Article taken "The Texas Lawyer"
Ruff's Record: 32 Trials in '86
On a typical Monday this month, Odessa lawyer Ruff Ahders was scheduled to begin three trials in two cities 34 miles apart and appear at a hearing - all at 9 a.m. Ahders' calendar helps explain how he manages to try more civil cases than any other Texas Lawyer, according to some of his peer's tallies. So far this year: 32, all before juries. Along the way, Ahders has set records in two West Texas counties for awards of more that $1 million each.
A solo practitioner, Ahders specializes in plaintiff injury work. He's as ubiquitous in West Texas district courts as the tumble weed on Odessa streets. "Making me go to trial is like throwing Brer Rabbit in the brier patch," he said. "That's where I want to be. The only relief, relaxation and fun I have in life from a law practice standpoint is trying lawsuits. That's the gravy."
"Trying 30-plus cases in one year is something akin to running five or six marathons," said Kirk Purcell, a Houston plaintiff's lawyer. "Ruff's a rare bird. If you can find a lawyer - criminal or civil - who tried 15 in a year, that in and of itself is incredible....very few lawyers can bear the emotional strain of getting that many cases ready."
His win-loss record so far in '86: 24-8. "five of those [24 wins] I consider ties because the jury beat the insurance companies offers, but I think we should have gotten more," Ahders said. Ahders' victories have been upheld in all seven of the cases in which appeals courts ruled.
"I'm not a screamer, crier, hollerer or flag waver," he said, "I try to cut away the B.S. and get down to the heart of the matter."