Nicholas Dickerson

Nicholas P. Dickerson focuses his practice on commercial litigation and white collar criminal defense. He has significant courtroom and practical experience representing both plaintiffs and defendants in state and federal courts at every stage of the litigation process, from preliminary investigations to final appeals, as well as in private arbitrations and mediations.

Nicholas’ commercial practice encompasses a wide range of issues involving domestic and international contract disputes, tort liability, and statutory compliance matters across multiple industries, including the energy, construction, insurance, consumer, and environmental sectors.

In the white collar arena, Nicholas represents individual and corporate clients charged or implicated in federal indictments, grand jury proceedings, forfeiture actions, and internal investigations, and provides counsel on compliance and enforcement matters relating to the FCPA and international trade regulations.

Prior to joining Locke Lord, Nicholas worked as a graduate fellow at Texas Defender Service, where he conducted innocence investigations and criminal justice policy analysis.

Representative Experience :

• Served as second chair in two-and-a-half week trial of bet-the-company litigation regarding alleged agreement to sell engineering, procurement, and construction management firm
• Pursued insurance and indemnity claims arising from refinery steam line rupture for Fortune 500 engineering and construction company, resulting in eve-of-trial settlement
• Assisted with trial preparation and negotiations resulting in morning-of-trial settlement of claims for misappropriation of trade secrets concerning construction job site safety management system
• Defended local restaurant in trademark infringement action regarding online advertising, obtaining settlement shortly after moving for summary judgment
• Defended medical center in breach of contract action regarding elevator service agreement, obtaining settlement shortly after moving for summary judgment
• Obtained settlement on behalf of offshore diving and underwater construction subsidiaries of publicly traded company in suit alleging approximately $5 million in unpaid commissions
• Drafted motions resulting in dismissal of case on jurisdictional grounds for Singaporean entities accused of claims stemming from foreign service, profit sharing, and transfer agreements
• Performed internal investigation into potential Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) violations arising from dealings between public drilling company’s international agent and Kuwaiti customs officials
• Represented US and UK entities of global risk consulting firm in grand jury proceedings and shareholder derivative suit regarding FCPA implications of Angolan drilling contract
• Assisted liquid asphalt and fuel oil company in avoiding indictment through plea agreement on Clean Water Act, Oil Pollution Act, Migratory Birds Treaty Act, and Endangered Species Act allegations
• Represented Fortune 500 oil and gas equipment manufacturer in Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) investigation stemming from natural gas pipeline wastewater release
• Collaborated with Texas Appleseed on statewide criminal discovery transparency project culminating in passage of the Michael Morton Act

Professional History :

• Partner, Locke Lord LLP (2018–Present)
• Associate, Locke Lord LLP (2010–2017)
• Graduate Fellow, Texas Defender Service (2009)

Professional Affiliations :

• Fellow, Texas Bar Foundation
• Member, Chartered Institute of Arbitrators
• Member, State Bar of Texas Pro Bono College (2012-2013, 2015-2016)
• Member, State Bar of Texas
• Member, Houston Bar Association

Education :

• J.D., magna cum laude, University of Houston Law Center, 2009
• B.A., Political Science and Spanish, magna cum laude, with honors, Texas A&M University, 2006

Admissions : Texas, 2009

Admitted To Practice : U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas