Professor Hester teaches environmental law and emerging technology courses at the University of Houston Law Center.  His research focuses on the innovative application of environmental laws to emerging technologies and risks, such as climate engineering, nanotechnologies, genetic modification, wind and other renewable power projects, and on novel compliance and liability issues. He is also appointed as an inaugural University of Houston Energy Fellow.

Hester also coordinates adjunct faculty courses on energy and environmental law in the University of Houston Law Center’s program and directs its Environment, Energy & Natural Resource Center's Speaker Series, which annually draws top speakers on energy and environmental topics to the University of Houston campus. Hester organizes and assists in the preparation of workshops and symposia on current energy and environmental topics.

Prior to joining the University of Houston Law Center, he served as a partner in Bracewell & Giuliani LLP for sixteen years and led the Houston office's environmental group. Hester was inducted into the American College of Environmental Lawyers in 2015, elected as a member of the American Law Institute in 2004, and named the Top Environmental Lawyer in Houston in 2011 by Best Lawyers of America. He was also elected to the Council of the American Bar Association’s Section on Environment, Energy and Resources (SEER) in 2011, and he currently chairs SEER's Special Committee on Congressional Relations. Hester is the past chair of SEER’s Environmental Enforcement and Crimes Committee, and he is currently vice-chair of the Greater Houston Partnership's Environmental Policy Advisory Committee and chairs the Texas Environmental Research Consortium.