TBCblog

Comprehensive coverage of the Texas Business Court

Operated by

Reese Marketos LLP

Dallas, Texas  ·  Complex Commercial Litigation

← The Bench
Portrait of Hon. Brian Stagner

Hon. Brian Stagner

Judge · Seat 8B

Texas Business Court · Eighth Business Court Division (Fort Worth)

Biography

Judge Brian Stagner serves on the Texas Business Court for the Eighth Division, located in Fort Worth, Texas. Before his appointment to the bench, Judge Stagner practiced law for 27 years at Kelly Hart & Hallman LLP, where he served as partner and co-chair of the firm’s Litigation Practice Group. During this time, he handled complex business litigation in more than 40 states, representing clients on both sides of the docket. His practice included corporate governance disputes, unfair business practices, e-commerce, insurance coverage, taxation, consumer class actions, and intellectual property matters. Judge Stagner has been listed in The Best Lawyers in America® annually since 2010. In addition to his judicial duties, Judge Stagner is an adjunct professor at Texas Christian University, where he teaches Business Law. He is a former Barrister of the American Inns of Court and is a sustaining Life Fellow of the Texas Bar Foundation, as well as a Fellow of the Tarrant County Bar Foundation. Judge Stagner earned his law degree, summa cum laude, from Texas Tech University School of Law, where he served on the Law Review and was named to the Order of the Coif. He also holds a Bachelor of Business Administration in Management from Angelo State University. Judge Stagner and his wife, Amy, have been happily married for 30 years and are proud parents of two daughters, Claire and Katie.

Source: txcourts.gov

Opinions by Judge Stagner (1)

Claim Preclusion ×
2026 Tex. Bus. 56 Summary Judgment August 10, 2026

Claim Preclusion Bars Refiled Knowing-Participation Claim Against Prior Party, But Not Against Non-Party Employee

In CAM Industrial Solutions v. Brown & Root Industrial Services, the Business Court granted summary judgment on claim-preclusion grounds to a defendant sued in both a prior district court action and the current Business Court case, but denied summary judgment to a former employee who was a non-party witness in the first action and was not shown to be in privity with any party. The decision addresses whether a plaintiff can evade preclusion by filing a second suit one day before entry of judgment in the first.

Mem. Op. Summary Judgment Res Judicata Claim Preclusion Issue Preclusion Privity Opinion PDF ↓