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Ellwanger Henderson LLLP: The Firm Behind Texas’s Largest Employment Discrimination Verdict of 2023

In March 2023, a federal jury awarded Sarah Lindsley $25.1 million in her sex-discrimination and equal-pay case against Omni Hotels & Resorts — independently reported by WFAA News, the Texas Lawbook, and confirmed in the Fifth Circuit’s own published opinion as the largest employment discrimination verdict in Texas that year. Jay Ellwanger of Ellwanger Henderson tried the case. Readers should also know the full, current status: in late 2024, the Fifth Circuit ordered a new trial after finding the jury’s verdict form internally inconsistent — the underlying case is not finally resolved, and this profile is stating that plainly rather than presenting the verdict as a closed win.

At a Glance: Austin Employment Lawyer Firm Overview

I. From Representing Both Sides to Plaintiffs Exclusively

Jay Ellwanger earned his B.A. with Special Honors and his J.D. from the University of Texas at Austin, where he was named top advocate of his graduating class, won the National Institute for Trial Advocacy’s Tournament of Champions, and was inducted into the Order of Barristers. Before founding his own practice, he represented both plaintiffs and defendants in intellectual property, employment, and commercial disputes at Jenkens & Gilchrist and DiNovo Price Ellwanger LLP — a history the firm discloses directly rather than omits. He has since focused exclusively on plaintiff-side discrimination and civil rights work, and has served as an Adjunct Professor at UT Law since 2003.

II. No Board Certification Identified; National-Scale Litigation Credentials Instead

Awesome Attorneys did not find a current Texas Board of Legal Specialization certification for Ellwanger, and does not use “specialist” language for this firm as a result. His credential is a genuinely national litigation record: court-appointed class counsel in Roberts v. TJX (D. Mass.), a wage-and-hour collective action that resolved for $31.5 million — reported as the largest FLSA settlement in that federal district’s history — and class counsel in Indergit v. Rite Aid (S.D.N.Y.), which resolved for $5.75 million.

III. Practice Concentration: What This Austin Employment Attorney Firm Handles

The firm represents employees in individual and class-wide discrimination and harassment claims based on gender, race, disability, national origin, religion, and age, along with retaliation, whistleblower, and wage-and-hour disputes. It also handles civil rights matters involving police misconduct and mass tort-style coordinated litigation for groups of affected workers.

IV. Track Record

Prior results do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome. The results below are independently confirmed through court records and press coverage, not solely the firm’s own account — including where a result remains under appeal or has since been altered.

V. Client Voice

Reviews are largely positive. One client wrote: “Jay Ellwanger and his associates are the best in Austin and among the best in the nation. They are true warriors and passionate defenders of civil rights… extremely responsive, showed true compassion and understanding, and were extremely savvy in handling my case — even when going up against a very well funded and influential [opponent].” Another described associate Holt Lackey: “I can’t say enough great things about Holt Lackey at Ellwanger Law LLP. He took over one of my cases when out of nowhere my attorney decided to retire… one of the smartest attorneys I know.” Awesome Attorneys did not identify a negative review for this firm among the sources checked.

VI. Beyond the Courtroom

Ellwanger has chaired the boards of Urban Roots and Wheat Ridge Ministries, received the 2009 Austin Under 40 Award in the legal category, and has taught trial advocacy as an Adjunct Professor at UT Law since 2003. The firm supports the Ann Richards School for Young Women Leaders, an Austin public college-preparatory school for girls.

VII. Recognition

Peer-reviewed and independently conferred credentials: Texas Super Lawyer/Rising Star selection from 2007–2020, via Thomson Reuters’ peer-review process; National Employment Lawyers Association’s 2024 Courageous Plaintiff Award to client Sarah Lindsley, an independent third-party recognition of the firm’s work.

Marketing-program or civic recognition, distinguished here rather than blended in: the 2009 Austin Under 40 Award.

VIII. The Texas Legal Backdrop

Texas is an at-will employment state, with discrimination and retaliation claims running through Title VII, the ADA, and the ADEA federally and the Texas Commission on Human Rights Act (Texas Labor Code Chapter 21) at the state level, requiring a Texas Workforce Commission charge within 180 days. The Equal Pay Act, central to the firm’s highest-profile case, prohibits sex-based wage discrimination for substantially equal work and generally carries a two-year limitations period (three years for willful violations). Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 49(b)(4), the specific procedural rule at issue in the Fifth Circuit’s reversal of the Lindsley verdict, governs how courts must handle internally inconsistent jury verdict forms — a technical but consequential area of trial practice.

IX. Awesome Attorneys Assessment: Weighing This Austin Employment Lawyer

This firm’s clearest strength is a genuinely national-caliber litigation record, independently verified through court opinions and press coverage rather than resting on the firm’s own claims: a $25.1 million jury verdict (even though now under retrial), a $31.5 million FLSA settlement, and a $3.5 million civil rights settlement in a nationally known case are not typical credentials for a mid-sized plaintiff’s firm.

The fair caveat, stated directly: the firm’s marquee case is not a closed win. The Fifth Circuit’s order for a new trial means the ultimate outcome for Lindsley remains undetermined, and prospective clients should understand that even a historic jury verdict can be procedurally unwound on appeal. Ellwanger’s own history of representing both plaintiffs and defendants earlier in his career, while now resolved through his exclusive plaintiff-side focus, is also worth knowing as context.

X. Methodology & Sourcing

This profile was compiled from the firm’s own website (ellwangerhenderson.com), including its Case Results and practice-area pages; Jay Ellwanger’s UT Law faculty bio and JAMS neutral bio; independent press coverage of Lindsley v. Omni Hotels from WFAA News and the Texas Lawbook; the Fifth Circuit’s published opinion via FindLaw’s case law database; and Super Lawyers’ peer-review attorney profile. Case results are independently confirmed through court records and press coverage where indicated; other claims are the firm’s own published statements, attributed as such. Statutory citations were checked against the Texas Labor Code and federal employment statutes. No case results, credentials, or quotes were invented.

Publisher Disclosure & Independence Notice

Awesome Attorneys is an independent legal directory and editorial publication. This profile was not paid for, commissioned, or reviewed by Ellwanger Henderson LLLP prior to publication. Awesome Attorneys may in the future offer sponsored placements clearly labeled as such, but no payment of any kind determines inclusion in, or the content of, this editorial profile. This article is for informational purposes only, does not constitute legal advice, and does not create an attorney-client relationship between the reader and Ellwanger Henderson LLLP or Awesome Attorneys.