely dedicated to one thing: fighting for clients whose lives have been changed forever due to people’s and companies’ disregard for the wellbeing of others.
Michael’s body of work includes a broad spectrum of personal injury litigation such as motor vehicle collisions, workplace injuries, medical malpractice, carbon monoxide poisoning, dog attacks, slip-and-falls, sexual assaults, and everything in-between. He has also represented clients coast-to-coast in mass torts related to defective medical products.
Michael has guided families who have lost a husband and father and other families who have lost a child. He will tell you that he takes it extremely seriously that his team is helping clients through one of the most, if not the most, difficult chapters of their lives, and he takes great pride in his work.
Michael is Texas-born and grew up in the north Dallas suburbs. Michael graduated from Southern Methodist University with a B.B.A. in Financial Consulting with minors in Economics and Philosophy. A lifelong drummer, Michael was in SMU’s drumline all four years and was selected as the drumline captain his junior and senior years. He then earned his J.D. from Baylor Law School on a Dean’s Scholarship. While studying at Baylor Law, Michael competed at multiple moot court and mock trial competitions around the country. Michael stayed at Baylor Law an extra year to work as the P.C. Associate in Baylor Law’s coveted Practice Court program.
Texas Super Lawyers, a Thompson Reuters publication, named Michael to its “Up and Coming 100” list for 2023 and 2024, and to its Rising Stars list every year since 2018. U.S. News and World Report named Michael to its “Ones to Watch” list for 2024.
Michael has presented at the Texas Trial Lawyers Association Car Wrecks CLE, State Bar of Texas Damages CLE, and UT Law CLE Car Crash Seminar. He currently serves on the Houston Trial Lawyers Association CLE Committee and is a past member of the TTLA CLE Committee. Michael currently serves as the Immediate Past Chair of the Board of Trustees for Houston Young Lawyers Foundation Board, in his seventh year on the Board. He has also served on the Houston Young Lawyers Association Board of Directors.
Michael’s commitment to service extends beyond the Bar. Michael and his wife are a past “Big Couple” to a “Little Brother” with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Houston, and Michael is a past Chair of BBBS’s Young Professionals Group. Michael spent years volunteering as an afterschool tutor at The Forge For Families that serves families in Houston’s Third Ward. Michael created, oversaw, and volunteered with a reading program for young lawyers and third-graders at David G. Burnet Elementary in Houston’s Second Ward. Being a member of both organizations, Michael even created a joint annual event between Houston Young Lawyers Foundation and Big Brothers Big Sisters called, Bowling With Bigs, where young lawyers get to go bowling and interact with Bigs and Littles.
When he’s not at the office or volunteering, you can probably find Michael with his wife taking advantage of living in one of the best food cities in America, watching college basketball and football, or spending time with their families and their dog named Atty (yes, short for attorney).