DAN L. COGDELL

For more than 25 years, Dan Cogdell has been among the top criminal defense lawyers in Texas and indeed nationally. With more than 150 jury trials in more than 30 jurisdictions, Dan has extensive experience in white-collar crimes, grand jury investigations, health care fraud, environmental crime, and banking and securities fraud.

Dan has successfully prevailed in dozens of high-profile cases, earning victories in the Enron Nigerian Barge case (the only acquittal of any Enron defendant in their original trial); the Branch Davidian trial; the acquittal of cancer doctor Stanislaw Burzinsky; and the acquittal of former District Judge and City Councilman John Peavy Jr. in the Houston City Hall bribery scandal. Additionally, he engineered the acquittal for the head of the Texas Department of Public Safety Narcotics Enforcement Section, Sgt. Robert Nesteroff, and obtained an acquittal for Dan Stinger in the NASA related “Operation Lighting Strike” government fraud prosecution. Similarly, Dan helped demonstrate that long-time New Orleans lawyer and former New Orleans City Attorney Sal Anzelmo was innocent during a bribery and corruption trial in federal court in Houston.

Currently Dan represents Laura Pendergest-Holt, the Chief Investment Officer at Stanford Financial Group who was the first executive charged in the government’s investigation of R. Allen Stanford’s financial companies.

Cogdell was among the first lawyers in Texas to successfully defend individuals charged with federal mortgage or bank fraud in the Savings and Loan scandals in Texas in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s. His acquittal of Ronald Drew Piperi was the sole acquittal among the trials involving former mayoral candidate Joe Russo. The acquittal of Dan’s client Carroll Kelley (who owned Continental Savings and Loan) began his long, successful career of assisting individuals falsely charged with federal fraud related offenses.

During his career, Dan has represented doctors, police officers, lawyers, mayors, judges, governors and a host of various politicians. His cases have been the focus of made-for-television movies and a variety of episodes of A&E’s “American Justice.” He has appeared on Dateline, Nightline, Court TV and a variety of other television shows, and has been quoted in virtually every major newspaper in the state of Texas as well as The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Fortune, The American Lawyer, The National Law Journal, Time, Newsweek, Texas Monthly and too many other periodicals to list here.

After serving as Briefing Attorney at the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals for Presiding Judge John F. Onion, Jr. in 1982 and 1983, Dan joined the firm of Haynes & Fullenweider where he worked with the legendary Texas criminal defense attorney Richard "Racehorse" Haynes for six years. It was through his association with Mr. Haynes and the other lawyers in that firm that Dan learned that the true mark of a lawyer is his ability in a courtroom. It is that focus that Dan concentrates on to this day.

Since forming his own firm almost 20 years ago, Dan has enjoyed an outstanding reputation among his clients and other lawyers. He has earned a spot among the Best Lawyers in America each year since 1994, and has been featured on the Texas Super Lawyers listing in Texas Monthly magazine each year since its inception in 2003. AV Rated by Martindale-Hubbell, he also has been voted the Lawyer of the Year in 1999 by the Harris County Criminal Lawyers Association and received the Texas Department of Public Safety Directors Award in 1997. He is a member of the College of The State Bar of Texas and a Fellow with the Houston Bar Foundation. He is a frequent speaker and lecturer on topics involving the trial of cases for the State Bar of Texas, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association, as well as others. He is a past President of the Harris County Criminal Lawyers Association and currently serves as a Board Member of the Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association.

Dan earned his law degree, with highest honors, from the South Texas College of Law, and his business degree from the University of Texas.

Recent Case History

USA v. Russo et. al. H-93-134 (1995)	Acquittal
USA v. Kelly et. al. H-94-184 (1995)	Acquittal
USA v. Stinger H-96-175 (1997)	Acquittal
USA v. Nesterhoff H-95-21-SS-02 (1996)	Acquittal
USA v. Ramming H-94-181 (1996)	Acquittal
USA v. Anzelmo H-01-391 (2002)	Acquittal
USA v. Keraga H-97-237 (1999)	Acquittal
USA v. Burzynski H-95-290 (1997)	Acquittal
USA v. Peavy H-97-147 (1999)	Acquittal
USA v. Ghadially H-03-147 (2003)	Acquittal
USA v. Kahanek H-03-363 (2004)	Acquittal