News | May 8, 2026
A recent study by Tatyana Avilova, Economist at Secretariat has been selected by the Editor of JAMA Health Forum as an Editor’s Choice: Clinical Trial of 2025.
Managing Director Bob Broxson provided expert reports, deposition, and trial testimony on behalf of Marathon Oil Company in a historic trial – the first held by the Texas Business Courts since their opening in September 2024. The landmark case stemmed from natural gas delivery interruptions during the 2021 Winter Storm Uri.
Mr. Broxson was retained by Ahmad Zavitsanos & Mensing (AZA) to provide expert testimony on behalf of Marathon. He provided direct testimony that shaped the court’s understanding of natural gas industry practices during catastrophic events.
The Texas Business Courts were established by the Texas Legislature in 2023 to serve as an efficient forum for resolving complex business disputes and commercial litigation within the state. This specialized court system has been officially operational since September 2024,1 and this case, brought by Marathon before the 11th Division, marked its first-ever trial verdict.
In this matter, the Houston-based oil company argued that the rare, destructive weather caused by Winter Storm Uri prevented them from satisfying their natural gas delivery obligations to Mercuria Energy America and constituted a force majeure under their contract.
Following a five-day bench trial, Business Court Judge Melissa Andrews ruled that Marathon was not liable for $26.5 million in damages related to failed natural gas deliveries during Winter Storm Uri, finding that the extreme weather constituted a valid force majeure. The court affirmed that the parties’ contract did not require Marathon to acquire replacement gas or buy back its delivery obligation from Mercuria before declaring a force majeure.2
Mr. Broxson’s expertise, work, and testimony in this case, combined with other examples that include the $123.7M Koch Energy force majeure dispute, underscore the rigor of his analyses and the critical role expert testimony plays in high-stakes litigation.
The Secretariat team supporting Mr. Broxson on this matter included Adam Housel.
Law360 coverage of the matter is available here (subscription may be required).
- https://texasbusinesscourts.com/faq/ ↩︎
- Marathon Oil Company v. Mercuria Energy America LLC, No. 25-BC11A-0013, in the 11th Division of the Texas Business Court. P. 23 ↩︎