Class Notes

Robert Hamilton Walls, Sr., died peacefully surrounded by family on Jan. 21, 2021, at the age of 89. Upon discharge from the Army, Walls became an Assistant Attorney General in the Texas Attorney General’s office in Austin. He continued his legal career at Barrow, Bland & Rehmet and then moved to Vinson & Elkins, where he developed an expertise in Oil and Gas Law. Walls eventually went to work with his good friend Wayne Dotson at Foreman & Dyess, and ultimately retired from Jackson & Walker after 51 years of practicing law. The family requests with gratitude that memorial contributions be directed toward The Robert H. and Anita H. Walls Endowed Presidential Scholarship in Law at Texas Law (http://links.utexas.edu/cvahngj).

The San Antonio Bar Foundation (SABF) is pleased to announce the appointment of Carol Bertsch, from The Law Offices of Carol Bertsch, P.C., to the SABF Fellows Program newly-elected 2021 class.

The San Antonio Bar Foundation (SABF) is pleased to announce the appointment of the Honorable Richard B. Farrer, a United State Magistrate Judge, to the SABF Fellows Program newly-elected 2021 class.

The San Antonio Bar Foundation (SABF) is pleased to announce the appointment of William B. Kingman, from the Law Offices of William B. Kingman, P.C., to the SABF Fellows Program newly-elected 2021 class.

Robert Edwin Edwards passed away peacefully on Jan. 18, 2021. Edwards started his legal career with Lone Star Gas Company in Dallas, Texas, and ended his career over 30 decades working with the Army and Air Force Exchange Service in Dallas. While with the AAFES, he created and directed their Worker Compensation Division for many years until his retirement in 2005. Edwards was a dedicated member and Master Mason of the Grand Lodge of Texas, Hillcrest No. 1318 for over 50 years, volunteering many hours at Scottish Rite Hospital. Memorials may be sent to The Boys and Girls Club of Falls County.

James Bailey Howard passed away peacefully at the age of 79 on Jan. 9, 2021. He served in the Army as a First Lieutenant and was subsequently deployed to South Korea for one year. After receiving his law degree from Texas Law in 1968, Howard went to work as a tax attorney for Coopers & Lybrand. By 1974, he had moved to Austin and spent the majority of his adult career as the chief financial officer of a restaurant chain. Memorial contributions may be made to a church or organization of choice.

Charles Nathan Curry passed away on Jan.21, 2021, surrounded by his loving family. He began his career at Shannon, Gracey, Ratliff, & Miller in Fort Worth, TX where he became a partner and practiced for 50 years. He was a member of the State Bar of Texas and served as both Chair and Vice-Chair of the Real Estate, Probate and Trust Section’s Financial Institutions Committee. He was a Life Fellow and served on the Legal Forms Committee and the Business Law section of the State Bar of Texas. Curry was also a founding member of the Texas Association of Bank Counsel and served two terms as Director. He was a member of the the U.S. Court of Appeals Northern District of Texas. Curry was Of Counsel for Bonds Ellis Eppich Schafer Jones law firm.

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has named attorney Barbara E. Griffin the new chair of the Pennsylvania Lawyers Fund for Client Security Board. She is the first woman and the first African-American to be named to the position. Griffin is the Director of the Allegheny County Bar Foundation’s Pro Bono Center, where she creates, manages, and supports legal services programs that provide volunteer attorneys to low-income persons facing legal issues that threaten basic human needs.

Earle Plain Martin III passed away at the age of 65 on Dec. 31, 2020, after battling complications from COVID-19. He graduated from Texas Law in 1980 and joined Vinson & Elkins as a lawyer in the Business, Real Estate and Energy group, led by the late Rush Record. After three years at Vinson & Elkins, Martin chose to move away from practicing law and started his own private air charter, laying the foundation for a three-decades-long career.

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.

Felix Johnathan Burton, Jr., passed away on Jan. 21, 2021, from health complications while battling cancer. Burton graduated from Texas Law in 1965 and held memberships in the Texas Bar Association and the CPA Society. He had a multi-faceted and successful career in the banking and manufacturing industries, while starting an accounting firm early in his career. Burton semi-retired from his Houston company, Champion Hi-Tech, in 2011, to enjoy his home on acreage in Chappell Hill.

Frank Madison Gilstrap passed away on Jan. 17, 2021 in Austin, TX, at the age of 78. During a career spanning more than 40 years, Gilstrap handled over 200 appeals and argued cases before the United States Supreme Court, the Texas Supreme Court, five Federal Circuit Courts of Appeal, and 12 Texas Courts of Appeal. He enjoyed his work immensely and filed his last appellate brief days before his death.

James Steele Moore passed away on Jan. 12, 2021. He was elected to the Texas Legislature in 1954 and served in such capacity until his term expired in 1958. Moore then moved to Lubbock, TX, to join the law firm of Clifford, Blanchard and Summers where he practiced law for approximately 10 years. In 1962, with a group of other businessmen and farmers, Moore founded the Wolfforth State Bank, now known as The American Bank of Commerce. He served as Chairman of the board of the bank since its organization and remained active throughout his career. Moore’s other banking activities include co-ownership of the First National Bank of Tahoka from 1964 to 1974.

Edmund Richardson Yates passed away at 93 in Dallas, TX. Yates served in an Army before going to law school. In 1951, he earned a law degree from The University of Texas Law School and relocated to Dallas to practice law. In 1953, he joined Jack Brady and Ed Drake to form Brady, Drake and Yates Law Firm. Yates was a longtime member of First Baptist in Dallas, serving as a deacon. Ed practiced law until 1962, when he made the decision to join his in-law’s family restaurant, Highland Park Cafeteria.

James Augustus Gray, 96, of Caldwell, TX, passed away peacefully on Dec. 17, 2020. Gray was a lifelong member of the Texas Exes and was a licensed attorney and a member of the State Bar of Texas for 65 years. He maintained a general law practice in Burleson County for 63 years, representing many clients. Gray also served as the County Attorney for Burleson County for 30 years and the City Attorney of Caldwell for 60 years. He served as the president of the Caldwell Recreational Association for 15 years. Gray was also the charter director and secretary of the Burleson County Industrial Foundation, charter director of the Thomas L. Goodnight Memorial Hospital Corporation, and director of the First State Bank of Caldwell.

Patrick Alton Hudson, 87, of Dallas, TX, passed away on Nov. 28, 2020, after battling with Alzheimer’s and the coronavirus. After graduating from Texas Law in 1967, Hudson served as Director of the Dallas Legal Aid Society. He served as Council for the Environmental Protection Agency and Principle Regional Council for Health and Human Services. Hudson built a very successful 20-year private practice and retired at 75.

Virginia Gross passed away on Dec. 9, 2020, in Shawnee, KS, at the age of 56. She spent much of her career at Polsinelli in Kansas City as an attorney and partner. Specializing in tax-exempt organizations law and nonprofit governance, Gross was a frequent speaker on nonprofit law topics around the country and has written many publications on tax-exempt law topics. Gross was listed in Best Lawyers in America® for Nonprofit Organizations/Charities Law for 2008-2021 and was named the 2017 Non-Profit/Charities “Lawyer of the Year” for Kansas City. She also provided extensive pro bono legal services to many.

John Harmon Bennett, Jr., 73, died peacefully on Dec. 27, 2020, after an 18-month battle with ALS. He earned his B.A. from The University of Texas in 1969, and in 1972, graduated top of his class from Texas Law where he served on Law Review. After law school, Harmon took up a job at Fulbright and Jaworski. He then helped found a law firm, and over time it evolved into other firms. He rounded his career out as a solo practitioner, concentrating on general civil litigation and international business transactions and, for 37 years, Harmon was an involved member of the International Lawyers Group (ILG) where he served as secretary and then president. He was widely known for being a creative attorney who was sought after as a mentor.

Carmel Martin has been selected by President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris to serve as deputy director of the Domestic Policy Council for Economic Mobility for the White House. Martin worked as a senior policy advisor for the Biden campaign and previously served as the assistant secretary for policy and budget at the U.S. Department of Education during the Obama-Biden administration.

Michael Blake is happy to announce the 17th anniversary of his Intellectual Property Law Practice in Milford, Connecticut. Blake is licensed before the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the Connecticut Bar, the State Bar of California (inactive), the United States District Court (USDC) District of Connecticut, and the USDC Central District of California (inactive). Before opening his own firm, Blake was an attorney at the patent law firm Cantor Colburn in Connecticut. Prior to that he was an attorney with Sierra Patent Group in Nevada.

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.

Ann Gill Howard was elected in November 2020 as Travis County Commissioner for Precinct Three. She is a Dean’s Distinguished Graduate from the College of Liberal Arts (BA, Sociology, 1985), a Texas Exes Life Member and a Friar, Dean’s Distinguished Graduate for Service from the Law School (JD, 1988), and a Barbara Jordan Fellow for the LBJ School (MPA, 1988).

McGinnis Lochridge is pleased to welcome Daniel C. Clemons as Of Counsel in the firm’s Corporate and Tax practice group in Austin. He brings a remarkable mix of financial and legal experience to his new role, having previously served as outside counsel, in-house counsel, head of legal operations, and as a revenue analyst. Clemons will focus his practice on outside general counsel representation, mergers and acquisitions, debt and equity financing, and other commercial transactions.

Claire Rosston has been elected to the Holland & Hart’s partnership, effective Jan. 1, 2021 in the firm’s Boise office. Rosston represents buyers and sellers in asset and equity acquisitions, with significant experience in the animal healthcare industry. She also assists clients with corporate governance, operational contracts, as well as business formation, restructuring, and disputes.

Nathan B. Schattman died Dec. 28, 2020, of a heart attack. Even before he was born, Schattman was in the courtroom, his family said. He was the son of Judge Michael D. Schattman and Mary Ellen Brannigan Schattman, and during his mother’s pregnancy, Mary Ellen was fired from her job for simply being pregnant. He was part of the Schattman in Schattman v Texas Employment Commission case, when his parents sued for the right to work while pregnant. The case was handled by a then-new ACLU lawyer named Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Schattman followed in his father’s footsteps, graduating The University of Texas Law School in 1994 and serving as an attorney at Brown, Proctor & Howell LLP.

John Timberman “Tim” Carssow, died at home in North Carolina of pancreatic cancer on Dec. 12, 2020. Carssow graduated from Trinity University in San Antonio in 1967 and The University of Texas School of Law in 1970, where he was Project Editor of the Texas Law Review. He spent his entire 36-year legal career with the Atlanta law firm Kilpatrick, Townsend & Stockton. During his tenure as Managing Partner (1996-2001) Carssow led the firm (then known as Kilpatrick and Cody) in its 1997 merger with the North Carolina firm of Petree, Stockton & Robinson.

Oscar Alaniz Palacios, 75, died in December 2020 at his home in San Juan, TX, after a long battle with cancer. He was a proud Longhorn, graduating from the University of Texas at Austin with an BS in Political Science in 1969 and the University of Texas School of Law, receiving his JD in 1971. Palacios inspired generations in his family as a lifelong Longhorn fan and a Texas Ex. Oscar began his law career in 1972 with the F.B. Godinez law firm in Lubbock, Texas. He then founded his own law firm in 1974 in Pharr, TX, practicing law for 48 years.

Carl Olaf Bue, Jr., a retired judge of the U.S. District Court in Houston, died peacefully on Dec. 24, 2020. He was 98. Born in Chicago, Illinois, Bue received a Bachelor of Philosophy degree from Northwestern University in 1951 and a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Texas School of Law in 1954. He served in the US Army Adjutant General’s Department in WWII. In 1970, Pres. Richard Nixon appointed Carl Bue a US District Judge for the Southern District of Texas, where he served for 17 years before retiring in 1987. The family requests with gratitude that memorial gifts be directed to the Judge Carl O. Bue, Jr. Endowed Presidential Scholarship in Law at The University of Texas School of Law: https://tinyurl.com/utlaw-carlbue

The law firm of Abraham, Watkins, Nichols, Sorrels, Agosto, Aziz & Stogner is proud to announce that Edward Festeryga has joined the firm as an Associate. His current legal practice focuses on a wide range of personal injury matters, including catastrophic injuries, commercial motor vehicle accidents, workplace injuries, plant and refinery explosions, and wrongful death.

Rosebud Nau was promoted to partnership of the law firm Haynes and Boone, LLP effective Jan. 1, 2021. Nau is a member of the Capital Markets/Securities Practice Group in Haynes and Boone’s Dallas office.

Kellie Bobo was promoted to partnership of the law firm Haynes and Boone, LLP effective Jan. 1, 2021. Bobo is a member of both the Investment Funds and M&A Practice Groups in Haynes and Boone’s Austin office.

Zachariah T. Evans has been named partner at the law firm of McGinnis Lochridge. Based in the Austin, TX, office, Evans focuses his practice on water and wastewater utilities and also represents local government entities. He advises water districts, water supply corporations and municipalities on virtually all matters regulated by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and the Public Utility Commission of Texas. Evans also provides counsel on matters involving open government, personnel issues, procurement, annexations, licensing and regulation of public rights-of-way, and ordinance drafting.

Diana Perez Gomez, shareholder in the Labor & Employment practice in the Houston office of the national law firm Chamberlain Hrdlicka, has been selected to the Texas Super Lawyers 2020 TopWomen list.

Bollier Ciccone LLP is happy to announce attorney Elizabeth J. Ayala has joined our growing family law practice. Elizabeth is an exceptional family law attorney, specializing in complex custody cases, protective orders, and cases involving mental health experts. She is a skilled litigator and experienced client advocate involved in all aspects of client cases. Elizabeth works exclusively for the firm’s Family Law section.

John Langmore recently published two books of photography. “Open Range” (Twin Palms Publishers) captures the life of modern working cowboys on some of the nation’s largest ranches. “Fault Lines” (Trinity University Press) documents the rapidly gentrifying neighborhoods of old East Austin. John also co-directed and just released “Cowboys”, a feature-length documentary film also depicting the lives of contemporary working cowboys. “Cowboys” won the Audience Award at the Austin Film Festival.

Lyda Ness Garcia has been elected the next Family Law Judge for the 383rd Judicial District Court. As the only Child Welfare Law Specialist serving on the bench in El Paso, she is hoping to bring innovative changes in meeting the needs of the litigants of her Court. She is humbled and excited to begin serving the children and families of El Paso, Texas on January 1st, 2021.

Lynn Rogers Coleman died November 13th, 2020 at the age of 81. He was a prominent lawyer in Washington, D.C., recognized as an energy policy expert in and outside of the federal government. He was general counsel and deputy secretary of the Department of Energy. Chris Miller, president of the Piedmont Environmental Council, describes Lynn as someone who “had a deep and passionate interest in the issues of energy, the environment and practical solutions to climate change.”

Robert (Gordon) Gooch, a longtime Washington lawyer and former Law Clerk of Chief Justice Earl Warren, died at age 86 on September 23, 2020. Gooch graduated from Washington & Lee University in 1956, served two years as an officer in the US Army on the mostly peaceful Korean DMZ, and went on to the University of Texas Law School where he was elected Editor-in-Chief of the Texas Law Review. He opened the Washington office of Baker & Botts, and later his own firm, Travis & Gooch. Although his focus was on energy law, he has had a long career with a variety of colorful engagements, such as representing the first hacker of a commercial aircraft and defending a pirate captain.

Charles, known as “Bill” or “Charlie” to his family and friends, passed away on December 1, 2020, in Houston, Texas. Charles served in WWII during his college years, where he was stationed in India. After the war, he moved to Austin and attended the School of Law. Charlie and his wife Nan had eleven children and were together for 63 years. He was an avid reader and armchair historian. He loved to grow roses, sing, and dance. He was a spirited competitor and talented golfer who played many of the best courses in the U.S., Scotland, and Ireland.

Bill Hallman, a beloved husband, devoted father, benevolent curmudgeon, respected lawyer, and incomparable friend, died from complications of cancer at home surrounded by family on November 30, 2020. He left with no regrets, having lived a life of love, friendship, travel, meaningful work, and generous service. His steadfast moral compass and excellent judgment were invaluable to many people and organizations in the Fort Worth community and beyond. Bill co-founded the law firm Kelly, Hart & Hallman LLP, which has grown to more than 150 lawyers with 5 offices throughout Texas and Louisiana.

Romulo L. “Romy” Diaz, Jr. of Philadelphia has been elected a public-service independent director of the Federal Home Loan Bank of Pittsburgh. Diaz retired as General Counsel of PECO Energy Company of Philadelphia in 2020 and was recently honored with the Others Award by The Salvation Army Greater Philadelphia.

Dr. Charles William Mohundro, 82, of Texarkana, TX passed away peacefully Nov. 7, 2020. He served as VP, General Counsel for Hayes Enterprises, Inc. from 1963-1969. During this time, Mohundro returned to school and received his MBA from North Texas State University in 1970. He then moved to Bryan-College Station, TX to teach at Texas A&M University while working on his Ph.D. Mohundro received his Doctor of Philosophy from TAMU in 1977. Mohundro and his family moved to Texarkana in 1976 where he was a Professor of Management and Finance at TAMU-Texarkana for over 35 years, retiring in 2013.

Edward Festeryga has joined the Houston personal injury law firm of Abraham, Watkins, Nichols, Sorrels, Agosto, Aziz & Stogner as an Associate. His current legal practice focuses on a wide range of personal injury matters, including catastrophic injuries, commercial motor vehicle accidents, workplace injuries, plant and refinery explosions, and wrongful death.

Verne Frank Knickerbocker, 93, passed away Nov. 10, 2020 in San Antonio, TX. He served in the Navy in World War II and opened his first law office as a sole practitioner and later joined the law firm of John Watts. He later relocated to Eagle Pass, TX, where he established the law firm of Knickerbocker, Abrams & Cowan, and retired in 1994. Knickerbocker was a strong and ardent supporter of the youth and education in Maverick County through fifty years of philanthropic donations.

Jan Marie Ramsay passed peacefully in her sleep on Nov. 11, 2020, living over 20 years longer than her initial prognosis with brain cancer. Following her graduation from Texas Law, Ramsay began her career as an attorney in Dallas at the firm Gardere & Wynne in their labor and employment department. She was quickly promoted to partner due to her work ethic and dedication to her clients. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made to St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church in Wimberley, TX.

Marion Borchers passed away on Nov. 17, 2020, after a brief battle with leukemia. After law school, he settled in New Braunfels where he began a law practice and became involved in many aspects of community life. Borchers was a Life member of the University of Texas Exes and an alumni of Alpha Tau Omega fraternity. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorials be sent to the Shriners Hospital for Burned and Crippled Children or the St. Jude’s Ranch for Children.

Harold Edward Moore passed away on Nov. 4, 2020. He was Texas Board Certified in Labor Law, Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service. Moore worked with the office of the State Attorney General in Austin before joining the Industrial Relations Department of General Dynamics in Fort Worth. He also was a member of the General Dynamics Speakers Bureau. Moore was General Manager of North Texas Contractors Association. He taught Labor Relations at The University of Texas at Arlington for many years while traveling the country hearing and settling arbitration cases as an independent arbitrator. Moore published Arbitration Opinions in 25 volumes of the Labor Relations Reporter, as well as in the Bureau of National Affairs.

Sam O. Kimberlin died in Austin, TX, on Nov. 10, 2020, following a short illness due to COVID19. Kimberlin as Counsel for the Texas Department of Banking, Assistant Attorney General of Texas, and First Assistant District Attorney of Travis County, Texas. Many years later he served as deputy foreman and later as foreman of Grand Juries for the 390th Travis County District Court and was elected chief executive officer of the Texas Bankers Association. Kimberlin was an active member of UT SAGE, where he was the Dean’s appointee to The Third Age Council, a part of the Division of Continuing & Extended Education at The University of Texas. He was a life member of The University of Texas Ex-students Association.

Royal H. Brin, Jr. died at home on Friday, Nov. 6, 2020 with his daughter and caregivers by his side. After four years in the Navy, Brin joined the law firm of Strasburger and Price, where he practiced law for 48 years and provided guidance to the firm after retirement. Brin was director, then president, of the Texas Association of Defense Council and a member of the Products Liability Committee of the Insurance, Torts, and Compensation Section of the American Bar Association. He was selected for the 2008 “The Best Lawyers in America” in Appellate Law. He was one of five lawyers chosen as Texas Trial Legends in 2011. In 2015, Martindale-Hubbell gave him the highest possible rating in both legal ability and ethical standards.

Gerald Joe Smith, 90, passed away on Nov. 6, 2020. He served as an infantry officer during the Korean War. Smith graduated with a law degree from the University of Texas at Austin in 1956. He retired in El Paso, TX, after practicing law for over 50 years.