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Dallas, Texas  ·  Complex Commercial Litigation

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Portrait of Hon. Bill Whitehill

Hon. Bill Whitehill

Judge · Seat 1B

Texas Business Court · First Business Court Division (Dallas)

Biography

Bill Whitehill is an inaugural Judge of the Texas Business Court First Division, Dallas. He came to the Court from Condon Tobin Sladek Thornton Nerenberg PLLC, where he was a member and led the firm’s Appellate Section. Before joining the Business Court, Bill served as a Justice on the Texas Fifth District Court of Appeals, where he authored over 600 substantive opinions. Bill was an associate and partner at Gardere Wynne Sewell, LLP, now known as Foley & Lardner, LLP for thirty-three years. At Gardere, he handled commercial, antitrust, securities, intellectual property, and fiduciary trials and appeals. He is a sustaining life fellow of the Texas Bar Foundation, and fellow of the Dallas Bar Foundation. He is a homeless kitchen volunteer for Cornerstone Baptist Church and is a former co-teacher and mentor at Cornerstone Crossroads Academy. Bill received a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance from The University of Texas at Austin and a Juris Doctor with honors from the SMU Dedman School of Law and an Order of the Coif member.

Source: txcourts.gov

Opinions by Judge Whitehill (1)

Confidential Information Protection ×
2025 Tex. Bus. 55 December 19, 2025

Punitive Damages Waivers Enforceable in Bond Trustee Disputes; Terminated Trustees Retain Confidentiality Duties

In Preston Hollow Capital v. Truist Bank, the Texas Business Court held that the Trust Code does not bar enforcement of contractual punitive damages waivers in bond financing arrangements and that such waivers extend to related contracts within the same financing structure. The court further ruled that a trustee who resigns and is replaced must continue to protect confidential information obtained during the trust relationship, limiting discovery on post-termination breach claims.

Rule 166(g) Trust Code Section 114.007 Punitive Damages Waiver Bond Financing Trustee Duties Opinion PDF ↓