Karen R. Bennett, managing principal with the firm, graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1988 from the University of Texas at Arlington. She received her Doctor of Jurisprudence degree from Texas Tech University. Karen has handled a docket of personal injury and civil litigation files since the beginning of her practice. She is also the principal in charge of the firm’s Family Law Department. She has litigated cases in the discovery phase and trial of several complex cases including those involving class actions and prescription drugs. She is admitted to practice in the Supreme Court of Texas, Texas state courts, the United States District Court for the Eastern, Northern and Southern Districts of Texas, as well as the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. She is a member of the Texas Association of Defense Counsel, State Bar of Texas, Texas Women Lawyers, Jefferson County Bar Association along with Family Law Section, Eastern District of Texas Bar Association, Defense Research Institute, American Board of Trial Advocates, and Houston Chapter of American Board of Trial Advocates. She also has served on the Board of Directors for the Jefferson County Bar Association and has been a member of the College of the State Bar of Texas and Mickey Mehaffy Inns of Court. She has served on the Board of the Jefferson County Bar Association Auxiliary and is a past President. She has also served on the Board of the Junior League of Beaumont. She was recognized as a “Texas Super Lawyer”, a Thompson Reuters publication, in 2013-2024. Karen has been active in many local volunteer organizations in the community.

Guy Neil Goodson graduated with honors from the University of Texas at Austin with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in 1973, and then attended law school at Southern Methodist University, graduating in 1976. Guy began his legal career at the law firm of Shannon, Gracey, Ratliff & Miller in Fort Worth, Texas specializing in tax practice, and moved to Beaumont in 1978 as regulatory counsel for Gulf States Utilities Co. Guy is admitted to practice before the Supreme Court of Texas, Texas courts, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas. Guy is active in the legal community having been President of the Jefferson County Bar Association in 1991-1992, and President of the Young Lawyers Association in 1984. He represented Ward II on the Beaumont City Council from 1990 – 2003, and served as Mayor for the City of Beaumont, Texas, 2005 – 2007. Guy is also active in state municipal affairs and served as President of the Texas Municipal League in 2001 – 2002. Guy is a member of the State Bar of Texas, Texas Bar Foundation, and a member of St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church. Guy N. Goodson concentrates and has extensive experience in public entity and administrative law with a strong emphasis on municipal bond and special project financing while representing local government units including cities, counties, port and navigation districts, river and water authorities, special districts, economic development corporations, and emergency service districts.

Charles W. Goehringer, Jr. joined Germer in 2001. Charlie graduated from Lamar University in Beaumont with a Bachelor of Science, Mechanical Engineering degree in 1980. He received a Masters of Business Administration from Colorado University in Boulder in 1983 and his J.D. from South Texas College of Law in 1995. Charlie began his career with Gulf States Utilities Co. as an engineer in 1981 and became a Unit Superintendent responsible for the operation and maintenance of a 488 MW oil and gas fired electrical generating unit at Sabine Station. In 1988, he was hired by Quantum Chemical Company as a project engineer and became a Maintenance Superintendent in 1991. Charlie began his legal career at the law firm of MehaffyWeber, P.C. in 1995. He is general counsel for a publicly traded company on the NYSE responsible for litigation matters, contract negotiations and SEC compliance. He has extensive experience in business law, construction litigation and patent infringement litigation. He routinely represents employers in OSHA investigations and gross negligence claims. Charlie also represents governmental entities in a variety of matters including business transactions and litigation. He is a member of the Business Law and Construction Law sections of the State Bar of Texas, and Jefferson County Bar Association. He is licensed to practice in all courts in the State of Texas and the United States District Court for the Eastern and Southern Districts of Texas. Charlie has been a registered professional engineer in the State of Texas since 1986. He serves as an arbitrator for the Better Business Bureau and is a member of the Texas Water Conservation Association. Charlie practices in the areas of patent litigation, corporate/SEC, business disputes, commercial litigation, environmental litigation, OSHA defense, real estate transactions and litigation, sale/acquisition transactions, and landlord/tenant disputes.

Larry L. Germer is a trial lawyer who has defended clients in major cases in all areas of litigation. He graduated from the University of Texas in 1963 with a Bachelor of Arts degree. In 1966, he received his law degree from the University of Texas School of Law, graduating in the top 5% of his class. He has been recognized as a “Texas Super Lawyer”, a Thompson Reuters publication, annually since 2003. Larry is admitted to practice in the Supreme Court of Texas, Texas state courts, the United States District Court for the Eastern and Southern Districts of Texas, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, and the Supreme Court of the United States. For over 50 years, Larry has handled a heavy civil docket defending corporations and insurance companies in all types of cases, including significant personal injury suits and major commercial cases involving contract, antitrust, class action and public utility issues. He has been active in insurance coverage lawsuits and has published an article dealing with conflicts problems in the insured/insurance company relationship. In recent years, he has been involved in major patent litigation. Larry is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers, a Life Fellow of the Texas Bar Foundation, a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation, and a member of the Jefferson County Bar Association. Larry has served on the Commission for Lawyer Discipline, a twelve-member board responsible for the grievance process for the State Bar of Texas. As a long-term member of the Texas Association of Defense Counsel, Larry has served on the board as an officer of that organization. He is a past Director of the State Bar of Texas and has served on its Executive Committee. He has served on the Board of the American Board of Trial Advocates and was a Board member and Treasurer of the Texas Young Lawyers Association. He was appointed as a member of a Pattern Jury Charge Committee and the State Rules Committee and has served on a number of other bar-related committees and projects.

Michael Bridwell has been practicing litigation work in a variety of matters since graduating from the University of Texas School of Law in 1985. He represents a number of clients and companies in Texas and beyond in products liability, premises liability, personal injury defense, toxic tort and trucking matters.

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.

Scott C. Crutchfield is a Principal in GERMER PLLC’s Business section. His practice is primarily concentrated on representing Lenders and Borrowers in connection with HUD-Insured Loan transactions for the construction, refinancing and acquisition of Multifamily and Healthcare facilities under HUD’s various mortgage insurance programs, as well as property acquisitions and assumption of HUD-insured loans (“TPA’s”). Scott’s work in this area includes successful closings of numerous affordable transactions that combine HUD-insured financing, Low-Income Housing Tax Credits, Tax-Exempt Bonds and various types of local, state and federal subordinate loan elements. Geographically, approximately one-half to two-thirds of the transactions Scott has closed are through the Southwest Multifamily Region based in Fort Worth, with the remainder being spread across each of the other HUD Multifamily Regions. Additionally, Scott provides services to Borrowers under conventional commercial loan programs, including but not limited to those administered by Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae and USDA. Finally, Scott provides traditional business services to clients, including the sale, purchase or leasing of commercial property, entity formation and general services and advice.

Jason L. Hughes earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice from Lamar University in 1993. Jason started his career as an Officer with the Beaumont, Texas Police Department and was promoted to Detective, assigned to the Special Crimes Unit in 1998. Jason’s extensive background in criminal investigations affords him unique expertise in case investigation and development. Jason earned his Doctor of Jurisprudence from South Texas College of Law Houston in 2006. Jason was on the Dean’s Honor List and received the Phi Delta Phi Highest Grade Awards in Civil Procedure, Evidence and Criminal Trial Advocacy. He also received the Judge Bert Tunks Scholarship Award and the Garland Walker Alumni Association Scholarship Award. Upon graduation from law school, Jason began his legal career with Germer in 2007. Jason is admitted to practice in courts in the State of Texas, the United States District Courts for the Eastern, Southern, Northern, and Western Districts of Texas, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, and the Supreme Court of the United States. He has been recognized as a Texas Super Lawyers Rising Star, a Thompson Reuters publication, from 2012 – 2017 as well as being recognized as a Texas Super Lawyer, a Thompson Reuters publication, in 2025.. He was also recognized as “Appellate Lawyer of the Week” by Texas Lawyer Magazine in September 2011. Hughes Jason L. is a member of the State Bar of Texas, Jefferson County Bar Association, Texas Association of Defense Counsel and Family Law Sections of the State Bar of Texas and Jefferson County Bar Association. Jason also served on the State Bar of Texas Standing Committee on Child Abuse and Neglect from 2009 – 2015. Jason served on the Board of Directors for the Jefferson County Bar Association from 2019-2021. Jason became a member of the Michelle F. Mehaffy Inn of Court in 2019 and a Fellow of the Texas Bar Foundation in 2021.

Christy Amuny is an experienced trial lawyer who has tried over 100 cases to verdict. She received her undergraduate degree from The University of Texas (B.A. 1986) and attended Texas Tech School of Law (J.D. 1990). Christy is a native of Southeast Texas. She is licensed in both Texas and Louisiana, and is a member of the State Bar of Texas and the Louisiana State Bar. She is admitted to practice in both state and federal courts in Texas and Louisiana and in the United States Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit. She is Board Certified in Personal Injury Trial Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, a Diplomate in the American Board of Trial Advocates and a Fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers. She has served as President of the Jefferson County Bar Association (2006-2007), Chair of the Litigation Section of the State Bar of Texas (2013-2014), District 3 Representative on the State Bar Board of Directors, President of the Texas Association of Defense Counsel (2021-2022) and Chair of the State Bar of Texas Rules Committee (2024-2025). Christy was recognized as a Texas Super Lawyer, a Thompson Reuters publication, in 2004 and from 2006 to 2024. Christy practices in the areas of personal injury defense, insurance law, civil litigation, products liability, premises liability and extra-contractual insurance claims.