Patricia Rigney, the city attorney for the City of Mission and owner of Rigney Law Firm, has been reappointed by Governor Greg Abbott to the Business Advisory Council within the Texas Division of Emergency Management. In that role, Rigney provides advice and expertise on actions state and local governments can take to assist businesses in recovering from a disaster.
Michael Reeder, a seasoned trial attorney and patent litigator, has joined Blank Rome’s Houston office as a partner in the Intellectual Property Litigation group and member of the Technology industry team. Previously, Reeder was a partner and founding member at Cadwell Clonts Reeder & Thomas.
Jonathan Harmon has been named one of Virginia’s 50 Most Powerful Leaders in 2025 by the publication Virginia Business. Harmon was elected to be the first Black chairman of the state’s largest law firm McGuireWoods in 2017 as a nationally recognized trial lawyer representing Fortune 500 companies.
Scott Cole, a veteran trial lawyer and patent litigator, has joined Reichman Jorgensen Lehman & Feldberg as managing partner of its Austin office. Cole has three decades of experience in commercial and intellectual property disputes with past leadership roles at top firms including Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan and McKool Smith.
Harris Well has been elected to partner at Reynolds Frizzell in Houston. A trial attorney with the firm since 2017, Harris is a master of deep and diligent research who finds unique ways to resolve legal issues for his business litigation clients in the energy, real estate, and financial industries.
Jesse Zambrano has created a Legal Eagles pipeline program through the Zambrano Law Firm. The program provides an immersive learning experience to high school and college students aspiring to make their mark in the legal domain, including a mentorship platform, educational resources, networking opportunities, and hands-on legal case experience.
Art Pertile passed away on Feb. 25, 2025. Pertile served as the Katy city attorney from 2010 to 2023 and was a partner at Houston-based law firm Olson & Olson.
Brighten S. Kaufman has been promoted to an associate for Akin where she will advise private fund managers and represent institutional and private investors across various jurisdictions. She was previously an Akin summer associate and a Strauss Diversity & Inclusion Scholar.
Kyle Fox has joined Perkins Coie’s Mergers & Acquisitions and Private Equity practices as a partner working in the firm’s Austin office. Fox is part of a three-partner group that made the move to Perkins Coie from Greenberg Traurig.
James Lloyd has been appointed deputy policy director to Vice President JD Vance. Before being called to serve in the Trump administration, Lloyd was deputy attorney general for civil litigation.
Senior Justice Debra H. Lehrmann, Texas Supreme Court’s longest-serving woman justice, has been named the 2025 recipient of the prestigious Samuel Pessarra Outstanding Jurist Award by the Texas Bar Foundation.
Mickey Klein, a longtime supporter and contributor to various programs and colleges at The University of Texas at Austin, has been awarded the Shirley Bird Perry Longhorn Citizenship Award with his wife Jeanne.
Harry Charles Dishman Jr. passed away Feb. 18, 2025. A double Longhorn who had a bachelor’s degree in business administration/accounting, Dishman was a skillful salesman of luxury goods for Tiffany’s, Cartier, and Gump’s.
Kate Goodrich has been promoted to a senior policy advisor and member of Holland & Knight’s Government Advocacy Team. Goodrich previously was deputy general counsel and policy advisor for the Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives and a governmental affairs consultant with Jackson Walker.
Stephen Yeh has been promoted to partner at Latham & Watkins in Los Angeles, effective March 1, 2025. Yeh is a member of the firm’s Project Development & Finance Practice and Finance Department, where he represents financial institutions, corporate investors, sponsors, and developers.
Robert Brown has been promoted to partner at Latham & Watkins, effective March 1, 2025. Brown is a member of the firm’s Privacy & Cyber Practice and Corporate Department, where he advises clients on compliance with data privacy and security laws.
James Stripling passed away Jan. 23, 2025. Stripling served six years in the Army JAG Corps, becoming a captain. After returning home, he joined Decker Jones Law Firm, working there as a tax and estate attorney for the next 50 years.
Jesse Pierce, co-founder of Pierce & O’Neill in Houston, has been named among the nation’s top energy and natural resources litigation attorneys in Lawdragon’s 500 Leading Energy Lawyers listing.
Jack O’Neill, co-founder of Pierce & O’Neill in Houston, has been named among the nation’s top energy and natural resources litigation attorneys in Lawdragon’s 500 Leading Energy Lawyers listing.
Judge Sam Lindsay, the first African American U.S. district judge for the Northern District of Texas and the first African American city attorney for the City of Dallas, received Texas Law’s 2025 Virgil C. Lott Medal at a ceremony on Feb. 19, 2025.
John L. Adams has been recognized with the University of Texas Presidential Citation Award for his dedication and support of the University. Adams is the former chairman and CEO of Chase Bank of Texas and former vice chairman of Trinity Industries, Inc. He is a supporter of the McCombs Scholars Program at UT’s McCombs School of Business, has chaired UT’s Development Board, and serves on the What Starts Here Campaign steering committee.
The Honorable Kay Bailey Hutchison has been recognized with the University of Texas Presidential Citation Award for her dedication and support of the University. A three-term U.S. senator, Bailey Hutchison went on to serve as the United States ambassador to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), in Brussels, Belgium. Named in her honor, UT’s Kay Bailey Hutchison Energy Center is a collaboration between Texas Law, the McCombs School of Business, the Cockrell School of Engineering, and the Jackson School of Geosciences.
Emily Leitch has joined Jackson Walker as a partner in the Corporate & Securities practice group in Houston. Leitch advises clients on equity and debt offerings, high-yield transactions, and IPOs, representing underwriters, issuers, and SPACs in public and private deals.
Wendy Harvel has joined Spencer Fane as of counsel attorney in the Environmental and Energy Law practice groups. Previously, Harvel served as a master administrative law judge and head of the Public Utility Team for the Texas State Office of Administrative Hearings, where she acted as a neutral party presiding over disputes between Texas agencies, other governmental entities, and private citizens.
Diana Dutton passed away on Feb. 3, 2025. Dutton was the first female attorney hired by the Environmental Protection Agency in the South-Central Region and among the few women at the EPA nationally in 1972. In 1981, she joined Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld, where she was a partner until her retirement.
Charles Hoffman passed away on Jan. 30, 2025. Hoffman, who served four years in the U.S. Air Force prior to law school, retired as senior counsel of ExxonMobil Gas Marketing Company in 2002. In his career, he argued several cases before the D.C. and Fifth Circuit Courts of Appeals, and he contributed to the briefs for two Supreme Court cases.
James Coffee passed away on Jan. 7, 2025. After serving in the U.S. Air Force, Coffee was deputy general counsel at Atlantic Richfield Company from 1973 until his retirement in 1998.
Jayne Piana has been named co-chair of Brown Rudnick’s Patent Trial and Appeal Board practice group after joining the firm in 2024. Piana advises clients on IP protection issues including technology transactions, disputes and freedom-to-operate cases.
Erick Robinson has been named co-chair of Brown Rudnick’s Patent Trial and Appeal Board practice group after joining the firm in 2024. Robinson is an experienced trial attorney, patent litigator and IP strategist with a background in biotechnology, computer science and electronics.
James C. Lawler has since worked as a national security consultant since retiring as a senior CIA Operations officer in 2005. Lawler, who received The Trailblazer Award, the Director’s Award, the HUMINT Collector Award and the Donovan Award while with the CIA, has published two spy novels: “Living Lies” and “In the Twinkling of an Eye.”
Junish Arora has a new position as the deputy director of the Office of Civil Rights for the United States Department of Commerce. He currently serves as chair of the Council’s Infrastructure Workstream and held numerous positions in the Department of Homeland Security before joining Commerce.
Greg Flores has been named a partner at Nichols Weitzner Thomas in Houston. Flores, who focuses his practice on healthcare regulation and litigation, was honored in the 2023 and 2024 editions of ‘”Ones to Watch” by Best Lawyers of America.
Thomas Nguyen competed in Netflix’s “Squid Game: The Challenge,” a reality competition series based on the South Korean drama series. Nguyen works in commercial real estate at Global Commercial Real Estate Services and co-founded the South African Peli Peli restaurants.
Charles Lee has been appointed senior advisor to acting chairman Mark T. Uyeda at the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Thomas Burton has joined Steptoe & Johnson’s Business Department as of counsel at the firm’s Dallas office. Burton specializes in corporate matters and previously served as chief legal officer of Service King Collision.
Reid Barnes has joined Steptoe & Johnson’s Dallas office as an associate. A double Longhorn, Barnes specializes in commercial real estate properties and is a member of the Dallas Bar Association.
Ronnie Skloss has joined Holland & Knight as a partner in the firm’s Austin office. Skloss, who was previously a shareholder with Greenberg Traurig, focuses his practice on strategic business transactions.
Lisa Magick is the co-founder of Bathe Austin, the city’s first bathhouse, which will open in fall 2025. In addition, Magick is an interior designer and is president of lifestyle brand Vacay Vans.
Gregory Smith was named partner at Vela Wood in Dallas. Smith, who focuses on real estate, corporate finance, and general business transactions, is a four-time Super Lawyers Rising Star recipient and a Texas Bar Foundation fellow.
Ricky Brent Keis passed away Feb. 1, 2025. A veteran of the U.S. Navy, Keis began his law career as an attorney in Fort Worth and was later appointed to the bench at County Court at Law No. 1, where he served until his retirement in 2010.
Lance Caughfield has been named director of advocacy programs and assistant clinical professor of legal advocacy at the SMU Dedman School of Law. Previously, Caughfield focused on civil appeals at the law firm of Baker | Moran.
Marysia Laskowski has been promoted to counsel at Hunton Andrews Kurth in Dallas. Laskowski focuses her practice on corporate and regulatory matters involving banks and other financial institutions.
Joe Lawlor has been promoted to partner at Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe in Houston. Lawlor represents clients in the energy industry and focuses his practice on renewables and oil and gas transactions.
Mason Harry has been promoted to partner at Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe in Houston. He represents clients in the acquisition, development, financing and disposition of energy projects across the United States.
Luis A. Reyes, a regulatory attorney and former high-ranking government official, has joined Troutman Pepper Locke as a partner in its Regulatory Investigations, Strategy and Enforcement Practice Group in Austin. Reyes, who most recently was a partner at Ashcroft Sutton Reyes, has over two decades of experience counseling clients at the White House, Department of Justice, and other federal and state agencies.
Judy Kostura, a partner at Sorrels Law, is the recipient of the 2025 Luther (Luke) H. Soules III Award from the State Bar of Texas Litigation Section. This prestigious honor recognizes attorneys who demonstrate excellence in the practice of law, outstanding professionalism, and exemplary service to the Bar.
Sammi L. Renken has been appointed vice president of the Illinois Chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates for the 2025-26 year. A double Longhorn, Renken is a shareholder and vice president at the law firm Johnson & Bell.
Marissa Marquez has been inducted into the Texas Lyceum, a nonpartisan group of community leaders that explores and addresses issues facing Texans. Marquez currently is the manager, labor and employment legal counsel for Houston Methodist Hospital.
Edgar Foy Norton passed away on Jan. 25, 2025. Norton served in the Air Force Judge Advocate General’s Corp (JAG) before continuing his professional life as an oil and gas attorney and landman in the Western U.S.
Gary Zausmer has joined the Specialized Advocacy practice group at Butler Snow in Austin. Zausmer, who brings over 35 years of experience in litigation and client representation in multiple areas, most recently practiced at Enoch Kever.