Class Notes

David Calvillo has been promoted to equity shareholder in the Houston-based law firm of Chamberlain Hrdlicka. Calvillo practices in a wide variety of areas, including breach of contract, commercial liability, shareholder rights, professional malpractice, and intellectual property. He currently serves on the State Bar of Texas Board of Directors.

Lydia Zakhari has been promoted to General Counsel at The Trust (powered by the NFLPA), which supports NFL players following their playing careers. As a member of its Senior Leadership Team, Lydia is involved in the administration and management of The Trust and leads the diversified legal needs of the organization. While at Texas Law,  she served as Editor-in-Chief of the Texas Journal on Civil Liberties & Civil Rights.

Leticia D. McGowan has been named Richardson Independent School District’s new General Counsel. The cabinet position provides in-house legal services to the board of trustees, the superintendent, and the district. She joined the staff at RISD after more than 20 years as in-house counsel at Dallas ISD.

James Hearn has been nominated for the 2022 Edgar Award for Best Short Story by the Mystery Writers of America. Hearn, who has published multiple works, co-wrote Blindsided with Michael Bracken; the story appeared in the Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine.

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.

Justin Mapes has joined the Real Estate and Real Estate Finance practice group of Locke Lord’s Dallas office as a Partner. Mapes has extensive experience in real estate law and corporate finance.

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.

Joe Tom Easley passed away on Feb. 13, 2022, in Miami. A legal lecturer and LGBT and human rights activist, Easley’s legal work spanned a wide variety of areas including civil rights, Pentagon policy, and drug company price fixing. He was the board co-chair of the national non-profit organization Lambda Legal Defense, and served in a leadership role with the Miami Design Preservation League.

Patrick Cunningham Oxford passed away on Feb. 13, 2022, at the age of 79. Wile at Texas Law, he served as the managing editor of the Texas Law Review and was a member of the Friar Society. After graduating, Oxford worked for Bracewell LLP and specialized in business transactional practice, becoming a managing partner and leading the opening of the firm’s New York City office. Oxford continued to serve the University of Texas, with positions on the Board of Regents and as Chairman of the Health Affairs Committee.

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.

Finity Jernigan has been elected to partner at Holland & Hart, based in the firm’s Boulder office. Jernigan specializes in venture capital and private equity funds in consumer products (including the food, beverage, skincare and cosmetics industries). She works closely with funds, brands and entrepreneurs at all stages of the corporate life cycle.

Joe Barnett Cannon passed away on Feb. 8, 2022. Cannon served in the state legislature as a representative for Limestone, Falls, and Freestone counties. Cannon also served as the Chair of the Board of Directors for the State Bar of Texas and was recognized as an Outstanding Fifty Year Lawyer by the State Bar of Texas in 2010. At Texas Law, he served as Mid-Law Class President, was a Texas Goodfellow, and was recognized by the Supreme Court of Texas as the Outstanding Advocate in the moot court finals.

Jeffrey Benz is serving as an ad hoc division arbitrator under the Court of Arbitration for Sport at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. As a member of this group, he participates in hearings and contributes to decisions on issues during the Olympic Games.

John Bakht has joined the corporate, M&A and securities team in the Houston office of Norton Rose Fulbright as a partner. Bakht has 25 years of experience working in commercial, transactional, compliance, operational, and governmental matters.

Adrienne Nelson was recognized by the American Bar Association with its 2022 Spirit of Excellence Award for her commitment to racial and ethnic diversity in the legal profession. Nelson is Oregon’s first Black Supreme Court Justice, who was appointed in January of 2018. Currently, she is only one of eight Black women in the country who are sitting justices.

Robert “Bobby” Voigt has joined the Austin office of Shackelford, Bowen, McKinley, and Norton, LLP as a patent and trademark partner. Voigt primarily focuses on acquisition, licensing, and transfer of intellectual property rights.

Carrin Patman has been nominated by President Joe Biden to serve as the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Republic of Iceland. She is the chair of the Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County, Texas and previously practiced as a partner of Bracewell LLP.

Awais Sufi has been elected to the Board of Directors of Christel House International, a nonprofit working towards helping impoverished children. Sufi currently serves as the CEO of SchoolSmartKC.

Inga Cotton has been selected as a Foundation Fellow by the San Antonio Bar Foundation. Cotton is the founder and executive director of nonprofit San Antonio Charter Moms.

Andrew Baumgardner has been selected as a Foundation Fellow by the San Antonio Bar Foundation. Baumgardner practices real estate and commercial law as a partner at Jackson Walker.

Aimee Vidaurri has been selected as a Foundation Fellow for the San Antonio Bar Foundation. Vidaurri is a senior associate at the San Antonio office of Norton Rose Fulbright and a member of the dispute resolution and litigation group.

Jennifer Espronceda has been selected as a Foundation Fellow by the San Antonio Bar Foundation. Espronceda is the founder of family law firm Espronceda Law, PPLC and has won a number of awards in San Antonio, including 2021 Best San Antonio female lawyer and 2021 Top Family Lawyer.

Thomas Hanna passed away on Feb. 6, 2022. Hanna worked as Assistant District Attorney and District Attorney for Jefferson County. Hanna served as the Chairman for the Legislative Committee, the Executive Director of the State Bar of Texas in Austin, and on the Board of Texas Lawyers Insurance Exchange. He was recognized by the State Bar of Texas for Fifty Years of Outstanding Service in 2016, received the Blackstone Award, and was bestowed a lifetime achievement honor by the Jefferson County Bar Association.

Sylvia Borunda-Firth has been selected as the interim city attorney of Laredo, Texas. She is currently the president of the State Bar of Texas and  a solo practitioner in El Paso. Prior to establishing her own firm, she was an associate with two El Paso firms, general counsel to American Garment Finishers, and served the city of El Paso for nearly 20 years.

Alexis Ander Kashar has been appointed to the Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Access Board by President Biden. Kashar is a civil rights attorney, business leader, technologist, and is the President of the Board for the New York School of the Deaf.

Brad Sklencar has been selected to be a Foundation Fellow by the San Antonio Bar Foundation. Sklencar is a partner at the San Antonio offices of insurance defense firm Resnick & Louis, P.C.

Amy Hereford now serves as LiftFund’s general counsel and director of government and community affairs.

Ellis J. Ortego passed away on Jan. 27, 2022 at the age of 79. Ortego practiced law for 52 years, specializing in municipal law, family law, probate law, real estate law, and and estate planning. He started his own law firm, which later became a family business once his wife and daughter joined. Ortega also served on the Grievance Committee for the State Bar of Texas.

Robert Gene “Rusty” Russell passed away on Monday, Jan. 17, 2022 in Arlington, Texas. Russell graduated from law school in 1970, served in the Air Force, and had a long legal career, including serving as an administrative law judge for the State of Texas and teaching law at a local college.

Taylor Steele is heading the newly opened Dallas office of civil litigation firm Knox Ricksen LLP, a civil litigation firm. Steele has worked as a lateral partner for the firm since January 2021.

Jose Vela has been elected to the Austin City Council representing District 4, after running a campaign based on tackling housing affordability in Austin. Vela works as an immigration attorney for Walker Gates Vela, PLLC.

Whitney Beckworth has been elected as Partner at Kelly, Hart, and Hallman, LLP. Beckworth focuses on civil litigation and was named a Super Lawyers Rising Star for business litigation in 2022 and Best Lawyer/One to Watch in DFW for 2022 by US News & World Report for appellate practice.

Hannah Watkins has been elected as Partner at Kelly, Hart, and Hallman, LLP. Watkins specializes in real estate law and was named a Texas Super Lawyers Rising Star in 2022.

Reid Phillips was recognized as a “Super Lawyer” for Business Litigation in the 2022 edition of North Carolina Super Lawyers, an annual list honoring the top lawyers in North Carolina. Phillips is a managing partner with Brooks Pierce.

Marlene Williams was appointed to a shareholder position at the Houston office of Ogeltree Deakins, a labor and employment law firm. Williams previously worked as a Partner in Charge for Eversheds Sutherland and has been recognized as Houston Top Lawyer in the Labor and Employment area in the Houston Business Journal.

Brad Wright has been appointed by Gov. Greg Abbott to the Permanent School Fund Corporation Board of Directors which oversees the investment of funds for Texas public schools. Wright is a co-founder and managing partner of Bandera Group, LLC, an energy investment firm. He serves on the Advisory Council for Kay Bailey Hutchinson Center for Energy, Law, and Business and the Advisory Committee for the McCombs School of Business Energy Initiative at UT Austin.

Wardlow Lane passed away at age 81 on Jan. 13, 2022 after a lengthy illness. After graduating from law school in 1968, Lane worked as an assistant attorney general under Texas attorney general John L. Hill. He later opened his own  practices in Center, Texas and Pagosa Springs, Colorado.

David Ray Finney, former Tarrant County attorney and legislator, passed away on Jan. 18, 2022 at age 88. Finney earned his Bachelor of Laws in 1958, followed by a three-year stint in the Air Force as Assistant Staff Judge Advocate. He worked as an assistant city attorney for the City of Fort Worth and at a number of small law firms. Finney also represented Tarrant County in the House of Representatives from 1962 until 1977.

Danny McDonald has joined Endeavors, a service organization based in San Antonio, Texas, as the chief risk officer and general counsel. Before joining Endeavors, McDonald worked as an in house attorney, public accountant, and legal and business advisor.

Jim Weiss has been promoted to partner at litigation firm Reynolds Frizzell, LLP. A third generation lawyer, Weiss clerked for two years for The Hon. Sam Sparks on the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas.

Vianei Lopez Braun has been elected chair of the Fort Worth Regional Board of Directors for First Financial Bank after having served as the bank’s employment attorney for 24 years. Braun also sits on the Board of Directors for First Financial Bankshares, Inc. and serves as chief development officer for Decker Jones, P.C.

José M. Rubio has been elected to new member by Dykema, a national law firm. Rubio is an attorney in Dykema’s Commercial Litigation practice group.

Prescott W. Smith has been elected to new member at Dykema, a national law firm. Smith works as an attorney in Dykema’s Products Liability practice group.

Ard Ardalan has opened Ardalan Law Firm PLLC focusing on personal injury cases in Austin, Texas.

Rick Cofer was recognized as Best Lawyer in the Austin Chronicle 2021 Best of Austin Readers Poll. He is a partner of Cofer & Connelly, PLLC whose practice focus on family law, criminal defense, and personal injury law.

John G. Minniece passed away on Jan. 10, 2022 at the age of 88. He was a double Longhorn who graduated with his Bachelor of Laws in 1960, after serving in the Marine Corps. Minniece practiced oil and gas, banking, and real estate law.

Karen Roberts Washington was named a life member of the Uniform Law Commission. The Uniform Law Commission works to provide uniformity in state laws for citizens who work or travel in multiple states.

Leslie Robnett was appointed by Governor Greg Abbott to the Specialty Courts Advisory Council for a term set to expire February 1, 2025. Robnett of Fort Worth is an attorney for Duane Morris, LLP. She is a member of the State Bar of Texas, The University of Texas Chancellors Council, and the Eldon B. Mahon Inn of Court.

David Pritchett has been made a shareholder of Duluth-based law firm Fryberger, Buchanan, Smith & Frederick, P.A. He joined the firm in 2020, bringing his experience in real estate law, corporate law, business succession planning, and municipal law to the firm. He has served as Minnesota counsel for PotlatchDeltic Corporation and as Town Attorney for Thomson Township since 1991, among many other clients.