Roll Call Tribute

Thomas R. "Tom" McDade 

January 15, 1933 - December 10, 2024 

Tom McDade died on December 10, 2024, from complications of old age. He lived a full and active life for 91 years.

Tom was born to Ross Elias McDade, Jr. and Maybelle Williams McDade in Shreveport, Louisiana. He was a devoted husband to his one true love Dorothy, father of three daughters, grandfather, great grandfather, brother, friend of many, rancher, jet fighter pilot, preeminent trial lawyer, and patriot. He will be sorely missed by his family and so many people whose lives he touched.

Tom attended public schools in Shreveport, and in May 1951, he graduated from Neville High School in Monroe, Louisiana, where he excelled at baseball. Upon graduation, Tom enrolled at Texas A&M University where he joined the Air Force ROTC, never having flown in an airplane.

Tom left Texas A&M for the last semester of his senior year and enrolled at the University of Texas at Austin. As a proud member of the Tau Chapter of Kappa Sigma fraternity, he made many lifelong friends, many of whom he continued to see until his death. As an undergraduate, Tom was a member of UT's Chancellors Council and The Littlefield Society.

More importantly, while at UT, Tom met and fell head-over-heels in love with Dorothy Ann Burgess, who was an extremely popular co-ed who received numerous honors at UT, including being the University's "Sweetheart" in 1954-55. They would later marry, and throughout their lives, they both always said that their times at UT were the happiest days of their lives.

Upon graduating in January 1956, Tom was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the USAF. He reported for duty in March 1956 and entered the Air Force's pilot training program ("Class of '57 Papa"). Tom earned his wings at Greenville AFB, Mississippi on June 27, 1957, during the very hot "Cold War." He was primarily a single-engine jet fighter pilot, but he accumulated over 7,500 hours of pilot flight time in a wide variety of aircraft, including sailplanes and balloons. Flying jet fighters was one of Tom's most rewarding undertakings, but he lamented that he did not see actual combat. On March 4, 1957, he safely ejected from a crippled air force jet, thus becoming a member of the Caterpillar Club, composed of everyone whose life had been spared by an emergency parachute jump.

Upon his Honorable Discharge from the Air Force, Tom entered the University of Texas School of Law, where he was in the top 2% of his class, graduating with an LLB degree in January 1962. He then joined the Houston law firm of Fulbright, Crooker, Freeman, Bates & Jaworski and immediately began trying complex cases under the mentorship of senior partners. In 1971, he became a partner in the firm later called Fulbright & Jaworski and was soon named a Senior Partner there. He eventually left to found McDade, Fogler, Maines & Lohse, and he spent the remainder of his career at Beck Redden.

Tom was a gifted trial lawyer who primarily represented civil defendants throughout his career, but he also tried criminal cases. He was admired for his honesty, fairness, and high ethical standards, as well as for his unique, dynamic style with witnesses, judges and juries. Tom was a member of the State Bar of Texas, the American Bar Association, and the Houston Bar Association. Among his many accomplishments in a long and distinguished legal career, Tom was elected as a Fellow in the prestigious American College of Trial Lawyers in 1980. Tom was an Advocate in the American Board of Trial Attorneys. He was first named to the "Best Lawyers in America" in 1981, and in 1983, the Dallas Times Herald declared Tom a legal "Legend." He was recognized by the Texas Lawyer as a "Super Lawyer" every year from the inception of that honor until he entered semi-retirement.

Tom served on the boards of directors of several public companies: The Coastal Corporation, Equity Corporation and the El Paso Corporation. He also served as a board member of three banks, the Texas Aviation Hall of Fame and the Texas Department of Corrections. Tom was a Trustee of the US Naval Aviation Museum Foundation and was a long-time member of River Oaks Country Club. Tom was a member of St. Martin's Episcopal Church. 

Tom is survived by his wife, Dorothy; daughters, Kellye M. Pyle and her husband, Bill, Melinda McDade, and Daughter Mallory R. McNamara and her husband, Don; three former sons-in-law (of whom he was very fond); grandchildren, Thomas J. Seals and his wife, Samantha, Carson Shearer England and husband, John, Audrey Pyle Voss and her husband, Robert, and Emily Pyle Fadool and her husband, Vic; step-grandson, Connor McNamara; great-grandchildren, Rainey Seals, Aker Rambaut Seals, Madison Kellye Voss, and Ezra Shearer; his brother, William A. McDade and his wife, Sharon; and many wonderful friends and extended family members. His parents and brother, Ross E. McDade III; his sister, Betty Marie McDade; and his brother-in-law, Charles E. Burgess predeceased him.

A memorial celebration of life service will be held at St. Martin's Episcopal Church at 1 p.m., on January 31, 2025. The family will receive guests in the Tom Bagby Parish Hall immediately following the service.