Todd Mensing Attorney Profile, Credentials, and Career Record (Board Certified, Texas)

A handful of credentials carry real weight in the Texas legal profession. Board certification in Civil Trial Law is one of them. Out of roughly 120,000 attorneys licensed to practice in the state, fewer than 7,000 carry board certification in any specialty area from the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. Fewer than 800 hold the Civil Trial Law designation specifically.

Having tried over 60 cases, Todd Mensing’s attorney credentials include that certification, obtained in January 2011. It is a distinction earned by an average of fewer than five attorneys per year statewide. TBLS certification is the only mechanism by which a Texas attorney can legally call himself a specialist. No alternative path exists, and the State Bar bars any other use of the term in attorney advertising. Earning the Civil Trial Law designation requires a minimum of 20 civil trials in courts of record, seven as lead counsel before a jury, passage of a six-hour written exam, peer references from attorneys and a judge, and recertification every five years. For prospective clients or referring attorneys evaluating a trial lawyer in Houston, that credential provides something most directory profiles and law firm websites cannot: verification that someone else, with authority and standards, has already done the vetting on whether the attorney is an experienced trial specialist..

Education and Early Career

Mensing graduated from Stanford University with honors in 1994, then earned his law degree from the University of Texas School of Law in 1999, finishing in the top five percent of his class. He began practicing at Vinson & Elkins, a Houston firm that fields roughly 625 lawyers across a dozen global offices and ranks among the country’s most recognized energy practices. Credentials like those typically lead to a decades-long career at a large institutional platform.

Desiring to build his own firm, Mensing stayed less than two years. He helped form the current iteration of Ahmad, Zavitsanos & Mensing, the Houston trial firm known as AZA Law, in 2001. A decade later, he was elevated to name partners.

His practice at AZA has concentrated on commercial and intellectual property disputes involving energy, technology, healthcare, construction, real estate, executive employment, and finance and lending. He tries cases in state and federal courts and arbitration proceedings across the country.

Peer Review and Professional Memberships

Three years after earning board certification, Todd Mensing’s attorney credentials expanded with his 2014 election to the American Board of Trial Advocates. ABOTA requires at least 10 civil jury trials to verdict as lead counsel and a nomination from existing members before a local chapter vote. Founded in 1958, the organization counts roughly 7,600 members nationwide across 95 chapters and exists primarily to preserve the Seventh Amendment right to a civil jury trial.

Martindale-Hubbell awarded Mensing its AV Preeminent rating in 2016 with a 4.9 out of 5.0 score, its highest tier, based on confidential peer evaluations from both attorneys and judges. AV Preeminent denotes that a lawyer’s peers rank him at the highest level for both legal ability and ethical standards.

One peer reviewer called him “an extremely able lawyer and advocate in all phases of litigation and trial practice.” An opposing counsel described him as “a zealous advocate” who “showed great compassion” and was “a man of his word throughout the process.”

Third-Party Rankings

Chambers USA has ranked Todd Mensing attorney work in its General Commercial Litigation category for the Houston market since 2014. Recent reviewers called him “a razor-sharp strategist” who is “intuitive, decisive and driven to win,” “whip smart,” and “an incredible trial lawyer.”

A separate reviewer wrote: “Todd Mensing is a phenomenal attorney. He is a fierce litigator, understanding all the ins and outs of litigation.”

Lawdragon has named him among the country’s top 500 litigators and top 500 environmental lawyers for multiple consecutive years. The IAM Patent 1000 has ranked him as a leading patent litigator. He has been routinely named one of the top 100 Super Lawyers in Houston and Texas and is consistently recognized by Best Lawyers in America.

What the Record Adds Up To

Mensing’s trial accomplishments include multiple eight and nine-figure defense and plaintiff verdicts. Two recent results illustrate that range: a $41.8 million unanimous jury verdict for SilverBow Resources in a McMullen County oil and gas trespass case in February 2023, and a $28 million federal recovery for the Port of Houston Authority against Louis Dreyfus Company in March 2022.

AZA now counts more than 60 attorneys and opened a Dallas office in January 2026 focused on intellectual property litigation. Chambers USA 2025 ranks both the firm and Mensing individually for commercial litigation, with AZA carrying intellectual property recognition for a fifth consecutive year. His clients include Fortune 500 and Fortune 100 companies across the country who call on him for their most serious commercial and intellectual property matters.