Allison Standish Miller

*Includes matters handled before joining Steptoe.

• Lead counsel for a law firm in a complex legal malpractice case involving multiple allegations of wrongdoing. Argued and won partial summary judgment and a crucial discovery motion that precipitated a favorable settlement of all claims.
• Member of a four-attorney trial team in an oil and gas royalty trust dispute in Harris County, Texas. Delivered the opening and crossed a key witness during the three-week jury trial; case settled prior to our client's rebuttal witnesses being called.*
• Lead counsel for the attorney respondent in a reciprocal discipline proceeding before the Texas Board of Disciplinary Appeals. Secured a rare complete dismissal/denial of discipline after a full-blown evidentiary hearing.*
• Represented a national company as the plaintiff in a trade secrets case. Assisted with securing a contempt order requiring the defendant to pay over half a million dollars in sanctions and attorneys' fees.*

Reported Cases

• Pohl v. Cheatham, S.W.3d, 2025 WL 1349691 (Tex. 2025)
• Bailey Cowan Heckaman, PLLC v. Clark, Love & Hutson, GP,  11-23-00136-CV, - S.W.3d – (Tex. App. – Eastland Mar. 27, 2025, no pet.) *
• Gandy v. Williamson, 634 S.W.3d 217 (Tex. App. – Houston [1st Dist.] 2021, pet. denied)*
• Brumfield v. Williamson, 634 S.W.3d 170 (Tex. App. – Houston [1st Dist.] 2021, pet. denied)*
• In re Jackson, 574 Fed. Appx. 317 (5th Cir. 2014) (argued)*
• McPeters v. Edwards, 464 Fed. Appx. 351 (5th Cir. 2012), writ denied 184 L. Ed. 2d 151 (argued)*
• Gregory v. Porter & Hedges, LLP, 398 S.W.3d 881 (Tex. App.—Houston [14th Dist.] 2013, pet. denied) (argued)*

• "Not-as-Risky Business: Texas's Business Court and Other Alternative Litigation Strategies," Association of Corporate Counsel Houston Annual Symposium, August 2025
• "Cool Heads in Hardy Climates: Maintaining the Integrity of the Court Through Contempt, Sanctions, and Other Methods," Harris County Civil Judges' CLE Retreat, August 2025
• "Hot Topics in Ethics," Association of Women Attorneys CLE Luncheon, May 2025
• "ChatPDC" Panel Member on the Use of Artificial Intelligence in the Legal Profession, Professional Development Consortium, May 2025
• "Ethical Issues in Multi-Party Litigation," Houston Bar Association 2025 Civil and Appellate Bench Bar Conference, April 2025
• Tax Law in a Day CLE, State Bar of Texas Tax Section, February 2025
• "AI and Other Ethical Minefields," State Bar of Texas Tax Section International Tax Symposium, November 2024
• State Bar of Texas Tax Section Ethics CLE Program, September 2023
• "Not Just for Trial Lawyers: Lessons from the Courtroom You Can Use in the Conference Room," Association of Corporate Counsel Houston Chapter Half-Day Seminar, December 2022
• "TCPA Update," Annual Judicial Education Conference, Texas Center for the Judiciary, September 2022
• "The Ethics of Listening: How Becoming Better Listeners Makes Us Better Lawyers (and Clients)," Institute of Energy Law's Second Energy Transactions Conference, October 2020
• "TCPA and 91a," TexasBarCLE Advanced Civil Trial Course 2020
• "TCPA and 91a Update," TexasBarCLE Advanced Trial Strategies Conference, February 2020
• "The Amended TCPA: Ethical Considerations for the New Act," South Texas College of Law 2020 Ethics Symposium, February 2020
• "Avoiding Early Dismissal: Defending TCPA and 91a Motions to Dismiss," TexasBarCLE Damages in Civil Litigation Conference, February 2020
• "Attorneys' Fees and Sanctions," Texas Center for the Judiciary 2019 Civil Justice Conference, October 2019
• "Anti-SLAPP Overview," TexasBar CLE Advanced Civil Trial Course, July, August, and October 2019
• "Avoiding (or Using) Anti-SLAPP Motions to Dismiss," UT CLE Corporate Counsel Institute, May 2019
• "The Anti-SLAPP Statute: An Overview of Texas's Most Troublesome Law," Harris County New Civil Judges' Orientation, January 2019
• "The Anti-SLAPP Statute: Soup to Nuts to Ethics" with Judge Randy Wilson, TACTAS Monthly Meeting, October 2018
• "The Texas Citizens Protection Act: It's Big. It's Broad. Where Does It End?" with April Farris and Raffi Melkonian, HBA Appellate Practice Section Meeting, October 2018
• "Bless This Mess: Recent Developments in Anti-SLAPP Law," Harris County Civil Judges' CLE Meeting, August 2018

Noteworthy

• The Best Lawyers in America, "Lawyer of the Year," Legal Malpractice Law – Defendants, 2025
• The Best Lawyers in America, Legal Malpractice Law – Defendants and Professional Malpractice Law – Defendants, 2025, 2026
• Super Lawyers, Texas, 2016-2024
• Texas Monthly, "Rising Star," 2009-2010, 2013-2015

News & Publications

• "Avoiding Early Dismissal: Defending TCPA and 91a Motions to Dismiss," TexasBarCLE Damages in Civil Litigation Conference, February 2020
• "Ten Things to Know About Avoiding and Mitigating Malpractice Claims and Grievances," 18th Annual IEL Energy Litigation Conference, November 2019
• "Anti-SLAPP Overview," TexasBar CLE Advanced Civil Trial Course, July, August, and October 2019
• "Assessing the Status of the Attorney-Client Privilege in the Age of Twitter," The Computer & Internet Lawyer, Vol. 35, No. 12 (December 2018)
• "Assessing the Status of the Attorney-Client Privilege in the Age of Twitter," Houston Lawyer Magazine, July/August 2018