Roland Christensen

Attorney

Roland Christensen's Headshot

Roland Christensen is a trial lawyer passionate about helping injured individuals and families. He aggressively represents plaintiffs in courts across the Gulf Coast and throughout the U.S. His practice focuses on matters involving catastrophic personal injury and wrongful death.

“At Arnold & Itkin, we go the distance. Lawsuits are hard and many defendants don’t want to take accountability, especially when the facts of the case are tragic. When other attorneys may give up, we work even harder and fight for clients to obtain the best possible results.”

Biography

Over his career as a trial lawyer, Roland has obtained success at a young age that many attorneys only hope to achieve over an entire legal career. During his time at Arnold & Itkin, Roland has been the driving force on some of the largest and most complex cases that the firm has taken on. Roland has tried numerous cases to verdict and obtained record-setting settlements both inside and outside of Texas, changing the lives of his clients in all types of situations.

Recently, Roland won a verdict on a wrongful death case for $209.2 million. The case was litigated for multiple years before trial with the Defendant offering only $200,000 to settle the case even at trial. Even though the case had many difficult facts and legal challenges, Roland did not back down and took the case to verdict resulting in one of the largest wrongful death verdicts in the United States.

Roland specializes in working on the most difficult and complex cases – often cases that other firms turn down because of the expense and complexity in winning. Roland’s tireless work ethic and meticulous attention to detail have resulted in massive results for his clients.

Roland plays a significant role in the firm’s largest single-event cases. In his time at Arnold & Itkin, Roland has been directly involved in the litigation and ultimate resolution of over $1 billion of verdicts and settlements for his clients. Notably, many of those verdicts and settlements were substantial eight- and nine-figure amounts for individual plaintiffs. Roland has obtained over 100 million-dollar settlements or verdicts in his career.

Roland’s practice is unique in that he has heavy involvement in the firm’s highly successful mass tort practice both in running large dockets of complex cases and also taking pharmaceutical cases to trial. For example, Roland and Jason Itkin were part of the trial team that won an unprecedented $8 billion verdict against Johnson & Johnson after a lengthy trial. This was the third-largest jury verdict ever obtained for an individual plaintiff in the United States, and it is the largest single-plaintiff jury verdict ever won in Pennsylvania.

Beyond his work on cases, Roland plays a significant role in management and training at the firm. Roland has helped Arnold & Itkin develop cutting-edge practices using the newest technology available for lawyers to help Arnold & Itkin maximize results. Roland is dedicated to continuing to help Arnold & Itkin stay at the very forefront of legal practice in all aspects.

No matter what area of the firm or what type of case Roland is working on, his attitude is the same. He refuses to show up unprepared and refuses to rest until the job is done. Clients across the United States have trusted Roland to defend their interests – and Roland does not let them down.

While Roland’s career at Arnold & Itkin has been extremely successful, his personal success began before joining Arnold & Itkin. Roland graduated from the J. Reuben Clark Law School at Brigham Young University magna cum laude in the top 20 students of his graduating class. Prior to joining Arnold & Itkin Roland Spent time working for some of the largest firms in Houston and also interning for the Honorable Lee H. Rosenthal.
Roland lives in Houston, Texas but practices all over the United States. Roland is licensed to practice in Texas, Louisiana, California, Pennsylvania, and Georgia. Roland was born in Bloomington, Indiana and grew up living all around the country and internationally. While not at work Roland enjoys spending time with his wife and children and volunteering at his local church.

Roland's Case Results

  • $193 Million

    Settlement Won for Victims of Pipeline Explosion

    Kurt Arnold, Caj Boatright, and Roland Christensen obtained a $193,000,000 settlement for two offshore workers injured by a pipeline explosion. One of the injured workers eventually succumbed to his injuries and sadly passed away. After being hired, Arnold & Itkin immediately mobilized—investigating the incident, collecting evidence, and taking numerous depositions of the key witnesses in the case. Our firm navigated the case through the unique aspects of maritime law. Our expertise in this area of the law ensured that it moved quickly toward trial, which the negligent companies wanted to avoid at all costs. Rather than face a jury verdict, the companies relented and paid a settlement that will take care of these families for generations to come. In addition to pushing the case toward trial, Arnold & Itkin also helped our clients get the best care and support after such a tragic event. It is truly our privilege to represent hard-working families like these when everything is on the line for them.

    Attorney's fees and expenses totaled $48,299,115.80

  • $125 Million

    Settlement Won for Widow of Dredge Worker

    Kurt Arnold, Caj Boatright, and Roland Christensen obtained a $125,000,000 settlement for the widow of a dredge worker who had been severely burned in an offshore explosion. Arnold & Itkin spared no expense in aggressively collecting and evaluating the evidence. Our firm also quickly took the depositions of critical company witnesses to prepare the case for trial. We likewise helped our clients obtain excellent support after such a tragic event. The threat of a jury trial ultimately forced the defendants to pay a settlement that will take care of our client and her family from here forward. Arnold & Itkin takes immense pride in pursuing justice for its clients when circumstances are catastrophic.

    Attorney's fees and expenses totaled $25,314,721.36

  • $78 Million

    Massive Settlement for Severely Injured Client

    Kurt Arnold, Jason Itkin, Caj Boatright, and Roland Christensen negotiated a $78 million settlement on behalf of a client severely injured in West Texas.

    Attorney's fees and expenses totaled $32,778,286.12

  • $77.5 Million

    Settlement Reached for Houston Man Injured in a Forklift Incident

    Attorneys Kurt Arnold, Caj Boatright, and Roland Christensen won a $77.5 million settlement for a Houston family man paralyzed in a workplace incident. Immediately after our firm was hired, we hired the industry’s best experts to investigate the incident and determine how and why it happened. Faced with overwhelming evidence proving their negligence, the defendants chose to pay a record settlement instead of facing a jury. Arnold & Itkin will do whatever it takes to ensure our clients and their families are taken care of in the face of catastrophic circumstances.

    Attorney's fees and expenses totaled $31,119,376.97

  • $68 Million

    Settlement Obtained for Injured Dredge Worker

    Kurt Arnold, Caj Boatright, and Roland Christensen obtained a $68,000,000 settlement for a Texas offshore worker injured in a pipeline explosion. Arnold & Itkin ensured our client received impeccable care for his injuries and that his family was supported after the incident. At the same time, our firm began an aggressive investigation and pushed toward trial—collecting critical evidence and deposing every key witness in the case. The negligent defendants had no choice but to avoid trial and settle the case for an amount that changed our client’s and his family’s lives forever. Arnold & Itkin takes pride in being the preeminent maritime law firm in the United States and using that expertise to pursue justice for its clients when tragedy strikes.

    Attorney's fees and expenses totaled $22,984,394.11

  • $44.6 Million

    Record-Setting Settlement Secured for 3 Refinery Workers

    Attorneys Kurt Arnold, Caj Boatright, and Roland Christensen obtained a $44.6 million settlement for 3 workers who were severely or fatally injured in a Gulf Coast refinery. Instead of taking responsibility, the refinery and its contractors hired a large legal team to evade liability. Our firm relentlessly forced the case to trial after taking dozens of depositions and exposing the bad acts that led to the incident. In the end, the defendants paid a record-setting settlement rather than face a jury.

    Attorney's fees and expenses totaled $18,696,926.33

  • $36.5 Million

    Settlement Secured for Injured Oilfield Worker

    Attorneys Kurt Arnold, Caj Boatright, and Roland Christensen obtained a $36,500,000 settlement for a Texas oilfield worker after more than two years of hotly contested litigation. The defendants denied liability, would not accept blame, and actually tried to blame our client. Our firm took over 40 depositions and would not take “no” for an answer. Faced with trial and the possibility of a huge verdict, the defendants relented and paid our client an amount that ensures his family and generations down the line will never have to worry about money again. Our firm takes pride in helping clients get maximum recovery for their injuries.

    Attorney's fees and expenses totaled $16,465,836.13

  • $28.5 Million

    Hard-Won Case Settled for Significant Amount

    Attorneys Kurt Arnold, Caj Boatright, and Roland Christensen secured a $28,500,000 settlement on behalf of our clients. The case required more than 50 depositions and more than $4,000,000 in expenses were expended to secure the right result. Few firms take on fights presented by this case, but AI did and, due to our efforts, our clients were able to get the compensation they deserved despite strong opposition from the companies who ultimately paid.
  • $25.8 Million

    Settlement Reached for Maritime Workers Injured in a Barge Explosion

    Attorneys Kurt Arnold, Caj Boatright, and Roland Christensen obtained a huge settlement for several barge workers and their families following an explosion off the Texas Gulf Coast. The case required maximum resources and a calculated litigation strategy, which Arnold & Itkin provided to ensure a great result for our clients despite the tragic circumstances. Our firm will stop at nothing to get the very best results for our clients.

    Attorney's fees and expenses totaled $12,003,440.84

  • $18.75 Million

    Settlement Secured for Injured Oilfield Worker

    Attorneys Kurt Arnold, Caj Boatright, Roland Christensen, and Kyle Findley negotiated an $18,750,000 settlement for an injured oilfield worker. After being hired for this case, our team forced the negligent companies who caused the incident to turn over tens of thousands of documents. We reviewed every single document, found the “needle in the haystack,” embarked on an aggressive campaign to cross examine the key witnesses, and prepared to try the case to a jury. Arnold & Itkin LLP’s relentless strategy left the defendants with little choice but to settle the case instead of face trial. Our client will now be taken care of medically and financially for the rest of his life.

    Attorney's fees and expenses totaled $7,784,595.67

  • $14 Million

    Settlement Reached for 3 Tugboat Workers Injured in an Explosion

    Following an explosion on a barge being pushed by a tugboat off the Texas coast, Kurt Arnold, Caj Boatright, and Roland Christensen were entrusted to represent three injured workers. We worked quickly to make sure our clients received the best medical care available. Our firm then worked tirelessly to investigate the incident and uncover how the tugboat company’s negligence caused the explosion. After hard-fought litigation, the defendant chose to pay a substantial settlement to avoid having a jury decide the case

    Attorney's fees and expenses totaled $6,826,071.28

  • $12.5 Million

    Settlement Reached for Man Injured While Working Overseas

    Kurt Arnold, Caj Boatright, and Roland Christensen obtained a $12,500,000 settlement for a Mississippi offshore oilfield worker injured overseas. Our client suffered back and head injures when he fell from a defective piece of equipment while conducting drilling operations in Gulf of Thailand on an oil rig. He trusted our firm to investigate and prosecute his case. Arnold & Itkin LLP helped him get world class medical care, and we overcame multiple legal hurdles to make sure our client received his day in Court in the United States. We take comfort in knowing that our client and his family will be taken care of for the rest of their lives. This case presented obstacles that many firms would have been unable to overcome, but Arnold & Itkin LLP dedicated the resources and relentless effort to win.

    Attorney's fees and expenses totaled $5,292,079.14

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