Class Notes

David Cole has joined the Houston office of Kirkland Ellis as a partner. Cole is a tax attorney who has been recognized by The Legal 500 US and named a “Texas Rising Star” by Thomas Reuters.

Geoff Gannaway was recognized as a 2022 Texas Super Lawyer. Gannaway is a partner at the Houston office of Beck Redden.

Melynda Price has been named the inaugural J. David Rosenburg Professor of Law at the University of Kentucky J. David Rosenburg College of Law. Price has served on the law school faculty there since 2006 and served as director of the University of Kentucky Gaines Center for Humanities.

Ben Browder joins national litigation firm Duncan Stubbs where he will focus on legal operations and financing, as well as litigation technologies and partnerships that support jury trials. A former Hunton Andrews Kurth partner, Browder has experience advising a broad spectrum of domestic and global private equity firms on the acquisition, disposition and financing of assets in excess of $10 billion.

Rebekah Prince has joined Blank Rome LLP’s Corporate, M&A, and Securities practice group as a partner in the Los Angeles office. Her diverse corporate practice includes representing public and private companies as well as clients in the sports, media and entertainment, and franchising industries. Previously she worked at Barnes & Thornburg LLP.

Kristofer Monson has been reappointed by Governor Abbott as Chief Administrative Law Judge for the State Office of Administrative Hearings. Monson has served as Chief ALJ since 2019, and previously was Assistant Solicitor General in the Office of the Attorney General of Texas.

Mary Evelyn McNamara received the 2022 Professionalism Award from the Texas Center for Legal Ethics and the Austin Bar Association. She is a founding partner of the law firm Rivers McNamara.

Zachary D. Norris passed away on October 24, 2021. He graduated from Texas Law in 2002 and worked as a civil litigator and in the U.S. Federal District Court in Texas, before relocating to New Zealand. With his wife, he co-founded Norris Echetebu Law, a business, entertainment, and immigration firm.

Kasi Moeskau has been appointed Chief Legal Officer of RPM Living, a real estate management company. Moeskau has served as outside counsel for RPM Living for almost 15 years.

Eric Opiela has been appointed to the Texas Funeral Service Commission by Governor Abbott. Opiela is an attorney for Eric Opiela PLLC, president of the South Texans’ Property Rights Association, and a life fellow for the Texas Bar Foundation.

Adam Ambrogi has joined the national League of Women Voters as Senior Director for Voting and Elections. In that role, he is using his experience with strategy, vision, and relationships to help expand the organization’s impact on voting rights and election administration. While at Texas Law, he served as the Editor-in-Chief of the Texas Journal on Civil Liberties and Civil Rights.

Perry Joe Radoff, age 81, of Houston, Texas died on Jan. 3, 2022, after a prolonged illness. He began his legal career at Dow Cogburn & Friedman before going into private practice. Radoff was board certified in the practice of Probate and Real Estate law and worked at Bernstein Radoff Trachtenberg and Sarofim for the remainder of his legal career.

Jessica Hoffmann serves as the Chief Operating Officer of Steptoe & Johnson, where she leads the daily operations of the firm and oversees key functions. She has nearly two decades of law firm leadership experience.

The Honorable Duval County Judge Gilbert N. Saenz passed away unexpectedly on Oct. 16, 2021. After earning his J.D., he served in the US Navy Judge Advocate General Corps. He spent his career working toward justice for all as a JAG Officer, public school teacher, school board member, attorney, and Duval County Judge. He was a member and active supporter of numerous social and charitable organizations.

Geoff Gannaway has been recognized in 2021 Texas Super Lawyers for his work with Business Litigation. This annual award listing is based on peer recognition and professional achievements and published by Thomson Reuters. Gannaway is a partner with Beck Redden LLP.

Geoff Gannaway has been recognized in the 2022 The Best Lawyers in America ranking of the nation’s top legal talent. He is a partner with Beck Redden who specializes in Commercial Litigation.

Dr. Susan Bohn, superintendent of Aledo ISD, has been named the Region 11 Superintendent of the Year for 2021. The Superintendent of the Year Award honors outstanding Texas administrators for achievement and excellence in public school administration.

Texas Super Lawyers has again recognized Beck Redden LLP in its 2020 annual award listing, featuring 16 lawyers including Geoff Gannaway, who is specialized in business litigation.

Geoff Gannaway was named in the 2021 Best Lawyers in America. He specializes in Commercial Litigation.

Texas Law graduate Lisa Fitzpatrick recently joined Phelps Dunbar as an associate. Fitzpatrick is a 2002 alumna of the University of Texas School of Law, where she graduated with honors. She earned her bachelor’s degree in English language and literature from the University of Virginia in 1997. Fitzpatrick works in the New Orleans office in Phelps’ insurance practice.

Tracy L. McCreight has joined Duane Morris LLP’s Austin, Texas office as partner in the firm’s Trial Practice Group. McCreight has broad experience in complex litigation and arbitrations, including litigating a variety of commercial, construction, partnership, contract, and real estate disputes, in both state and federal courts in Texas and throughout the country. In her construction practice, she focuses on representing owners in construction defect matters and contract disputes.

Boulette Golden & Marin L.L.P. is proud to announce Carolyn Gutierrez Bartelli has been named a Partner in the firm. Carolyn leads the firm’s corporate immigration practice group and represents U.S. and international companies in the technology, healthcare, international trade, and professional services sectors with respect to all immigration-related matters.

Chari Kelly has been selected to receive the Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) Outstanding Prosecutor of the Year Award for Travis County. The award recognizes a prosecutor who has gone above and beyond in prosecuting DWI cases and ensuring that those who drink and drive face the appropriate consequences of their actions. Kelly is the Democratic nominee for Place 3 on the Third Court of Appeals.

Scripps College chose Sabine Romero as their 2018 Lois Langland Alumna-In-Residence. As the 2018 LLAiR, Sabine presented a series of career-inspired events, themed “Open Government: Ten Ways to Make a Difference in the World”.

Sherri Eastley was named a member of Austin-based Pirkey Barber PLLC, one of the largest firms in the United States practicing exclusively in the fields of trademark, copyright and unfair competition law. Her practice includes management of domestic and international trademark portfolios across a wide variety of industries.

Mary Evelyn McNamara, of Rivers McNamara in Austin, has been admitted as a fellow in the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers. McNamara specializes in family law and family law appeals.

Joshua W. Mermis, name partner in the Houston-based litigation boutique West Mermis PLLC, has been recognized on the list of Texas Super Lawyers for the second consecutive year. Mr. Mermis is named to the select list in the area of construction law. For almost 15 years he has focused on the representation of property owners, contractors, and other companies involved in the development of condominium high-rises, master-planned residential communities, single-family homes, and public buildings.

Catherine Musemeche, a law school alumna and a pediatric surgeon in Austin, has published here second book, “Hurt.” From Dr. Musemeche’s official website: ” ‘Hurt’: the inspiring, untold story of trauma explores the topic of injury from the viewpoint of doctors, rescuers, patients and their families. HURT walks us through the development of today’s advanced trauma centers and demonstrates in graphic detail why they are essential in surviving complex injuries.” Her first book was “SMALL: Life and Death on the Front Lines of Pediatric Surgery,” and she is a guest contributor to the New York Times Motherlode column.