Christina Schovajsa

Christina K. Schovajsa is a senior and founding partner of Merkley Jones Eastham, PLLC, and plays a central role in the firm’s maritime, transportation, and catastrophic injury defense practices. With more than twenty six years of experience, she has been a driving force behind Eastham’s major casualty, personal injury, and appellate dockets, providing clients with sophisticated, steady guidance across every phase of the litigation process.

Ms. Schovajsa joined the Eastham firm in 1998 and rose rapidly, becoming a partner in 2003—a testament to her exceptional advocacy, legal insight, and client focused approach. Today, she is trusted by domestic and international clients alike to lead high stakes matters involving maritime accidents, personal injury claims, and complex jurisdictional issues. Her reputation is built on deep experience in both Texas state courts and U.S. federal courts, where she has successfully managed everything from initial incident investigations and risk evaluations to motion practice, discovery strategies, mediation, and trial. Her skill set is particularly sought after in cases involving personal jurisdiction, forum non conveniens, choice of law and federal preemption disputes—areas in which she has secured significant victories for clients at both the trial and appellate levels.

Ms. Schovajsa’s leadership extends beyond the courtroom. She has served as Chairman of the Maritime Torts and Casualties Committee of the Maritime Law Association of the United States and previously as Editor of the Association’s Limitation of Liability Newsletter, roles that underscore her influence within the national admiralty law community. She is recognized as a Proctor Member of the Maritime Law Association—a credential reserved for highly experienced maritime practitioners.

Her professional excellence has earned widespread recognition, including being named to The Best Lawyers in America® for Admiralty and Maritime Law for many consecutive years. Clients value her not only for her legal acumen, but for her judgment, communication, and unwavering dedication to protecting their interests in high risk environments.

Today, as part of the Merkley Jones Eastham team, Ms. Schovajsa strives to exemplify the firm’s core values: depth of experience, unwavering commitment, and strategic excellence.

Practice Areas

• Admiralty & Maritime
• Appellate
• Catastrophic Personal Injury & Wrongful Death
• Energy
• Environmental & Toxic Tort
• General Liability
• Insurance
• Premises Liability
• Transportation
• Trucking
• Workplace Injury

Selected Decisions

• In re ENSCO Offshore Int’l Co., 311 S.W.3d 921 (Tex. 2010) (Texas Supreme Court granted petition for writ of mandamus finding that trial court’s denial of motion to dismiss on forum non conveniens grounds was abuse of discretion).
• Abston v. Jungerhans Mar. Servs. GMBH & Co. KG, 664 F. App’x 378 (5th Cir. 2016) (Fifth Circuit affirmed summary judgment in favor of vessel dismissing longshoreman’s personal injury claims).
• In re OSG Ship Mgmt., Inc., 2016 WL 7478376 (Tex. App.–Houston [14th Dist.] Dec. 29, 2016) (Court of Appeals granted defendant’s petition for mandamus and directed trial court to dismiss case pursuant to forum selection clause).
• Womble v. Gulf Consolidated Chassis Pool, LLC, et al, C.A. No. 2017-23976, In the 215th Judicial District Court of Harris County, Texas, October 14, 2018 (Obtained summary judgment in catastrophic brain injury case).
• Fitzgerald v. Consolidated Chassis Management, LLC, Gulf Consolidated Chassis Pool, LLC, Flexi-Van Leasing, Inc., et al, in the 133rd Judicial District Court of Harris County, Texas, July 11, 2016 (Obtained summary judgment in wrongful death case).
• Shaffer v. Hamburg Sud North America, C.A. No. 4:15-cv-01345 (S.D. Tex. Oct. 7, 2016) (Obtained dismissal of longshoreman’s personal injury claims).
• Rodriguez-Magos v. MS Wotan Reederei Tamke GmbH & Co. KG, C.A. No. 4:14-cv-01807 (S.D. Tex. March 14, 2016) (Obtained dismissal of longshoreman’s personal injury claims).
• Giron v. Intermarine LLC, C.A. No. 4:10-cv-00231 (S.D. Tex. March 27, 2014) (Obtained dismissal of longshoreman’s personal injury claims).
• FD Frontier Drilling (Cyprus), Ltd. v. Didmon, 438 S.W.3d 688 (Tex. App.–Houston [1st Dist.] 2014) (Court of Appeals held the trial court erred in refusing to compel arbitration).
• Balachander v. AET Inc. Ltd., 2011 WL 4500048 (S.D. Tex. Sept. 27, 2011) (Plaintiffs’ motion to remand denied).
• Hopper v. M/V UBC SINGAPORE, 2010 WL 2977296 (S.D. Tex. July 20, 2010) (Obtained dismissal of non-dependent parents’ claims for loss of society, pecuniary loss and punitive damages via summary judgment).
• Hopper v. M/V UBC SINGAPORE, 2010 WL 2787806 (S.D. Tex. July 14, 2010) (Limited and excluded testimony from multiple plaintiff experts).
• Gates v. Omega Protein Corp.; Cause No. 2008-69985; In the 333rd Judicial District of Harris County, Texas, September 9, 2009 (Trial court granted dismissal for forum non conveniens).
• Aitkin v. Stena Drilling Ltd., Cause No. 08-cv-02390, In the 56th Judicial District of Galveston County, September 3, 2009 (Defendants dismissed for lack of jurisdiction).
• Cobb v. Stern, Miller & Higdon, 305 S.W.3d 36 (Tex. App.–Houston [1st Dist.] 2009) (Court of Appeals reversed trial court’s denial of special appearance and dismissed suit).
• In re Omega Protein, Inc., 288 S.W.3d 17 (Tex. App.–Houston [1st Dist.] 2009) (Court of Appeals directed trial court to grant defendant’s motion to dismiss for forum non conveniens).
• Farwah v. Prosperous Mar. Corp., 220 S.W.3d 585 (Tex. App.–Beaumont 2007) (Court of Appeals affirmed dismissal of foreign shipowning defendants for lack of personal jurisdiction in wrongful death matter that occurred in Texas).
• Complaint of Omega Protein as owner of the F/V Caminada Bay, Cause No. 03-cv-1872 (W.D. La. Aug. 20, 2004) (Obtained summary judgment on wrongful death claims by longshoreman’s survivors).

Selected Trials

• Bonefont v. U.S. Shipping Partners LP
  Jones Act personal injury claim
  Low back injury
  Demand: $250,000
  Judgment: Plaintiff take nothing
• Curry, James Harold vs. ENSCO Offshore Company
  Jones Act personal injury claim
  Operated low back
  Demand: $500,000.00
  Judgment: $244,500.00
  Jury awarded $344,200.00 ($507,000.00 less contributory negligence assessment)
  Trial court sua sponte entered final judgment against Defendant for $507,000.00. U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals reduced judgment to $244,500.00 by reversing trial court’s judgment as to both Plaintiff’s contributory negligence and award of future medical expenses.
• McGuire, Chadwick vs. ENSCO Marine Company
  Jones Act personal injury claim
  Operated low back
  Demand: $1,500,000.00
  Judgment: Judgment for Defendant (Trial court judgment of $770,190.33 was reversed and rendered by U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals)
• Motts, Neville vs. Central Gulf Lines, Inc., et al
  Wrongful death claim under Jones Act, Death on High Seas Act, General Maritime Law and state law
  Crushed pelvis and hip requiring hip replacement surgery, after which Plaintiff suffered a fatal heart attack
  Demand: $1,900,000.00
  Judgment: $687,686.00 (Trial court judgment of $1,312,686.00 was reduced and remanded by U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals as to entire $625,000.00 awarded as non-pecuniary damages)

Education

• J.D., University of Houston Law Center, 1997
• B.S., University of Houston, 1993
• University of Texas

Court Admissions

• State Bar of Texas
• Texas Supreme Court and all lower Texas Courts
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
• U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas
• U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas

Honors and Distinctions

• Lawdragon 500 Leading Litigators in America, 2026
• Best Lawyers in America, 2020-2026

Professional Memberships

• Maritime Law Association of the United States (Proctor Member)
• Southeastern Admiralty Law Institute
• Defense Research Institute

Published Works

• “Personal Injury Litigation in the U.S.-Protecting the Shipowner Before and After Suit is Filed” — Assuranceforeningen GARD Summer Seminar, Arendal, Norway (2001)
• “Contractual and Litigation Considerations for Employees Working Outside the U.S.” – 63rd Annual Oil & Gas Law Conference (2012)