J. Kevin Oncken

Kevin has been in practice for more than 36 years. He joined Cooper & Scully in 2018 as the managing shareholder for their newly created Austin office after concluding 20 years as a founding shareholder of Uzick & Oncken.

Mediation:

After a lengthy and successful trial practice, Kevin now devotes his full time to serving as the Mediator.  He was trained as a mediator in 2004 and served in that capacity over the years upon request.  In the spring of 2022, Kevin announced his decision, effective January 2023, to limit his practice to handling matters as a mediator.  Kevin is a member of the Texas Chapter of the National Academy of Distinguished Neutrals and is also a credentialed mediator with the Texas Mediator Credentialing Association. He has served as the neutral mediator in hundreds of disputes involving serious injuries, medical malpractice, toxic torts, products liability and commercial matters.   As a mediator, Kevin is known for his quick grasp of key and complex case details and for his meticulous pre-mediation preparation as well as for offering "Pre-mediation Factual Education Conferences" to attorneys for each party to shorten his learning curve.  This is especially helpful in high damage and multi-party cases.

Litigation/Trial Background:

With respect to his background and experience as a litigator/trial attorney, Kevin has tried to jury verdict more than 100 cases across Texas as lead trial counsel. In years past, Kevin was often asked to step into cases outside of Texas via Pro Hac Vice. While the majority of his trial practice has focused on the defense of medical negligence cases, Kevin has also successfully represented plaintiffs in non-malpractice injury cases as well as commercial cases.   At the pretrial stage, Kevin has long been known for meticulous preparation of his clients for deposition, conducting precision cross examinations of experts, and for thinking outside of the box with respect to ethically advancing his client’s interests.

Kevin has been certified as a Diplomat in Medical Professional Liability with the American Board of Professional Liability Attorneys for the last 23 years. All diplomats must complete a rigorous approval process to establish full qualification as a specialist in professional liability. He holds an AV Preeminent Peer Review rating by LexisNexis Martindale-Hubbell which represents the distinction of the highest ethical standards and legal ability. He has been honored as an Associate with the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA). Entry into this invitation-only organization is bestowed upon trial lawyers who are of high personal character and honorable reputation. In addition, he has long been chosen as one of the Best Lawyers in America – Medical Malpractice Law (Defendants) and has been selected for inclusion in America’s Top 100 Attorneys for Southern Texas. Kevin has been featured in the Texas Super Lawyers® list by Thomson Reuters Legal since 2011.

As reflected in his CV, Kevin has often been invited to speak at Continuing Legal Education seminars and has also frequently given presentations at Continuing Medical Education seminars for physician groups and hospitals. For a number of years he authored a recurring column in a medical malpractice carrier’s client publication offering commentary and risk management related practice pointers for clinicians. Kevin and Diane have been married since 1987. They raised their 2 children, Kate and Jeff, in San Antonio, spending countless hours volunteering with their schools, sports and dance organizations, and many charities in the community. They have called Austin their home since 2012.

• J.D., South Texas College of Law, 1987
• B.S., University of South Carolina, 1982

• Texas State Bar, 1987
• National Academy of Distinguished Neutrals - Texas
• Credentialed Mediator - Texas Mediator Credentialing Association
• Full Member – Texas Association of Mediators
• American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA)
• Diplomate - Medical Professional Liability, American Board of Professional Liability Attorneys
• Best Lawyers in America - Malpractice (Defendants)
• America’s Top 100 Attorneys for Southern Texas
• AV Preeminent Peer Review rating by LexisNexis Martindale-Hubbell
• American Bar Association
• Austin Bar Association

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