Justin Dolan brings something genuinely unusual to the Hopkins Centrich litigation team: a career that spans big-firm corporate practice in Seattle, three years as a legal writing professor, service as an Assistant Attorney General for the State of Wyoming, a Senior Deputy County Attorney role, appellate practice at a boutique appeals firm, and over two decades of courtroom experience across multiple jurisdictions. Most litigators have one background. Justin has several — and each one has sharpened a different dimension of how he approaches a case.

Justin's legal career began in Seattle, where he worked at large and midsized firms representing corporate clients in complex commercial litigation and appeals. That foundation in sophisticated business disputes — the kind of matters where the facts are complicated, the stakes are high, and the legal issues require careful analysis — established the analytical framework he brings to every client engagement today.

From there, Justin spent three years as a legal writing professor, an experience that shapes his practice in ways that are easy to underestimate. Teaching legal writing means thinking systematically about how arguments are constructed, how courts actually read briefs, and how to communicate complex legal positions clearly and persuasively. Attorneys who have taught writing approach their own written work differently than those who haven't — and in litigation, where courts form their first impressions of a case on paper, that matters.

Before moving to Texas, Justin served the State of Wyoming as an Assistant Attorney General, representing the state in litigation and providing legal counsel on matters of public concern. He subsequently served as a Senior Deputy County Attorney, where he handled a broad docket of civil matters at the county level. Public sector legal practice demands range — cases span subjects that private firms handle in separate specialty departments — and Justin's time in government service built the breadth that defines his practice today.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Justin relocated to Texas to be closer to his son. Before joining Hopkins Centrich, he managed civil appeals for a boutique appellate firm and maintained a solo practice handling litigation matters across his practice areas. He is now a Member of the firm, where his appellate depth, government litigation experience, and commercial practice background give Hopkins Centrich a distinctive range of capabilities.

Justin's practice at Hopkins Centrich spans commercial litigation, business disputes, deceptive trade practices, employment law, professional liability, construction law, probate litigation, and tort matters. He is recognized by the State Bar of Texas for his pro bono contributions to low-income Texans and serves as a Board Member of The Woodlands Bar Association.

Outside the office, Justin is committed to his son, running, reading, learning Spanish, and being in the outdoors.

Practice Areas

• Commercial and Business Litigation
• Business Disputes
• Employment Law
• Real Estate and Construction Disputes
• Insurance Coverage and Professional Liability
• Business Torts and Unfair Competition
• Probate and Fiduciary Litigation

Recognition

• Pro Bono Service Recognition, State Bar of Texas
• Board Member, The Woodlands Bar Association