The Honorable Robbie Partida-Kipness is a highly respected attorney and former appellate justice with nearly three decades of legal experience across private practice and the judiciary. She currently serves as a Partner at Linebarger Goggan Blair & Sampson, LLP in the Dallas office. From 2019 to 2024, she served as a Justice on the Fifth District Court of Appeals—the largest appellate court in Texas—where she authored more than 500 civil and criminal opinions and played a pivotal role in shaping Texas jurisprudence.

Prior to her judicial service, Justice Partida-Kipness founded and led The Kipness Law Firm, P.C., a personal injury practice representing individuals in complex matters including wrongful death, medical malpractice, and premises liability. Her legal foundation was built through years of litigation experience at leading firms such as Silber Pearlman, LLP and Morgan & Weisbrod, LLP, where she specialized in products liability and birth injury cases.

Justice Partida-Kipness is a Life Fellow of both the Texas and Dallas Bar Foundations and actively contributes to organizations that promote diversity, judicial excellence, and access to justice. She remains an engaged member of the legal and broader Dallas community. She is licensed to practice in Texas.

A graduate of St. Mary’s University School of Law and The University of Texas system, Justice Partida-Kipness is deeply committed to public service, ethics, and mentorship. She was appointed Commissioner of the Texas Supreme Court Children’s Commission and has held leadership roles with Texas Latinx Judges, the Mac Taylor Inn of Court, and the Dallas Hispanic Bar Association. Her distinguished service has earned her numerous accolades, including the Louise B. Raggio Award from the Dallas Women Lawyers Association and the Distinguished Law Graduate honor from her alma mater.

Brandon Lane has expanded firm’s litigation services and collection expertise in North Texas. He provides client relations for public-sector clients and handles matters from trial through post-judgment resolution.

Mr. Lane earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English, Cum Laude, from West Texas A&M University in 1999. He pursued his legal education at Baylor University School of Law achieving the Order of Barristers and receiving his Juris Doctorate degree in 2002. Mr. Lane was admitted to the Texas Bar in 2003 and is licensed to practice before the U.S. District Court Northern and Eastern Districts of Texas and all Texas State Courts.

Mr. Lane’s collection experience began in 2006 when he became a partner at Sammons & Lane, P.C. shifting to a primary practice in consumer bankruptcy law representing individual debtors in Chapters 7 and 13 cases as well as corporations in Chapter 7 and 11 proceedings. Mr. Lane has been a member of the Dallas County Bar Association since 2011, and he supports the firm’s client communities through fundraising events, speaking engagements, and local board memberships.

Michael Maglieri provides legal counsel and litigation services for clients supported through the Broomfield, Colorado office. He joined Linebarger in March of 2024.

With a tenure spanning nearly a decade at Pinnacol Assurance in Denver, Colorado, Mr. Maglieri held pivotal roles, including Compliance Counsel and Staff Counsel. As Compliance Counsel, he spearheaded initiatives to fortify the company’s compliance framework, conducting audits and providing comprehensive education on legal and policy compliance. He demonstrated his adeptness at identifying and mitigating risks associated with fraud, waste, and abuse, while also ensuring seamless integration of legislative and regulatory updates into company processes. Mr. Maglieri served as a liaison to regulatory bodies, maintaining compliant filings and addressing inquiries from the Division of Insurance. Additionally, he supported the Deputy General Counsel and Chief Legal Officer in various capacities.

Before his tenure at Pinnacol Assurance, Mr. Maglieri honed his legal skills at Ritsema & Lyon, P.C., and Beck, Payne, Frank & Piper, P.C., where he defended corporate clients in workers’ compensation cases, conducted discovery, prepared legal documents, and represented clients in hearings and trials.

Mr. Maglieri is admitted to practice in the State of Colorado and holds a Juris Doctor degree from Western Michigan University-Cooley Law School, as well as a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana.

Outside of his legal practice, Mr. Maglieri is actively involved in the community, serving as a Member of the Board of Trustees, including a tenure as Treasurer, at the Colorado Railroad Museum in Golden, Colorado.

Partner Bradley Balderrama is a native Texan who grew up in Austin, Texas, and received his Bachelor of Business Administration from Concordia University with Honors. Later, he attended St. Mary’s University School of Law in San Antonio.  He earned his Juris Doctor in 2003 and became a Prosecutor with the Bexar County District Attorney’s Office. While serving as a Prosecutor, he tried numerous misdemeanor and felony cases to jury verdicts in the Criminal Trial Division, the White-Collar Crime Division, and the DWI Task Force.

In 2007, Brad left the District Attorney’s Office and opened a private practice in San Antonio. Mr. Balderrama’s practice was diverse, including family law and criminal defense. He is admitted to practice before the U.S. District Court – Western District of Texas. Mr. Balderrama joined Linebarger in August of 2009.

Richard Brand joined Linebarger in October 2017 as an attorney working and residing out of our Tyler office. Mr. Brand attended Texas A&M School of Law in Fort Worth, obtaining his Juris Doctor in 2015. He is a licensed attorney and counselor at law through the State Bar of Texas and certified in advanced research and advance criminal defense.

Richard has been a member of the pro bono college every year since 2017 and for the state bar college since 2014. He’s received recognitions from the Texas State Bar College (2017), Texas State Bar Pro Bono College (2014), Texas A&M Public Interest Law Fellow (2013), Texas Supreme Court Recognition for Pro Bono and Low-Income Legal Assistance (2015), and Tarrant County Bar Association Recognition Award for Legal Assistance for Low Income Clients. M. Brans is also a certified instruction for the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR).

He is deeply rooted in the community, serving on committees such as the Kaufman County Ducks Unlimited as the Co-Chair, State-wide Governance Committee for Ducks Unlimited, the Kaufman County Bar Association, and the Forney ISD Education Foundations as a board member and a member of the fundraising and bylaw/governance committees.

Michael French represents multiple courts and taxing jurisdictions and leads the Linebarger team in their San Angelo, Texas office.

Michael retired from the U.S. Army Reserve as a Lieutenant Colonel in 2018. He served on active duty from 2006 to 2012, during which time he served as a legal advisor at the Army Operations Center in the Pentagon and served as a member of their crisis action team. He also served as the 25th Infantry Division’s Rule of Law Advisor in Diyala Province, Iraq, and worked with the Criminal Investigation Task Force in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Mr. French is admitted to practice law in Colorado, Michigan, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Texas.

In the community, Michael has served on the Board of Directors for the Concho Valley Rape Crisis Center and on the Board of Directors for the San Angelo Western Little League. He remains on the Alumni Advisory Board for the Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity at Angelo State University, continues to coach little league baseball, serves on the San Angelo Independent School District’s Reading Selection Content Committee, and serves as the Judge Advocate for his local VFW post.

Mr. French received a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from Texas Tech University in 1991. He later earned his Master of Science in Psychology from Angelo State University in 1995 and went on to receive his Juris Doctorate from St. Mary’s University School of Law in 1998.

Jennifer York supports Linebarger’s central Florida clients from our Orlando office, where she maintains regular communications with them on firm collection activities.

Prior to joining Linebarger, she represented homeowners’ associations and other organizations in the collection of various delinquent receivables, and she also pursued both post judgment collection remedies and claims in bankruptcy. As a former realtor, she is well-versed in real estate law and transactions, including Florida’s foreclosure process.

Ms. York is a member of the Florida State Bar and the Seminole County Bar Association. She is active in her community in Orlando and surrounding areas.

The State Bar of Florida admitted her to practice in all Florida State courts in 2017. She is also admitted to practice before the U. S. District Court, Middle District of Florida.

Ms. York received a Bachelor of Science in Legal Studies from the University of Central Florida in 2013, and received her Juris Doctor from the University of Florida Levin College of Law in 2016.

Lauren Burgess currently manages the foreclosure and litigation departments, supervises associate attorneys and staff, and liaises with outside counsel and city leadership to address inquiries related to foreclosure properties and suits in pending litigation in the firm’s Philadelphia office.

Before joining Linebarger in 2016, Ms. Burgess served as a contract attorney at The Cypress Group, specializing in regulatory research to advise companies and investors. She also worked as a contract attorney for Republic Ranches. Additionally, she served as a law clerk at the Holocaust Art Restitution Project.

As a law student, Ms. Burgess served as a law clerk at Entertainment Law Legal Assistance in New Orleans, providing pro bono legal counsel. She also collaborated with a citizen group as a student attorney with the Tulane Environmental Law Clinic, resulting in a settlement with the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality over federal Clean Air Act violations.

Ms. Burgess is a member of the Pennsylvania and Texas Bar Associations.

Ms. Burgess received her Juris Doctor degree from Tulane University in 2014, graduating cum laude. She majored in Finance, receiving her Bachelor of Business Administration degree in 2010 from the University of Texas, McCombs School of Business.

Partner Sonia Gonzalez manages clients in the Bexar County regional area from our San Antonio office.

Ms. Gonzalez was born in Piedras Negras, Coahuila, Mexico and graduated from Eagle Pass High School in 1994. She takes pride in her community and volunteers for several organizations including San Antonio Sports Foundation, the Martinez Street Women’s Center, the Library Foundation of Eagle Pass, the San Antonio Food Bank, and the University of Incarnate Word. Sonia is a member of the Board of Directors of the South Texas Business Partnership (SoTx), formerly known as the South San Antonio Chamber of Commerce, and serves on its Governmental Affairs Committee.

Sonia received her Bachelor of Arts from the University of Incarnate Word in San Antonio in 1998. Prior to earning her Juris Doctor from Thurgood Marshall School of Law in 2001, she worked as a research assistant for the firm’s San Antonio office. After four years in private practice, she re-joined the firm in 2007.

Ms. Gonzalez is a member of the American Bar Association, the Maverick County Bar Association, the Mexican American Bar Association, and the State Bar of Texas.

Don Stecker provides comprehensive bankruptcy and litigation services to clients, including complex chapter 11 cases.

Mr. Stecker joined Linebarger in 2008 with 24 years of prior civil trial experience having practiced with a smaller, established San Antonio law firm. Through his years of legal work, he has earned an AV “Preeminent” Rating with Martindale-Hubbell. Mr. Stecker is responsible for supporting the firm’s bankruptcy operations.

Mr. Stecker is a member of the San Antonio Bar Association, Texas Bar Association, and the San Antonio Bankruptcy Bar Association. He is admitted to practice before all Texas State Courts, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, the U.S. District and Bankruptcy Courts for the Northern and Southern Districts, and the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. He was admitted to the State Bar of Texas in 1984 after receiving his Juris Doctor from St. Mary’s University and his Bachelor of Science in Political Science from Kings College in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania.