Class Notes

Jorge A. Solis passed away on Oct. 8, 2021 at the age of 70. A former chief judge of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Solis was a former prosecutor, a judge, a mentor for dozens of lawyers, and once considered a candidate for the U.S. Supreme Court. Solis began his legal career as an assistant criminal district attorney for the Taylor County District Attorney’s Office in Abilene, Texas and went into private practice in 1981. He was then elected as the first Hispanic District Attorney for Taylor County, serving in that role for five years. He was a special prosecutor for the Narcotics Task Force in 1988 before running for judge. In lieu of flowers, the family requests for memorial gifts to be made to The Judge Jorge A. Solis Memorial Scholarship Fund at UTLSF.org/solis.

S. Anthony Safi has been recognized with the Kelly Frels Lifetime Achievement Award from the School Law Section of the State Bar of Texas. Safi is the only El Pasoan ever to have received this recognition. He is a Life Fellow of the Texas Bar Foundation, and a Fellow of the El Paso Bar Foundation.

Eva Janice “Jan” Summer  passed away on June 25, 2021. As a founding member of the Center for Women in Law, Jan played an important role in providing scholarships for aspiring young women law students. Jan was also the founding director of The Center for Public Policy Dispute Resolution at The University of Texas School of Law.

James F. “Jim” Rogers, an advocate for the city of Dallas who contributed countless hours to local organizations, died on Feb. 15, after battling cancer. He was 73.
Rogers was a graduate of Baylor University and Texas Law. He worked as a CPA before founding Ameripro Industries and was known as an ardent and inspirational activist. He ran for Dallas City Council for the District 14 seat in 2013.

Lary D. Garrett was named Mentor of the Year for 2020 by the West Virginia State Bar, selected by the Young Lawyer Section of the State Bar. Previously, he was named the Lawyer Citizen of the Year in 2001 by the West Virginia Bar Foundation in recognition of his public service activities and accomplishments. Lary has practiced for 43 years with his wife, Karen Kunz Garrett ’78 (also a Texas Law alumn), as the firm Garrett & Garrett in the Mountain State.

Gene Nichol has recently joined the Board of Trustees of the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP), a national antipoverty organization based in Washington, D.C.

Carla Cox passed away November 29, 2019. Carla was a trusted and fearless lawyer on behalf of her clients, a leader at Jackson Walker, and a trailblazer for women in the legal profession. Carla’s commitment to elevating the legal profession, healthcare industry, and Austin community was demonstrated through her service as a member of the Leaders Circle at the University of Texas Center for Women in Law (CWIL), as well as her work with the Chancellor’s Council of the University of Texas System, among many other worthy causes. Among her many accolades was the Travis County Women Lawyers Association 2017 Pathfinder award, given to women lawyers who have been trailblazers in the legal profession in Travis County.

T. Ray Guy, a Litigation partner in the Dallas office of international law firm Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP, has earned recognition as a 2019 Texas Super Lawyer. Texas Super Lawyers rates lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. The selection process is based on independent research, peer nominations and peer evaluations, and only 5% of attorneys in each state are included in the Super Lawyers list each year.

Paul Woodrow passed away in February 2018. A longtime resident of Barrington, Illinois, Paul was retired after a long career in Human Resources. He is survived by his wife, Christina, and their children, Katherine, Andrew and Aaron. A fuller obituary may be found online at the link below.

KPMG LLP, the U.S. audit, tax and advisory firm, is pleased to announce the appointment of Linda L. Addison ’76 as an independent director to its U.S. Board of Directors. Addison is the immediate past U.S. Managing Partner (CEO equivalent) of Norton Rose Fulbright, one of the world’s largest global law firms.

T. Ray Guy, a partner in Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP’s Dallas office, has been named a Texas Super Lawyer. Texas Super Lawyers is a rating service of lawyers from more than 70 practice areas that is based on peer recognition and professional achievement. Though published in Texas through Texas Monthly magazine, the ratings are conducted through a national publication, Super Lawyers magazine, which publishes Super Lawyer rankings in each of the 50 states.

International law firm Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP today announced that Ray Guy of the firm’s Dallas office has been named to D Magazine’s Best Lawyers in Dallas 2017 list.

Thompson & Knight LLP is pleased to congratulate Jim Morriss, who was named to the 2016 Who’s Who Legal 100. Morriss was recognized for his work in environmental law.

McGuireWoods partner Ron Franklin, a highly acclaimed bet-the-company litigator, is featured by the National Law Journal in its Litigation Trailblazers issue published today. The publication recognizes top lawyers who have changed the practice of litigation with innovative legal strategies.

J. Scott Sheehan, a shareholder with the international law firm Greenberg Traurig, LLP, was recently elected as president-elect of the Texas Association of Bank Counsel (TABC) at its 39th annual convention in New Orleans.

Three University of Texas College of Law graduates were recently named as 2016 Best Lawyers in America’s “Lawyer of the Year.”

Steven L. Barghols, David L. Bryant and David E. Keglovits of GableGotwals received the honor from Best Lawyers. Barghols of Oklahoma City was honored for his work in Arbitration, Bryant of Tulsa was honored for his work in Bet-the-Company Litigation and Keglovits of Tulsa was honored for his work in Corporate Governance Law.