Stephen M. Halbeisen

Chair, Subrogation & Recovery, South Central Region

Steve Halbeisen is a member of the firm's Dallas office, where he is chair of the Subrogation & Recovery Department's South Central region.  Steve has successfully litigated a wide variety of property damage disputes involving fires and explosions, product failures, petrochemical plant damages, flood damages, structural failures, material failures, heavy equipment losses, tower collapses, fine arts losses and construction defect losses, among others.  Steve has tried cases to verdict in Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Kansas and Arkansas.

Steve earned his undergraduate degree from St. Joseph's University in 1987 and his law degree from the University of Miami in 1990.

Experience

News

More Than 205 Cozen O’Connor Attorneys Named Best Lawyers and Ones to Watch By The Best Lawyers In America

August 19, 2021

Best Lawyers selected 210 Cozen O’Connor lawyers from 23 of the firm’s nationwide offices for inclusion in the 2022 edition of The Best Lawyers in America.

200 Cozen O’Connor Attorneys Named Best Lawyers and Ones to Watch By The Best Lawyers In America

August 20, 2020

Best Lawyers selected 200 Cozen O’Connor lawyers from 23 of the firm’s nationwide offices for inclusion in the 2021 edition of The Best Lawyers in America© (Copyright 2020 by Woodward/White, Inc., of Aiken, SC).

138 Cozen O’Connor Attorneys Named to the Best Lawyers in America

August 28, 2019

Best Lawyers selected 138 Cozen O’Connor lawyers from 21 of the firm’s national offices for inclusion in the 2020 edition of The Best Lawyers in America.

Publications

Eastland Complex Wildfires Alert

March 23, 2022

Suzanne Radcliff, Steve Halbeisen, and David Brisco discuss the Eastland Complex Wildfires affecting the 76448, 76454, 76435, 76471, 76470, 76470, 76448, 76444, and 76445 zip codes.

Hurricane Harvey Litigation Update: Conflicting Opinions Spur Trial on Damages and Appeal [Alert]

January 11, 2021

Jason Schulze, Stephen Halbeisen, Jake Skaggs Elliott Feldman and Kevin Hughes discuss the status of the litigation arising out of Hurricane Harvey, which made landfall in Houston on August 25, 2017,

Not So Fast: The Supreme Court of Texas Narrows the Scope of the Economic Loss Doctrine [Subrogation & Recovery Alert]

October 17, 2014

Historically, Texas courts have applied the economic loss doctrine (ELD) to bar tort claims (negligence and strict products liability) against a manufacturer or seller of a defective product when the damage is limited to the defective product itself and did not cause damage to a person or to other property. In addition, Texas courts have held that the ELD precludes tort recovery for economic loss arising from a party’s failure to perform under a contract when the harm consists only of the economic loss of a contractual expectancy.

Beware of Defendants Who Attempt to Push the Boundaries of the Economic Loss Rule (Texas) [Subrogation & Recovery Law Blog]

May 01, 2014

In most jurisdictions today, to recover under a strict products liability theory, the Plaintiff must prove that a defect in the subject product was a producing cause of the Plaintiff’s damages. More importantly, in order to recover under a strict products liability theory, the Plaintiff must show...

Subrogation and the 2014 Polar Vortex: Recovery Opportunities and Hurdles

February 19, 2014

Topics include: Causes of Freeze Losses, Subrogation Considerations on Freeze Losses, Subrogation Claims & Interruption of Gas Service & Impact of Tariffs and Statutes of Repose on Subrogation Claims

Industry Sectors

Education

  • University of Miami, J.D., 1990
  • St. Joseph's University, B.S., 1987

Awards & Honors

Best Lawyers in America 2020-2024 (Construction Law (2024) and Insurance  Law (2020-2024)

  • New Jersey
  • Pennsylvania
  • Texas
  • U.S. District Court -- Eastern District of Pennsylvania
  • U.S. District Court -- Eastern District of Texas
  • U.S. District Court -- Northern District of Texas
  • U.S. District Court -- Southern District of Texas
  • U.S. District Court -- Western District of Texas
  • Dallas Bar Association
  • National Association of Subrogation Professionals (NASP)
  • State Bar of Texas