Carlene R. Lewis (1954-2006)
Carlene was born September 28, 1954, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and grew up in Chesapeake, Virginia. Carlene went to Harvard University, where she graduated cum laude and was a member of the Varsity Club.
After teaching at Hotchkiss, a prestigious private secondary school in Connecticut, Carlene went to the University of Virginia where she obtained her law degree and was a member of the Ravens Society. Carlene moved to Houston in 1984 and began her law career at the law firm of Sewell & Riggs. In 1989, she founded the law firm of Goforth Lewis with her partner Daniel Goforth.
In Carlene's law practice, she was dedicated to defending the rights of consumers. Carlene worked for many years on products liability defense, but in the last half of her career she was involved in plaintiff's litigation. Carlene is widely known to have begun the litigation against Merck and Co., Inc., relating to the pain medication Vioxx. Carlene had the honor of being appointed as a member of the Plaintiff's Steering Committee for the national Vioxx litigation, as well as the national litigation involving Bextra and Celebrex.
Carlene was honored posthumously with the award for Trial Lawyer of the Year through the Trial Lawyers for Public Justice national organization. Carlene is a life fellow of the Houston Bar Association, is a member of the Texas Trial Lawyers Association, and the Association of Trial Lawyers of America.
University of Virginia, J.D., 1983
Texas Trial Lawyer’s Association
Association of Trial Lawyer’s of America
Stephen J. Sharp Public Service Award from the American Association for Justice
Named Trial Lawyer of the Year in 2006 by Trial Lawyers for Public Justice