David Woodcock has been named the director of the Division of Enforcement by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Woodcock previously served as a partner in SEC Enforcement, Investigations, and Corporate Securities at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher while teaching a Securities Law Enforcement course at Texas A&M University School of Law.
Chris Kratovil was named to D Magazine’s “Best of Dallas Hall of Fame.” An attorney at Dykema who specializes in commercial litigation, Kratovil has been named a “Best Lawyer in Dallas” by the publication for 15 consecutive years.
Ralph William “Skip” Scoggins passed away on June 15, 2025. Scoggins served in the U.S. Air Force during the Korean Conflict and later built his legal and political career in El Paso. He served consecutive terms on the Texas House of Representatives from 1964 to 1969, then returned as a state representative between 1973 and 1975 in the Texas House and as judge of the 41st District Court.
Lekha Gopalakrishnan has joined Jackson Walker in Dallas as a partner in the Intellectual Property Practice Group. She advises clients on patent prosecution, IP litigation, and technology transactions, with a focus on the healthcare, life sciences, and education sectors.
Paul Dean is the new vice president of NTI’s (Nuclear Threat Initiative) global nuclear policy program. In this role, he leads the organization’s efforts to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons, reduce the risk of nuclear use, and ultimately end the existential threat of nuclear war.
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.
Junish Arora has a new position as Director (Acting) at the Office of Civil Rights, Office of the Chief Financial Officer and Assistant Secretary for Administration for the United States Department of Commerce. He was promoted from his previous position as Deputy Director.
Will Cain will host “The Will Cain Show” on weekdays on the Fox News Channel. Most recently, Cain was a co-host of “Fox & Friends Weekend” and had previously worked at ESPN.
Clint Alfred Harbour passed away on August 30, 2024. A trial attorney for the Texas Department of Transportation, Harbour has taught courses on trial advocacy as an adjunct faculty member at Texas Law.
KC Waldron has joined Empower as the new chief compliance officer where she will oversee the management and development of the company’s compliance program. Waldron spent 12 years at Charles Schwab, most recently as managing director, chief compliance officer of Schwab Wealth Advisory, Inc., and head of Wealth & Advice Solutions compliance.
Rep. Tommy Gregory, a lawyer and Air Force veteran who is chairperson of the state House Judiciary Committee, has been named as the next president of State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota. Gregory was first elected to the House in 2018, representing Manatee County’s District 72.
Veteran trial lawyer Lisa E. Davis has joined Wittliff Cutter as senior counsel. Davis has more than 20 years of experience leading complex commercial litigation matters and intellectual property disputes, and years of senior in-house counsel perspective.
Christy Lea has been appointed co-chair of the Medical Device Litigation Group at Intellectual Property law firm Knobbe Martens. Lea has represented clients in the medical device and pharmaceutical industries for nearly two decades and is an accomplished PTAB trial litigator.
Brandy Manning has been named co-director of Dykema’s Energy Industry Group. Manning has more than two decades of commercial trial and appellate experience in both oil and gas and general business matters and is board-certified in civil appellate law.
Lisa Bowlin Hobbs has been appointed to serve as a member of the Supreme Court Advisory Committee for the Supreme Court of Texas. Hobbs is a founding member of Kuhn Hobbs PLLC.
Jennifer Monday Goldman passed away Jan. 6, 2024. Goldman served Texas Law and Texas Development as Director of Gift and Estate Planning. Previously, she practiced law at Vinson & Elkins before transitioning to a career in financial planning and estate law. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations may be made to the Jennifer Monday Goldman Memorial Scholarship at Texas Law fund established to support excellence and access for Texas Law Scholars, a goal near and dear to Jenn’s heart and professional work.
David Woodcock has joined Gibson Dunn as a partner and co-chair of Gibson Dunn’s securities enforcement practice group. Woodcock joins with both government and in-house counsel experience as former Assistant General Counsel at ExxonMobil.
Brandy R. Manning has started her commercial law practice as a partner at Dykema, specializing in oil and gas litigation.
Ravez Javelidze has been appointed the new Head of Government Administration for Georgia by the country’s Prime Minister. Previously he held the positions of Deputy Head of the Administration of the Government of Georgia, Parliamentary Secretary of the Government, and Deputy Minister of Sport and Youth. Javelidze holds a Master of Law degree from Texas Law.
Leigh Sebastian has been promoted to the position of general counsel of the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA). She oversees the Legal Services department including legal support, LCRA’s ethics program, and regulatory and electric market compliance. Sebastian also has supported the development of the organization’s legal strategy related to the Electric Reliability Council of Texas and the Public Utility Commission of Texas. Sebastian currently serves on the Advisory Council of the Kay Bailey Hutchison Center for Energy, Law and Business.
Jeremy Fudge has been named a 2022 Outstanding Director by the Dallas Business Journal. Fudge is the managing partner of the firm Berry, Appleman, and Leiden LLP, and has helped oversee expansion of the firm nationally and in the Dallas area.
Basil Umari has joined national law firm Dykema’s new Houston office as Senior Counsel. Basil has more than 20 years of experience representing debtors, liquidating trustees, official creditors’ committees, creditors, equity holders, officers and directors, patent holders, landlords, tenants, and asset purchasers in corporate bankruptcy matters. He also has extensive experience in bankruptcy litigation.
Scott D. Page has joined Carlton Fields in Los Angeles as a member of the firm’s national Real Estate and Commercial Finance Practice. Page’s practice focuses on commercial real estate transactions, including development, purchase and sales, joint ventures, financing, leasing, and other matters involving office, hotel, retail, industrial, and multitenant residential projects.
James S. Carter was elected partner of Blank Rome LLP in the firm’s Washington, D.C., office, effective Jan. 1, 2022. Carter represents policyholders in disputes and litigation against their insurers, and provides strategic guidance to clients on ways to enhance coverage for their risks.
Christopher D. Kratovil was promoted to National Recruiting Partner at Dykema, a leading national law firm. This follows a five-year stint as Managing Member of Dykema’s Dallas office where Kratovil helped to develop the office through laterals of top legal talent. In his practice, Kratovil remains in Dallas as a member of the firm’s Litigation Department, focusing on appellate matters. Kratovil has made a name for himself as one of the “Top 100 Lawyers in Texas”.
Basil A. Umari has joined leading national law firm Dykema as senior counsel in the firm’s Bankruptcy Practice Group in Texas. Umari offers representation in corporate bankruptcy matters.
Emily Stephens has joined Vinson & Elkins LLP as a partner in its Investment Funds practice. Stephens, who previously served for more than 14 years in managing director roles for global alternative investment management firm Oaktree Capital Management, participated in all aspects of fundraising for several of Oaktree’s largest funds, including what was, at the time, the world’s largest closed-end distressed debt fund at $10.9 billion. She also served as an investment team member and lead lawyer for Oaktree’s flagship investment strategy focused primarily on distressed credit opportunities.
Vincent E. Morgan, one of the nation’s most prominent corporate policyholder litigators, has joined Bracewell LLP’s Houston office as a partner in the litigation group. Morgan most recently was a partner at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP, where he spent almost 18 years and was the former managing partner of the Houston office. He graduated with honors from The University of Texas Law School with a J.D. in 2000.
Maggie Murphy was recently featured in the Chambers USA 2020 Guide, a publication ranking the leading lawyers and law firms across the U.S. Ms. Murphy is the Office Managing Principal in the Austin, Texas office of Jackson Lewis P.C. She concentrates her practice on advanced U.S. immigration and nationality law and global business immigration matters, assisting employers with immigration challenges facing international workforces.
Prof. Dr. John Henry Dingfelder Stone was awarded tenure as a Professor of Law (Public and International) at the Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences in Kleve, Germany.
In August 2018, Samuel Kan began serving as the Assistant Dean of Academic Success and Bar Preparation at Barry University School of Law in Orlando Florida. As Assistant Dean, he will continue teaching tax, estate planning, and criminal law subjects as he taught during the 2017-2018 academic year. He initially joined the Barry law faculty as a tenured track Assistant Professor of Law after becoming a Florida licensed attorney and retiring from the Army JAG Corps, last serving as the Tax Counsel for the Department of Defense Office of General Counsel from 2014 to 2017 at the Pentagon.
ALUMNI NEWS: Robert Thomas ’00 appointed Chairman of the Texas Facilities Commission by Gov. Greg Abbott.