Justin D. McMinn is a trial lawyer who aggressively represents personal injury plaintiffs and criminal defendants throughout the state of Texas.  He has a strong passion for seeking justice and helping his clients rebuild their lives after serious injury accidents.Justin was born and raised in Central Texas.  After completing high school, Justin attended the University of Texas where he earned his Bachelor's degree in Government.  Justin then went on to earn his Juris Doctorate degree from Texas Tech University School of Law.  While attending Texas Tech, Justin worked for a law firm that specialized in Personal Injury Litigation.  Here, Justin developed his passion to help people who had been seriously injured in accidents.  Justin worked up and helped prepare hundreds of personal injury claims for litigation.  After graduating law school, Justin accepted a position with the McMinn Law Firm, which was founded by his older brother Jason B. McMinn.  Justin represents criminal defendants and is experienced in negotiating favorable plea agreements, pretrial litigation, and preparing cases for trial.  This past year, Justin was named a partner in the McMinn Law Firm.Select Cases in 2008 Represented an Austin man who was hit by an 18-wheeler truck that was in the wrong lane and crushed his bucket truck that he was using to repair a traffic light.  The Austin man suffered from spinal injuries. After exposing the poor safety history of the trucking company, they agreed to settle the case for $1,950,000 with a client recovery of $1,025,000.  Represented a six year old Austin girl who sustained a brain injury at a local Austin business.  Prior to trial, the local business agreed to settle the case for $250,000 with a client recovery of $125,000.  Represented a Buda family that was involved in a head on automobile collision.  The husband and wife received spinal injuries from the impact of the collision. Prior to trial, the at fault driver's insurance company agreed to settle the case for $165,000 with a client recovery of $82,000.  Represented an Austin man that was hit by a car that jumped the curb and struck him while he was riding his bicycle.  After suit was filed, the insurance company agreed to pay $100,000 with a client recovery of $50,000 for the Austin man's spinal injuries.  AffiliationsJustin is a member of the Texas Young Lawyers Association, State Bar of Texas and the Texas Trial Lawyers Association.  Justin is an alumni of the Texas Kappa Alpha Order and a member of the Silver Spurs Alumni Association.

Robin N. Blanchette represents a wide variety of clients and companies who are based locally, nationally, and internationally, and whose industries include retailers (premises liability, general negligence, premises security, products, DTPA), oil and gas (employment, personal injury, OCSLA, DOHSA), construction liability (worksite accidents, contractual indemnity, OSHA), products liability (manufacturing defects, design defects, marketing defects, DTPA, warranty, distribution), property management companies / owners, and restaurants. Robin is admitted to practice in Texas state courts, as well as the United States District Court for the Southern, Northern, Western and Eastern Districts of Texas. She is a member of the State Bar of Texas, Texas Association of Defense Counsel, and Houston Bar Association. Robin was recognized as a “Rising Star” by Super Lawyers, a Thompson Reuters publication, from 2012-2016.

Christine D. Burkhart is a principal in the San Antonio office. She has over 19 years of experience in civil litigation primarily focusing her practice on construction defect litigation, representing general contractors and subcontractors, premises liability, product liability and trucking/transportation matters. Most of her cases concern highly complex matters with substantial damages. While a talented and skilled litigator, Christine has successfully achieved highly desirable settlements in multimillion dollar cases. Prior to pursuing her career in the law, Christine worked in mortgage lending for 13 years in Northern Ohio and Las Vegas. During that time, she handled loan originations, loan closings and became an underwriter. Thereafter, she moved into management and oversaw loan operations and sales for branch offices in the region. Her knowledge of the business and ability to understand the relationships and impact of the laws and regulations give Christine’s clients added value beyond her legal knowledge.

Gary W. Coker, a principal with the firm, is a native of Jasper, Texas. For more than 35 years, Gary has represented financial institutions, businesses and individuals primarily in the areas of business organizations and transactions, bankruptcy and creditors’ rights, real estate, health law and estate planning and probate. Gary is rated AV Preeminent by Martindale Hubbell Peer Review Ratings and is licensed to practice in Texas state courts and the United States District Court for the Eastern, Southern, Western and Northern Districts of Texas, as well as the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. He is a member of the State Bar of Texas, Jefferson County Bar Association, Texas Association of Bank Council, and is a Life Fellow of the Texas Bar Foundation. He is Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Baptist Hospitals of Southeast Texas and is an active member of Beaumont’s First Baptist Church. Gary is also a certified mediator.

Javier T. Duran is a Principal with the firm, graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy from Rice University in 1995, and his Doctor of Jurisprudence from The University of Texas School of Law in 1999. Prior to law school, Javier worked in residential construction repairing and remodeling homes in low-income neighborhoods. During his 20-year career, Javier T. Duran has first-chaired felony jury trials as a Bexar County Criminal Assistant District Attorney. Javier’s legal expertise also spans an impressive array of substantive areas. He has worked with complex, multi-party, and multi-district litigations, and his practice areas emphasize representing businesses and individuals in employment, business litigation, personal injury, and products liability. Javier also has experience representing the transportation industry and major retailers.

Gregory Howard is a litigation attorney with Germer PLLC. Greg is a proud native Houstonian, with undergraduate and graduate business degrees from Texas A&M University and a law degree from the University of Houston Law Center. Since graduating law school in 2005, Greg has spent the better part of his legal career as a litigator and advocate in such areas as commercial litigation, real estate, personal injury, and insurance defense, while consistently maintaining a broad exposure to many other facets of business law, property, and contracts. As a highly motivated individual, Greg takes great pride in performing high-quality work and appreciates practicing in a dynamic legal environment.

Christopher D. Leavins is a Principal and Member at our Beaumont and Houston offices and has been with Germer PLLC since 2008. He graduated from Texas A&M University with a Bachelor of Science in Economics prior to receiving his Doctor of Jurisprudence at South Texas College of Law. Chris is Board Certified in Commercial Real Estate Law and Residential Real Estate Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. Chris has extensive experience in representing real estate developers, lenders, and businesses, as well as individuals in complex real estate transactions, financing, leasing, development, subdivisions, shopping centers and office buildings. In addition, he also has experience in estate planning, probate, business acquisitions, commercial litigation, and advising clients on the formation, operation and dissolution of various business entities. Chris has significant public entity representation, including acting as City Attorney and City Prosecutor for local municipalities, as well as representing economic development corporations and emergency service providers. He has been recognized as a Texas Super Lawyer Rising Star, a Thompson Reuters publication, from 2018 – 2022.

Nadine Ona is originally from Houston, graduated from Texas Tech, and joined Germer in 2017. While at Tech, she served as editor for the Business & Bankruptcy Law Journal and the Texas Bank Lawyer. She also interned for a federal judge in the Eastern District of Texas—Beaumont Division and a justice at the First Court of Appeals in Houston. She has been recognized as a Texas Super Lawyer Rising Star, a Thompson Reuters publication, in 2025. Nadine is licensed in Texas and Louisiana, and practices primarily in the areas of personal injury defense and civil litigation.

Tiffany Pham is a Principal at Germer’s Houston Office, where she represents clients across Texas in labor, employment, and civil rights matters. Her practice encompasses the full spectrum of employment law, including discrimination claims, hostile work environment cases, wage disputes, and wrongful termination suits. She represents both public and private employers before state and federal courts and administrative agencies. She also advises and represents governmental entities and elected and appointed officials in civil rights matters. She has successfully defended cases involving First Amendment retaliation, excessive force, wrongful arrest, jail assaults, and jail death matters. Tiffany analyzes each case’s unique circumstances to develop tailored solutions that advance client interests while minimizing risk. She consistently delivers practical, results-oriented counsel that helps clients navigate legal challenges efficiently and effectively. She has been recognized as a Texas Super Lawyer Rising Star, a Thompson Reuters publication, in 2025.

Carmen Jo Rejda-Ponce (“CJ”) is a Principal in Germer’s Houston office, but her practice takes her all across Texas. She regularly counsels and defends both private and public sector clients on matters involving employment issues and civil (constitutional) rights. She handles matters from the pre-claim and pre-suit stage, through litigation, and through appeal. She is Board Certified in Labor and Employment Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. CJ focuses on a broad range of labor and employment litigation, including, discrimination, harassment, hostile work environment, retaliation, disability accommodation, workers’ compensation retaliation, on-the-job injuries, and wage and hour issues. She has represented private and public sector clients in employment-related disputes before federal and state courts, federal and state administrative agencies, and arbitrators. CJ counsels private and public sector employers on labor and employment concerns, including, addressing medical leave, developing and revising workplace policies and procedures, investigating and addressing employee complaints, conducting employee disciplines and terminations, drafting employment, separation, and other agreements, and determining proactive solutions to workplace problems while avoiding litigation. CJ also defends public sector clients —including counties, cities, and law enforcement officers— in a variety of civil rights matters, including defense of first amendment retaliation, excessive force, wrongful arrest, inmate medical care, and jail death matters. Many of these civil rights matters involve qualified immunity issues for law enforcement officers. Through her civil rights defense work, CJ has gained appellate experience. She has handled multiple federal and state appeals. She has successfully argued for her clients twice before the Fifth Circuit, and is looking forward to more opportunities. CJ also has experience with personal injury litigation, including on-the job-injuries, motor vehicle accidents, and negligence claims against public entities. CJ’s private practice experience includes Baker Botts LLP and Reed Smith LLP. CJ also previously served as an Assistant City Attorney for the City of Houston in Labor, Employment, and Civil Rights Division. She was also a registered lobbyist during the 2013 Regular Session of the Texas Legislature.