Laurence S. Kurth

Laurence “Larry” Kurth is a Board Certified Civil Litigator with 30 years of experience litigating all types of legal disputes from products liability to personal injury to property damage to contract claims to insurance actions. He is well-versed in the legal community of Bexar County and has appeared before virtually every sitting judge in The County, from J.P. Courts to the Fourth Court of Appeals. He has selected in the neighborhood of 100 juries from Brownsville to Dallas.

Mr. Kurth’s practice includes representation of business and insurance clients before all State and Federal Courts as well as representing Bexar County, the City of San Antonio, and the City of Converse in various matters. He is a seasoned first-party insurance attorney with experience in policy drafting, interpretation, and coverage issues for both the insurance industry and business consumers alike.

• St. Mary's University School of Law (J.D., 1981)
  • Articles Editor, St. Mary’s Law Journal
• College of Wooster, Wooster, Ohio (B.A. in Urban Planning, 1976)

• State Bar of Texas
• State Bar of Colorado
• State Bar of Oklahoma
• U.S. District Courts for the Northern, Southern, and Western Districts of Texas
• U.S. District Courts for the State of Colorado
• U.S. District Courts for the State of Oklahoma
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit
• U.S. Supreme Court

• Board Certified Civil Trial Lawyer, Texas Board of Legal Specialization
• AV rated, Martindale Hubbell

• Tried over twenty first-party bad faith arson cases to successful jury verdicts in Bexar County, Maverick County, Tom Green County, Cameron County, Harris County, Travis County, and others.
• Obtained a reversal for a property insurer and modified the burden of proof for defendants in duty of good faith and fair dealing cases in a trial in. State Farm Lloyds v. Polasek, 847 SW2d 279 (Tex. App. San Antonio 1992, writ denied)
• Obtained a reversal for a workers compensation carrier and set precedent on the standard for biased jury argument based upon racial and ethnic overtones in a trial in Crystal City, Texas. TEIA v. Guerrero, 800 SW2d 859 (Tex. App. San Antonio 1990, writ denied)
• Successfully defended a major railroad client in numerous venues across South Texas arising out of asserting its right of ways, and leasehold claims.
• Successfully defended homeowners associations in easement disputes, and similar claims.
• Represented Bexar County Sherriff’s Department and Bexar County against § 1983 claims and class action suits involving officer conduct as well as jail procedures and policies.
• Represented multiple various insurance companies in claims disputes arising out of Hurricanes Alicia, Rita, and Katrina.
• Conducted over five hundred examinations under oath for various carriers.
• Successfully represented numerous oil and gas industry operators in personal injury and property damage cases resulting from rig explosions and fires.
• Represented employers in numerous OSHA investigation hearings including electrocutions, ROPS, cave ins, safety harnesses, and similar alleged violations and then defended the employer in subsequent employee personal injury actions.
  .

• Voted one of San Antonio’s Best Lawyers as rated by peers, Scene in SA magazine, 2009-2011

• State Bar College, Member
• San Antonio Bar Association, Fellow
• Phi Delta Phi Legal Fraternity, Member
• American Bar Association, Member
  • Tort and Insurance Practice Section
• Bexar County Bar Association, Member
• Travis County Bar Association, Member
• Texas Association of Defense Counsel, Member
• Defense Research Institute, Member
• Colorado Bar Association, Member
• Oklahoma Bar Association, Member
• American Indian Law Section of the State Bar of Texas, Former President
• International Association of Arson Investigators, Member
• A Texas Advisory Counsel on Arson (ATAC), Member

Mr. Kurth is a repeat author and speaker for the State Bar of Texas Advance Civil Trial CLE Programs, as well as for legal seminars for insurance clients, including:

• “Bad Faith Doctrine in Texas” 
• “Preparing Fire Experts for Discovery”
• “Preparing executive Officers for Apex Depositions”

• San Antonio Fiesta Commission
  • President, 2005
  • Member since 1996
• San Antonio Golf Association (Texas Open), Board of Directors
• University Health Systems Foundation, Board of Directors
• Bexar County Precinct 3033, Precinct Chairman