Bell Nunnally has announced that Partner Christopher B. Trowbridge has been elected Managing Partner, effective September 1. He succeeds James A. Skochdopole, who had held the position since 1999 and will continue as Managing Partner Emeritus. In addition, Partner Tammy S. Wood has been named Chair of the firm’s Litigation Section, succeeding Trowbridge.
“Just as clients have treasured Jim’s business acumen, so too has the firm. During Jim’s tenure, our attorney head count doubled, and we have developed many successful, long-term client relationships that continue today,” said Trowbridge. “For two decades, Jim excelled at finding the right balance between expanding our practice offerings and staying true to the client-first, client-focused ethos on which Bell Nunnally was founded. I look forward to both continuing in this tradition and leading the team through our next level of growth and development.”
“It has been a great privilege to help lead Bell Nunnally over the past 20 plus years. Our collective efforts have built a dynamic, growing firm with strong roots in the Dallas community and a solid foundation for additional expansion,” said Skochdopole. “Chris is an outstanding leader steeped in the 'Bell Nunnally Way' and his vision and guidance will no doubt help the firm and our clients continue to thrive.”
“Tammy is an incredibly skilled litigator, and we are excited to have her serve as Bell Nunnally’s litigation chair,” added Trowbridge. “Her experience – working across practice disciplines and on varying cases – is elite, and this role only further cements the tremendous leadership she brings to the group and to the firm.”
Trowbridge is a trial attorney with particular emphasis on complex business disputes. He has been with Bell Nunnally for nearly 20 years. Trowbridge maintains an active docket and regularly tries cases before juries, judges and arbitration panels across the country. In 2017, he secured a $23.1 million jury verdict on behalf of a national cattle broker in a fraud matter involving a check kiting scheme and fraudulent cattle transactions – a matter that garnered national media attention and was ranked in the top five of
Texas Lawyer’s “Top Verdicts & Settlements” that year.
Selected by attorney peers for inclusion in
The Best Lawyers in America since 2017, selected as a “Texas Super Lawyer” since 2013 and previously named in “Legal Leaders on the Rise” and “Litigator of the Week” by
Texas Lawyer, Trowbridge is well-known for vigorously protecting his clients’ interests in high-stakes legal matters. In 2017 and 2019,
D Magazine named him to its “Best Lawyers in Dallas” list.
Active in his community, Trowbridge is chairman of the board of directors for the Thanks-Giving Foundation – the non-profit group that owns and operates Thanks-Giving Square, a contemplation garden, exhibition hall, and interfaith chapel in Downtown Dallas. He is also a former chairman of the board of directors for the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Dallas; a member of the Communities Foundation of Texas Advisory Council; and a member of the Dallas Regional Chamber, Southern Dallas Task Force. Trowbridge earned both his J.D. (‘98) and his B.B.A. (‘95) from Baylor University.
Wood is a trial lawyer who concentrates her practice in commercial litigation, employment litigation and workplace injury, property damage and personal injury defense. She also assists clients with human resources consulting and investigations. Wood also represents fiduciaries and beneficiaries in probate court litigation. She has first chaired jury trials, bench trials and arbitration proceedings to final judgment or award throughout Texas.
Wood is a board member of Trinity River Mission, a charitable organization providing educational and social support to K-12 students, and a board member to Educational Opportunities, Inc., a Dallas-based scholarship and mentoring organization dedicated to assisting youth who have the academic ability but not the financial means to attend college. Listed in
The Best Lawyers in America since 2016, she received her J.D. from Southern Methodist University’s Dedman School of Law (‘93) and her B.S. from Texas Woman’s University (‘90).
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Christopher B. Trowbridge
Tammy S. Wood