McKool Smith Principal Robert Manley Inducted Into the American College of Trial Lawyers

DALLAS, March 17, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- McKool Smith Principal Robert Manley has been inducted as a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers (ACTL), one of the most prestigious legal associations in North America. The induction ceremony took place during the College's Spring Meeting in Maui, Hawaii on March 6-9.

Founded in 1950, the ACTL is composed of the best of the trial bar from the United States and Canada. Fellowship in the College is extended by invitation only and only after careful investigation, to those experienced trial lawyers of diverse backgrounds, who have mastered the art of advocacy and whose professional careers have been marked by the highest standards of ethical conduct, professionalism, civility, and collegiality. Lawyers must have a minimum of fifteen years trial experience before they can be considered for Fellowship.

Robert has over 32 years of experience trying high stakes, high profile cases across the nation. His courtroom achievements include several defense and plaintiff verdicts, as well as a VerdictSearch "Top 100 Verdict."  Most recently, he helped lead the McKool Smith team that secured a $1.4 billion settlement for the State of Texas against Meta Platforms/Facebook. The settlement was announced on July 30, 2024, and is the largest settlement ever obtained from an action brought by a single State.

Robert also served as lead trial lawyer for the plaintiffs in a will contest dispute that made the front page of The Wall Street Journal. He has successfully tried a wide range of cases, including securities fraud, fiduciary duty, investor fraud, trade secret, commercial matters, and insurance coverage disputes. Robert has spent much of his career training the next generation of trial lawyers as the Program Director of the Dallas Trial Program for the National Institute of Trial Advocacy.

Robert lives in Dallas with his college sweetheart, Dana Bradford Manley. He is a alumnus of the University of Tulsa, SMU Law School, Institute for European Studies,Vienna, and Pushkin Institute, Moscow.

McKool Smith is home to several ACTL fellows, including firm Principals Lewis LeClair, Jennifer Truelove, Chad Hummel, and Sam Baxter all of whom bring unparalleled courtroom experience, helping to shape case strategy, trial preparation, and resolution tactics across all the firm's seven of our offices.

With more than 130 trial lawyers across offices in Austin, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, Marshall, New York, and Washington, D.C., McKool Smith has established a reputation as one of America's leading trial firms. The Firm has secured 18 nine-figure jury verdicts and 16 eight-figure jury verdicts, obtaining more VerdictSearch and The National Law Journal "Top 100 Verdicts" than any other law firm. These courtroom successes have earned McKool Smith critical acclaim and helped the Firm become what The Wall Street Journal describes as "one of the biggest law firm success stories of the past decade." McKool Smith represents clients in complex commercial litigation, intellectual property, bankruptcy, insurance recovery, and white-collar defense matters.

For more information, please contact Keith Hill at (903) 923.9005 or email [email protected].

SOURCE McKool Smith