About
Kirby Hopkins built his practice around the kinds of business disputes that don't have simple answers, like cases where the law, the finances, and years of shared history all collide. For more than two decades, he has focused on shareholder oppression cases: the complex, high-stakes conflicts that arise inside closely held companies when one owner's conduct begins to unravel what everyone else worked to build.
A third-generation Houstonian, Kirby has deep roots in the Texas business community and a hard-earned understanding of what closely held companies look like from the inside. These are businesses where personal relationships and professional obligations are inextricably linked, which is what makes shareholder disputes so volatile and resistant to simple resolutions. Kirby has spent his career learning how these conflicts develop, what drives them, and how to bring them to a resolution that actually serves the client.
Shareholder oppression tends to build slowly with “small” actions, like a co-owner gradually cut out of decisions, distributions quietly withheld, ownership interests diluted without proper authority, company records kept out of reach, or fiduciary duties breached in ways that accumulate before anyone names them for what they are. Kirby understands this pattern well and has the experience to assess it quickly, advise on rights and realistic options under Texas law, and prepare the kind of case that holds up when the dispute reaches its conclusion. That holds true whether he is representing a shareholder whose rights have been systematically violated or an ownership group confronting claims of oppressive conduct. The goal is always to resolve the matter decisively, on the best available terms, with as little collateral damage to the business and the people involved as the circumstances allow.
A related part of Kirby's practice involves what he calls "business divorces" or the full unraveling of a co-ownership structure when a business relationship breaks down beyond repair. These matters draw on the same command of Texas corporate law and the same ability to manage personal conflict that shareholder oppression cases demand.
Kirby earned his J.D. from the University of Texas School of Law and began his legal career as a briefing attorney at the Texas Court of Appeals, where he developed a thorough grounding in how Texas courts reason through complex legal questions. He went on to earn extensive experience at both boutique and large law firms before co-founding Hopkins Centrich Law.
Outside the courtroom, Kirby is an active presence in the Texas legal and business community. He has served as President of The Woodlands Bar Association, Vice President of the Louisiana School for Math, Science and Arts Alumni Association, and Trustee of the LSMSA Foundation. His peers have recognized him as one of Houston's Top Lawyers in Business Litigation by H Texas Magazine, and he has earned recognition as a Texas Super Lawyers® Rising Stars℠ member.
He is a lifelong Astros fan with family connections to Houston baseball— his grandfather served as president of the city's minor league team long before the Colt .45s ever played a game. Kirby stays active in the community through his support of the Alzheimer's Association.
Representative Matters
In L&S Pro-Line, LLC v. Garrett Gagliano, Kirby served as co-counsel in an eight-day jury trial in Montgomery County, representing a 25% minority shareholder and CFO who had been physically locked out of his own company after raising concerns about the majority owner's conduct, including allegations of bribery and illegal employment practices. The claims included breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, and a shareholder derivative action. The jury returned a unanimous verdict for Kirby's client, with findings of malice, gross negligence, and intentional self-enrichment by the majority owner, resulting in one of the largest business case awards in Montgomery County history. The case later reached the Texas Supreme Court, where its implications for fiduciary duty law in closely held Texas companies have continued to develop.
