Hw do I help clients resolve complex disputes?

Having practiced law in Tulsa since 1973, I have developed a keen understanding of how organizations operate, and how conflicts can develop when business, employment, property or institutional interests collide. That perspective informs how I assess a dispute, identify the core issues, and determine how to move a matter forward.

Litigating a broad range of commercial disputes

Craig Hoster brings deep experience in disputes involving business torts, complex breaches of contract, labor and employment matters, real estate, oil and gas, condemnation, trucking accidents and even church law. Best Lawyers in Commercial Litigation has recognized these efforts, listing Craig every year since 2013.

From private to public

Craig’s experience also includes nine years chairing the State of Oklahoma Public Employees Relations Board, where he helped resolve numerous disputes between unions and municipalities under Oklahoma’s Municipal Employee Collective Bargaining Act and Fire and Police Arbitration Act.

Years of dedicated service

Craig has practiced in Tulsa for more than 50 years, tending to generations of clients and cases. He has also given back to the legal profession through the Tulsa County Bar Association, Tulsa County Bar Foundation, and Hudson-Hall-Wheaton Chapter of the American Inns of Court. He received the Inn’s Thomas R. Brett Award in 2001 and has served as Master Emeritus of the chapter.

Fighting for fundamental human rights

Craig’s legal work has also included matters beyond commercial and public-sector disputes. In 2007, the Southern Center for Human Rights presented him with its Frederick Douglass Human Rights Award for his work safeguarding the fundamental human rights of people detained at Guantanamo Bay. He also served in the United States Marine Corps Reserve and currently serves on the Synod’s Permanent Judicial Commission of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).

Credentials

  • University of Oklahoma College of Law, J.D., 1973
    • Order of the Coif
    • Oklahoma Law Review, Editor
  • University of Oklahoma, B.B.A., 1971

  • Oklahoma
  • U.S. Court of Appeals Tenth Circuit
  • U.S. District Court Eastern District Oklahoma
  • U.S. District Court Northern District Oklahoma
  • U.S. District Court Western District Oklahoma

  • State of Oklahoma Public Employees Relations Board Chair (2000 – 2009)
  • American Inns of Court, Hudson-Hall-Wheaton Chapter, Master Emeritus
  • Tulsa County Bar Foundation, Former Officer and Director
  • Tulsa County Bar Association, Former Director
  • Oklahoma Bar Association
  • American Bar Association

Honors & Awards

  • Thomas R. Brett Award, American Inns of Court, 2001
  • Best Lawyers, Commercial Litigation (2013 - Present)

Community Service

  • State of Oklahoma Public Employees Relations Board, Chair (2000 – 2009)
  • Eastern Oklahoma Presbytery, Moderator, 2015