Frances Blake is the new general counsel and vice president of regulatory affairs for the Texas Association of Builders. Previously, Blake served as bond counsel and general counsel to various local governmental entities, as well as an assistant United States attorney.
John L. Stavinoha III has been promoted to partner at Bracewell’s Houston office, effective Jan. 1, 2025. Stavinoha will work in the firm’s oil and gas practice.
Andrew W. Monk has been promoted to partner at Bracewell in Houston, effective Jan. 1, 2025. Monk will work in the firm’s corporate and securities practice.
W. Jared Berg has been promoted to partner at Bracewell in Houston, effective Jan. 1, 2025. Berg will work in the firm’s corporate and securities practice.
Shannon Edmonds was named the executive director of the Texas District and County Attorneys Association (TDCAA) in Austin, effective Jan. 1, 2025. Edmonds has served as the director of governmental relations for the TDCAA, the largest statewide association of prosecutors in the nation.
Parth Gejji, an associate at Beck Redden in Houston, has been elected to the partnership effective Jan. 1, 2025. A double Longhorn, Gejji was included in the 2024 edition of Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch for his work in appellate practice.
Nicholas Bruno, an associate at Beck Redden in Houston, has been elected to the partnership effective Jan. 1, 2025. As lead appellate counsel, Bruno practices in all levels of the Texas appellate system.
Patricia Rigney has been appointed to the Business Advisory Council to the Texas Division of Emergency Management. Rigney is owner of Rigney Law Firm and is currently the city attorney for the City of Mission.
Todd Hartis has been promoted to counsel at Vinson & Elkins’ Houston office. Hartis focuses his practice on corporate and securities transactions and has been named to Best Lawyers in America’s Ones to Watch list since 2023.
Zach Rider has been promoted to partner at Vinson & Elkins’ Houston office. Rider advises clients on a range of financing transactions and was named to Best Lawyers in America’s 2025 Ones to Watch list for banking and finance law.
Jeremy Reichman has been promoted to partner at Vinson & Elkins’ Dallas office. Reichman is a commercial litigator with a focus on professional liability matters.
Brooke Rollins has been selected by president-elect Donald Trump as the agriculture secretary. Rollins is president and CEO of the America First Policy Institute and previously served as director of the Domestic Policy Council and assistant to the president for strategic initiatives.
Liam Corriston has joined Weil, Gotshal & Manges as an associate in the firm’s Dallas office. Corriston previously served as a judicial intern at the U.S. District Court.
Daniel Sternthal, shareholder at Munsch Hardt Kopf & Harr in Houston, has been elected as the newest member of the firm’s board of directors. Sternthal is a recognized authority on regulatory, business and policy issues related to health care, serving as strategic counsel to a diverse range of health care entities.
David Coligado, CEO-elect at Munsch Hardt Kopf & Harr, is featured in D CEO Magazine’s 2025 edition of the Dallas 500 directory, The Dallas 500 publication profiles the most powerful leaders in North Texas across more than 60 different business categories; this is Coligado’s first year of inclusion in the Dallas 500.
Mary Kipp was named to the transition team for Washington’s governor-elect Bob Ferguson as an advisor. Kipp has served as president and CEO of Puget Sound Energy since 2020 and previously was CEO of El Paso Electric.
Cara Shaffer joined the faculty at the University of Colorado Law School as an associate teaching professor in the fall. Shaffer, who teaches legal writing, formerly worked as the founding director of the legal writing center at South Texas College of Law Houston.
Amanda Tyler has written a book titled “How to End Christian Nationalism,” which provides critical insights into the ideological and legal battles against Christian nationalism in the United States.
Reid Powers has been named the director of gift and estate planning for the Alumni Relations and Development Office at Texas Law. Reid previously worked for the Office of the Texas Attorney General and at the boutique law firm Saunders & Associates, specializing in estate planning.
Sarah Christian has joined Jackson Walker’s Austin office in the firm’s Finance & Banking practice group. Christian has been recognized by Super Lawyers as a “Texas Rising Star” and by Austin Monthly Magazine as a top finance attorney for the past three years.
Omar Alaniz, a partner at Reed Smith, is among the 2024 100 LGBTQ+ Executives selected by INvolve, in recognition of his advocacy and support efforts on behalf of LGBTQ+ diversity, equity and inclusion. Alaniz is member of Reed Smith’s Restructuring & Insolvency Group.
Nina Cortell, senior counsel at Haynes and Boone, was honored with the Larry Schoenbrun Jurisprudence Award by the Anti-Defamation League. Cortell represents corporations, public entities, and individuals in cases that have put her at the forefront of Texas litigation practice.
Jordan S. Hatcher co-founded a new tech company called The Grid, which recently announced its funding. Hatcher also serves as its COO.
Amanda Arriaga was named In House Impact Award Winner of the Year by Texas Lawyer Magazine and a finalist for Corporate Counsel of the Year by the State Bar of Texas Office of Minority Affairs. Arriaga is the general counsel of Sperry Commercial.
Brianna Herman has joined Ogletree Deakins’ Houston office as an associate. A former Harris County prosecutor, Herman focuses her practice on a variety of labor and employment matters.
Shavonne Smith has joined Ogletree Deakins as of counsel at the firm’s San Antonio office. Her practice focuses on employment litigation matters, including workplace discrimination, harassment, retaliation, failure to accommodate, wrongful termination, and related issues.
Wade A. Barrow was raised to the rank of advocate by the American Board of Trial Advocates. His firm, Barrow Law, is based in Fort Worth and focuses on personal injury and wrongful death cases.
Greg Sorensen has been promoted to counsel at Latham & Watkins’ Houston office. Sorensen is a member of the firm’s M&A and Private Equity Practice and Corporate department and advises clients on strategic energy and infrastructure transactions.
David Moore has been elected to partner at Latham & Watkins’ Houston office. Moore, who is a member of the firm’s Investment Funds Practice and Corporate department, focuses his practice on U.S. and international private investment funds and joint ventures.
Christine Mainguy has been promoted to partner at Latham & Watkins in the Houston office. A member of the firm’s Transactional Tax Practice and Tax Department, she advises clients on U.S. federal income taxation of mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, Up-C structures, restructurings, and capital markets transactions. Mainguy has been recognized by The Best Lawyers in America as “Ones to Watch” for tax law and energy law.
Sean Whyte has joined Bressler, Amery & Ross’ Florham Park, N.J., office as a principal in the firm’s Commercial Litigation practice group. Whyte, who has extensive experience in blockchain and crypto technology, specializes in class actions and business litigation.
Christi Craddick has been reelected to the Railroad Commission of Texas, of which she is the current chair. Craddick has served in the agency, which regulates the state’s oil and natural gas industry, since 2012.
Cal Hendrick won the Odessa mayoral race, in the Nov. 5 election. Hendrick, an insurance attorney, ran on a platform of returning the City Council’s attention to everyday issues. He has served as general counsel at Mcanally Wilkins Inc. in Odessa.
Scott Rozzell was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Lone Star Flight Museum. As a member of the museum’s Board of Directors, Rozzell was integral in the reimagining and relocation of the museum following Hurricane Ike in 2008. He spent much of his career at Baker Botts, ending his tenure there as a senior partner, then worked another 13 years at CenterPoint Energy as executive vice president of general counsel and corporate secretary.
David Young has joined Reynolds Frizzell as an associate. Young’s experience as a young trial lawyer includes client matters across various industries, including industrial, private equity, financial services, and technology.
Cheryl Rosenburg has joined Frost Brown Todd, following 14 years with Haynes and Boone. Rosenburg, who’s been practicing law for over 35 years, has experience in the issuance of governmental tax-exempt debt in Texas, serving as underwriter’s counsel for investment banking firms and advising clients on general public law matters.
Jennifer Banda has been named the executive director of the Center for Women in Law. Banda has served as senior vice president for advocacy and public policy at the Texas Hospital Association, and her career includes leadership roles in the Texas House, Texas Senate, and on Capitol Hill.
Sylvia Borunda Firth, of counsel at the Bojorquez Law Firm, was recognized for government service by McDonald’s at the 23d Annual Triunfadores Awards Luncheon. A past president of the State Bar of Texas, Firth previously served as city attorney for the City of El Paso.
Nik Soni has joined bi-coastal boutique BraunHagey & Borden as an associate in the New York City office. He works as a complex commercial litigator, focusing on high profile commercial disputes. Soni is now the fifth Texas Law alum at BHB.
Monica Brown will be appointed executive vice president, chief legal officer and secretary for Lennox International, effective January of 2025. Brown joined Lennox in 2012 and currently serves as vice president and deputy general counsel.
Scott Schools has been appointed chief compliance officer for OpenAI. In addition to his previous role as Uber Technologies’ chief ethics and compliance officer, Schools has served as associate deputy attorney general at the U.S. Department of Justice.
Cathy Garza has joined the Jackson Walker’s Electric Regulatory practice in Austin. She regularly advises clients in the electricity sector, including investor-owned utilities, power generation companies, retail electric providers and developers on regulatory and commercial litigation, as well as compliance issues. Garza advocates for clients in contested proceedings before the Public Utility Commission of Texas and the State Office of Administrative Hearings.
Colombina Valera has joined Austin-based litigation firm Botkin Chiarello Calaf as an associate, following a two-year clerkship for U.S. Magistrate Judge Dustin M. Howell of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas.
Keith Cohan, a partner at Reid Collins & Tsai in Austin, earned the Pro Bono Attorney of the Year award as announced by Texas Lawyer. His practice focuses on complex commercial litigation, including cases involving financial fraud, professional negligence, fiduciary liability, and other business torts. Cohan recently contributed to the first jury trial-to-verdict victory for the American Civil Liberties Union of Louisiana’s Justice Lab.
Ronald E. Mendoza, a partner with Davis, Cedillo & Mendoza in San Antonio, has been inducted as a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers, one of the premier legal associations in the United States and Canada.
Joseph C. Blanton Jr., a partner at Blanton, Nickell, Collins, Douglas, Hanschen & Peters, has been inducted as a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers. Blanton has been practicing in Southeast Missouri since 1987.
Kleber Miller was named a Tarrant County Legal Legend in recognition of his contributions to the profession and community. Miller, whose career spanned over 70 years, previously was recognized by his peers in the State Bar of Texas as a Texas Legal Legend.
Vianei Lopez Braun, a shareholder at Decker Jones, was named one of “100 Hispanic Board Members Making a Difference” by Board Recruitment Magazine in its October 2024 edition. Vianei has been an independent director of First Financial Bankshares, Inc. since 2020 and serves on the board’s Compensation, Risk, and Nominations & Governance committees.
Barrett Reasoner, a partner at Gibbs & Bruns and fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers, will be honored with the prestigious Karen H. Susman Jurisprudence Award by the Anti-Defamation League’s Southwest Region.
Jaime A. Saenz, a partner at Colvin, Saenz, Rodriguez & Kennamer in Brownsville, Texas, was nominated and inducted as a Fellow to the American College of Trial Lawyers. Saenz specializes in personal injury litigation and has tried over 120 civil cases to verdict.