Class Notes

Elana Einhorn has joined the Specialized Advocacy practice group at Butler Snow in Austin. Previously, Einhorn practiced at Enoch Kever and also has been an adjunct professor at Texas Law.

Michael Calhoon has joined Bourelly George & Brodey, a Washington, D.C.-based boutique litigation firm. Previously, Calhoon practiced at Baker Botts, where his team scored a nearly billion-dollar verdict in a complex securities fraud case.

Marcus Brooks joined Jackson Walker law firm as a partner in the tax practice group. Brooks advises clients on complex tax matters and represents them in disputes before the IRS Appeals Office, and proceedings before the U.S. Tax Court, U.S. District Court, and the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Erleigh Wiley has been honored with the “Living Legend Award” for legal excellence by the Dallas Bar Association. Wiley serves as the Kaufman County district attorney and is the current chairman of the Texas District & County Attorney’s executive board.

Chad Craycraft was appointed to the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission by Governor Greg Abbott. Previously, Craycraft served on the Texas Ethics Commission where he was twice elected chairman.

Mario J. Martinez passed away on Jan. 20, 2025. Martinez served as assistant U.S. attorney in 1965-67 and was subsequently appointed United States commissioner and United States magistrate. He entered private practice in 1973 and maintained his solo practice for the more than five decades.

Former First Court of Appeals Justice Peter Kelly has formed Kelly Watkins McPheeters, a statewide appellate law firm offering a range of services in state and federal court. Kely is board-certified in Civil Appellate Law and a member of the American Law Institute and Texas Supreme Court Advisory Committee.

Anna MacFarlane has been appointed to the San Antonio Bar Foundation Fellows Program newly elected class of 2025, in recognition of her professional achievement, exemplary reputation, and commitment to the legal community. MacFarlane is an associate with Pulman, Cappuccio & Pullen in San Antonio.

Stephanie Dodge Bigley has been appointed to the San Antonio Bar Foundation Fellows Program newly elected class of 2025, in recognition of her professional achievement, exemplary reputation, and commitment to the legal community. Bigley is of counsel at David Santos in the San Antonio area.

Michelle Casillas has been appointed to the San Antonio Bar Foundation Fellows Program newly elected class of 2025, in recognition of her professional achievement, exemplary reputation, and commitment to the legal community. Casillas is vice president and trust officer for Jefferson Bank, providing clients comprehensive guidance in trust administration and estate settlement.

Edward Snyder has been appointed to the San Antonio Bar Foundation Fellows Program newly elected class of 2025, in recognition of his professional achievement, exemplary reputation, and commitment to the legal community. Snyder heads his own San Antonio-based firm, specializing primarily in business law.

Ben Love has joined Baker Botts as a litigation partner in the firm’s Houston office. Love, who is recognized as a global leader in international arbitration and public international law, will focus on the firm’s international disputes practice.

John K. Boyce III has been appointed to the San Antonio Bar Foundation Fellows Program newly elected class of 2025, in recognition of his professional achievement, exemplary reputation, and commitment to the legal community. Boyce specializes in business law and alternative dispute resolution at his San Antonio-based firm.

Marla D. Broaddus has joined McGinnis Lochridge as a partner in the firm’s oil & gas practice group. Broaddus, who has more than 28 years of experience litigating oil and gas matters, is a former original proceedings staff attorney for the Supreme Court of Texas and a also was a staff attorney for former Justice James A. Baker.

Charles “Chuck” Louis Strehli passed away Jan. 17, 2025. After serving in the U.S. Army and graduating from law school, Strehli ran his own independent Amway business for 60 years.

Anne W. Johnston passed away Dec. 8, 2024. In addition to her numerous charitable pursuits, Johnston, who helped found the Texas Lawyers Auxiliary, practiced law full-time after her sons were grown and was board certified in estate planning and probate law.

Stephen Howell has joined Cantey Hanger’s transportation practice area in the firm’s Fort Worth office. Howell specializes in aviation litigation and is a certified mediator and a member of the Defense Research Institute.

Stephanie E. Kaiser has joined Kane Russell Coleman Logan as a director in the firm’s Dallas office. She is a member of the Financial Services Practice Group and the Business and Corporate Transactional Practice Group.

Jonathan Adams has joined Bradley Arant Boult Cummings as an associate in the firm’s Houston office where he will work in the litigation practice group.

Tim Almohamad has joined Bradley Arant Boult Cummings as an associate in the firm’s Houston office where he will work in the construction practice group.

John “Carter” Byrum has joined Bradley Arant Boult Cummings as an associate in the firm’s Houston office where he will work in the litigation practice group.

Stephen McCluskey has joined Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP as an associate in the firm’s Dallas office where he will work in the litigation practice group.

Courtlyn Ward has joined a new six-person governmental practice team at Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP in Dallas.

Stephen Moulton has joined a new six-person governmental practice team at Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton in Dallas.

Ben Mesches is now general counsel at Haynes Boone, where he guides appellate and litigation teams in high-stakes cases in state and federal courts nationwide.

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.

Justice C. H. “Terry” McCall, passed away on January 3, 2024. As a law students, he was a member of the Texas Law Review, Order of the Coif, Chancellors, and Phi Delta Phi. McCall was elected to the Eleventh Court of Appeals in 1998, and served until 2013. After retiring, he continued to serve as a senior appellate judge to the Eleventh Court of Appeals.

David Wayne Wilson passed away January 6, 2025. A double Longhorn, Wilson earned his law degree in 1989.

Carlos J. Contreras III has been named to Austin Business Journal’s Texas 100, which is an annual list of impactful Texans. Contreras is the President and CEO for Goodwill San Antonio and previously served as the Assistant City Manager for the City of San Antonio.

Garry Merritt has been named to Austin Business Journal’s Texas 100, which is an annual list of impactful Texans. Merritt is CEO of Great Springs Project, which plans to create a greenway of protected lands between Austin and San Antonio over the Edwards Aquifer recharge zone.

Miguel Garza has been named to Austin Business Journal’s Texas 100, which is an annual list of impactful Texans. Garza is co-founder and CEO of Siete Family Foods, a Mexican-American food brand that provides gluten-, grain-, and dairy-free food products.

Stephen Dale “Steve” Carlton passed away December 29, 2024. Carlton established the Carlton Law Practice in Orange, Texas, where he served the community for 50 years.

Betty Balli Torres has received the inaugural Impacto Award by the American Bar Association Commission on Hispanic Legal Rights and Responsibilities. Torres is executive director of the Texas Access to Justice Foundation and is being honored for her efforts to remove barriers to social justice and civic engagement facing Latinos in the U.S.

José “Chito” Vela was resworn in on Austin City Council as District 4 representative on Jan. 6, 2025. Before being elected to the City Council, Vela worked as an immigration and criminal defense lawyer at Walker Gates Vela.

Randy Erben has been reappointed to the Texas Ethics Commission to fill the remainder of his current term set to expire on Nov. 19, 2025. Erben has served on the commission since December 2017 and is the current chair. He is currently an adjunct professor at Texas Law and of counsel with Erben & Yarbrough.

Michael Schattle passed away on Dec. 2, 2024. As an attorney, Schattle represented refugees, asylum seekers, and immigrants for Church World Service.

Eleanor D’Ambrosio has been promoted to partner at Spencer Fane’s Austin office. D’Ambrosio specializes in utility-related regulatory and business matters, having served at the Public Utility Commission of Texas prior to joining Spencer Fane.

Feras Mousilli, a founding partner of Lloyd & Mousilli, has been named among the Top 50 U.S. Trademark Attorneys for 2024 by analytics firm Huski.ai’s AI-driven rankings. Mousilli previously served as senior corporate counsel for both Apple and Dell.

Michael Pearson, a partner at Jackson Walker, has been inducted into the 2025 Lawdragon Hall of Fame. Pearson chaired the firm’s energy practice group for over 30 years and currently serves as an adjunct professor at Texas Law.

Lawrence Mealer passed away Dec. 14, 2024. Mealer began his career at Dallas Legal Services and later served as a civil attorney in private practice for over 48 years.

Jillian Trezza has been named counsel at Debevoise & Plimpton in the firm’s Washington, D.C., office. Trezza is a member of the White Collar & Regulatory Defense Group, where she focuses on securities-related enforcement defense.

Kelli C. Fuqua has been elevated to shareholder in the Austin office of Littler,  effective Jan. 1, 2025. Fugua regularly litigates discrimination, harassment, unfair competition and retaliation suits, with a focus on whistleblower matters and is well-versed in conducting workplace investigations and advising clients on workplace issues.

Melissa J. Ackie has been elevated to shareholder in the Austin office of Littler Mendelson P.C., effective Jan. 1, 2025. Ackie advises business owners, in-house counsel and human resources professionals on a broad range of HR and compliance workplace concerns, including leave and accommodation, discrimination, harassment, retaliation, terminations, and wage and hour issues.

Thomas Robert Felger passed away on Dec. 24, 2024. Felger pursued a legal career after completing 27 years of active duty and reserve service in the U.S. Navy, retiring as captain. From 1992 to 2009, Felger was a partner attorney with Baker Botts, where he worked with oil and gas companies along with technology and device companies.

Rob Walters has been appointed as independent director at Vistra, a leading Fortune 500 integrated retail electricity and power generation company based in Irving, Texas. Walters will serve on the Sustainability and Risk Committee and the Nominating and Governance Committee.

William Griffith Lawhon passed away on Dec. 22, 2024. Lawhon practiced law with the Butler & Binion law firm for 33 years, where he became partner in 1976, before practicing at Schlanger, Silver, Barg & Paine from 1999 to 2016. Lawhon also served in the United States Naval Reserves and the Judge Advocate General (JAG) Corps for 14 years, and retired with the rank of Lieutenant Commander in 1982.

Aaron Reitz, who serves as the chief of staff for Senator Ted Cruz, was nominated by Donald Trump to serve as the head of the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Policy.

Barrett Robin, partner at Hamilton Wingo in Dallas, has earned his fourth consecutive selection on the Best Lawyers Under 40 list published by D Magazine for his work in high-stakes personal injury lawsuits.

Caroline Dozier has been appointed by Governor Greg Abbott to the 228th Judicial District Court in Harris County for a term set to expire on Dec. 31, 2026. Dozier, who is bureau chief of the Misdemeanor Trial Bureau for the Harris County District Attorney’s Office, has served as an assistant district attorney for over 30 years.

Robert “Bryan” Gantt has been reappointed by Governor Greg Abbott to the 471st Judicial District Court in Collin County for a term set to expire Dec. 31, 2026. Previously, he was a partner at McCraw Gantt and served as an assistant attorney general in the General Litigation Division at the Office of the Attorney General.