Class Notes

Daily Journal, a law publication in California, has named Simon Greenstone Panatier’s $40 million verdict against Johnson & Johnson among the 2019 Top Verdicts in California. In September 2019, a California jury found that asbestos-tainted talc in Johnson’s Baby Powder caused 71-year-old Nancy Cabibi’s mesothelioma, an incurable form of cancer caused by exposure to asbestos. David Greenstone, a name partner of Simon Greenstone Panatier, was the lead trial attorney in the Cabibi case.

David N. Calvillo, board certified civil trial lawyer, certified public accountant, and certified valuation analyst with national law firm Chamberlain Hrdlicka, has recently earned an Executive L.L.M. (Master of Laws) in Tax Law degree from Georgetown University Law Center. Calvillo has also been elected to be an income shareholder in recognition of his contributions to the firm during its annual meeting on February 8 in Houston, TX.

The Association of Corporate Counsel’s DFW Chapter and The Texas Lawbook are honored to give the 2019 Outstanding Corporate Counsel Award for Lifetime Achievement to John Christopher Luna.

Caplin & Drysdale is pleased to announce that Katy Cox has joined the firm as an Associate in the Complex Litigation and Bankruptcy practice groups. Ms. Cox represents both individual and corporate clients in state and federal matters across the country. Her practice centers around complex commercial litigation, with an emphasis on bankruptcy litigation. In particular, she works to protect the rights and interests of creditors, tort claimants, and official creditors’ committees in mass tort b

The University of Texas School of Law alumnus September Rea joined Am Law 100 firm Polsinelli as Principal in the Los Angeles office. September joined Polsinelli’s Labor and Employment practice, which will focus on advising California and national employers within multiple industries on all aspects of employment.

University of Texas School of Law alumnus Daniel Lynch has been promoted to partner at Akin Gump.

The San Antonio Bar Foundation (SABF) is pleased to announce the appointment of Jason Davis to the SABF Fellows Program newly-elected 2020 class.

The San Antonio Bar Foundation (SABF) is pleased to announce the appointment of Grant T. McFarland to the SABF Fellows Program newly-elected 2020 class.

The San Antonio Bar Foundation (SABF) is pleased to announce the appointment of the Honorable Judge Michael Mery to the SABF Fellows Program newly-elected 2020 class.

The San Antonio Bar Foundation (SABF) is pleased to announce the appointment of Daniel “Neel” M. Lane, Jr. to the SABF Fellows Program newly-elected 2020 class.

The San Antonio Bar Foundation (SABF) is pleased to announce the appointment of Jay Dewald to the SABF Fellows Program newly-elected 2020 class.

University of Texas School of Law alumnus Reid L. Phillips was among 34 Brooks Pierce attorneys recognized as industry leaders in the 2020 edition of North Carolina Super Lawyers. This annual list honors the top lawyers in North Carolina.

University of Texas School of Law alumnus Ross Angus Williams has been named to Dallas Business Journal’s “40 under 40” list.

Wright Close & Barger welcomes the University of Texas School of Law alumnus Michael Hurta, who will bolster the firm’s trial and appellate practice.

Elected Vice Dean of the Houston Consular Corps, the 3rd largest in the U.S. and elected Vice Chairman the George H.W. Bush Foundation for U.S.-China Relations and Chairman of the Advisory Board of the Interfaith Ministries of Greater Houston

Lindsey Raspino has been promoted to partner at Houston litigation firm Reynolds Frizzell LLP. Lindsey possesses a strong ability to translate complex matters into simplified concepts—a quality that has consistently contributed to favorable outcomes for her clients. She is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate from The University of Texas, where she earned her law degree with Honors. She clerked for the Honorable Jane Bland of Texas’s First District Court of Appeals.

On January 1, 2020, Tom Selby was elected as one of the six members of Williams & Connolly’s Executive Committee.

After nearly 10 years in public service with both the SEC and the Department of Justice, Barry Kamar joined litigation funding advisory firm Westfleet Advisors.

Prof. Dr. John Henry Dingfelder Stone was awarded tenure as a Professor of Law (Public and International) at the Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences in Kleve, Germany.

Longtime Baker Botts Attorney Bill Kroger will receive the Anti-Defamation League’s Karen H. Susman Jurisprudence Award February 19, 2020, at the Hilton Americas Houston. The award is presented every year to an outstanding member of the legal community who exhibits an exceptional commitment to equality, justice, fairness and community services. It is named for the late ADL Board Chair Karen H. Susman, in memory of her deep commitment to fighting hatred and doing good work.

Josh Ling recently joined the Houston office of Chamberlain Hrdlicka as an associate in the tax practice. He is an associate in the Tax Planning & Business Transactions group. Prior to joining Chamberlain Hrdlicka, Josh worked in Grant Thornton’s M&A Tax practice, where he focused on tax planning for businesses throughout various stages of the transaction life cycle.

The Dallas Bar Association recently elected its incoming Board. Robert Tobey, of Johnston Tobey Baruch, P.C., will lead the association in 2020. He was sworn in as the 111th President of the DBA January 11, 2020. Mr. Tobey began his service on the DBA Board of Directors in 2012. He was later elected Chair of the Board in 2016.

I recently left the partnership at Morris, Manning & Martin LLP to start my own law practice, The Lockett Law Firm, a boutique firm based in Atlanta, Georgia specializing in business litigation.

Dustin O’Quinn has been honored as an Outstanding Voice of Pride by the Puget Sound Business Journal for his committment to LGBT issues in the business community and pro bono work.

Stephanie DeBrow has been promoted to partner at Norton Rose Fulbright in Houston. She is an accomplished litigator in the firm’s Austin office whose practice focuses on patent litigation and appeals. She represents clients in a variety of fields, including mechanical, telecommunications, computer, semiconductor, e-commerce and Internet technologies.

Jared Levinthal has joined Lightfoot, Franklin & White LLC as a partner in the firm’s Houston office. Jared represents plaintiffs and defendants in all types of litigation. He handles disputes involving commercial and business issues, product liability, professional malpractice, intellectual property, insurance coverage and bad faith, serious personal injury and wrongful death.

Robert A. Wilkins has joined Lightfoot, Franklin & White LLC as a partner in the firm’s Houston office. Wilkins represents both plaintiffs and defendants in state and federal courts as well as before arbitral tribunals. He has a particular focus on commercial litigation involving the oil and gas industry, including business divorce cases, fiduciary duty issues, breach of contract claims, securities disputes and related matters.

Vinson & Elkins LLP has promoted Christie Alcalá to counsel effective Jan. 1, 2020. Alcalá advises and represents employers on all aspects of employment and labor law in business transactions, day-to-day operations, administrative proceedings and litigation, including issues relating to wage and hour laws, restrictive covenants, employment and severance agreements, reductions-in-force, employee privacy rights, internal investigations, anti-discrimination, leaves, unions and drug testing.

Vinson & Elkins LLP promoted Emery Choi to counsel effective Jan. 1, 2020. Choi represents clients in domestic and international mergers and acquisitions, private equity investments, joint ventures and a variety of energy matters. Among his notable experience, Choi advised Devon Energy in the $2 billion sale of certain non-core upstream assets to multiple buyers.

Vinson & Elkins LLP promoted Matthew Falcone to counsel effective Jan. 1, 2020. Falcone focuses his practice on representing private equity funds, financial sponsors and public and private companies in mergers and acquisitions, equity financings, joint ventures and other strategic transactions, particularly in the energy infrastructure sector.

Vinson & Elkins LLP promoted Taylor Holcomb to counsel effective Jan. 1, 2020. Holcomb helps clients develop and permit domestic projects, operate in compliance with federal and state laws and defend against claims brought by the government and other groups. He primarily practices before the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, the Texas Railroad Commission, the Public Utility Commission of Texas and the Environmental Protection Agency.

Stephanie Rzepka has been promoted to Counsel at Tucker Ellis LLP. Stephanie represents clients in class action and complex commercial litigation matters across a variety of areas, including price premium, securities fraud, wage and hour, resale price maintenance, and
pay for delay.

Robert L. Tobey has been elected President of the Dallas Bar Association, a professional, voluntary organization of more than 11,000 Dallas-area attorneys.

Promoted to partnership effective January 1, 2020, Sivinski is a member of the intellectual property litigation practice group in Haynes and Boone’s Dallas office. She has obtained trial victories in technologically complex cases ranging from patent-infringement to breach-of-contract matters. Her practice has touched on technology as varied as pharmaceuticals, thermodynamics, computer software, and semiconductor manufacturing.

Promoted to the Vinson & Elkins LLP partnership effective Jan. 1, 2020, Watts represents entrepreneurial enterprises and venture capital investors in the creation, financing and operation of technology and growth companies. He also advises emerging companies with respect to mergers and acquisitions and other strategic transactions, in addition to general corporate and governance matters.

Promoted to the Vinson & Elkins LLP partnership effective Jan. 1, 2020, Longhofer focuses on syndicated, acquisition and structured/mezzanine financings and debt restructurings, including debtor-in-possession facilities and complex intercreditor arrangements and preferred equity investments, primarily in the energy space. His industry experience includes oil and gas exploration and production; midstream; oilfield services; refining, distribution, storage and transportation; and retail.

Dallas, Dec. 20, 2019 – International law firm Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP has added a new associate in its Dallas office: Chris Perkins, Corporate.

Dallas, Dec. 20, 2019 – International law firm Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP has a new associate in its Dallas office: Niko Lane, Corporate.

Misty Farris was selected by peers for positions on the American Association for Justice’s Committee on the Judiciary and its Women Trial Lawyers Caucus Publications Committee. Farris focuses on pharmaceutical and medical device litigation and environmental litigation at Dallas-based Fears Nachawati Law Firm.

Christie Alcalá was promoted to counsel effective Jan. 1, 2020, at Vinson & Elkins. Alcalá advises and represents employers on all aspects of employment and labor law in business transactions, day-to-day operations, administrative proceedings and litigation, including issues relating to wage and hour laws, restrictive covenants, employment and severance agreements, reductions-in-force, employee privacy rights, internal investigations, anti-discrimination, leaves, unions and drug testing.

The international law firm Milbank LLP has promoted Jeffrey Leider to partner effective January 1, 2020. He is a member of the Global Project, Energy and Infrastructure Finance Group, based in New York. Mr. Leider’s experience includes the representation of financial institutions and project sponsors in domestic and international project and structured financings.

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.

Harris County Attorney Vince Ryan announces the appointment of Michael Fritz ’12, to serve as an Assistant County Attorney with the Hospital District Practice Group. Fritz holds a B.A. in Economics and Philosophy from The University of Texas at Austin, as well as a Juris Doctorate from The University of Texas School of Law. He joins the office from Diamond McCarthy, LLP where he practiced complex commercial litigation and bankruptcy law in various areas.

Redgrave LLP, the premier law firm focusing exclusively on eDiscovery and information law, is proud to announce that partner Christine P. Payne ’06 was named to the 2019 “Women Worth Watching” list published by Profiles in Diversity Journal. Now in its 18th edition, “Women Worth Watching” recognizes women executives who are leading the way to excellence in the workplace, marketplace, and the world.

Beck Redden LLP is pleased to announce that David J. Beck has been appointed by Governor Greg Abbott to chair the newly formed Texas Commission on Judicial Selection. The 15-member Commission is comprised of four State Senators, four members of the Texas House of Representatives, two former Chief Justices of the Texas Supreme Court, and others. It is charged with evaluating the merits of alternative methods of judicial selection, and to produce findings and recommendations for reform to the Legislature by December 31, 2020.

Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP is pleased to announce that the firm has elected Russell H. Falconer to partnership, effective January 1, 2020. Falconer has extensive experience representing clients who operate in heavily regulated industries, including broker-dealers, airlines, electric utilities, investment firms, and pharmaceutical companies. He has played a substantial role in a wide range of high-stakes appeals, trials, and litigation. Falconer graduated in 2009 with highest honors from The University of Texas at Austin School of Law, where he was the Grand Chancellor of his class and served as a member of the Texas Law Review.

Lauren Corbeil was promoted to partner in the Houston office of Locke Lord. Lauren focuses her practice on mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, corporate restructurings, joint ventures, private equity and venture capital transactions, corporate governance and other general corporate and commercial matters.

Ms. Marissa Marquez with Legacy Community Health has been elected to membership in the Fellows of the Texas Bar Foundation. Fellows of the Foundation are selected for their outstanding professional achievements and their demonstrated commitment to the improvement of the justice system throughout the state of Texas. Election is a mark of distinction and recognition of Ms. Marquez’s contributions to the legal profession.

Starnes Davis Florie LLP welcomes Catherine (“Cat”) Kirkland as a partner to the firm’s Mobile office. Cat joins the firm’s transactional and regulatory healthcare practice. Cat’s nationwide practice focuses on advising healthcare providers on a variety of reimbursement, regulatory, compliance, and operational matters. She brings considerable experience with supplemental Medicaid programs, physician contracting, hospital collaborations, complex financial modeling, and compliance planning.

Having served a general counsel role to a variety of businesses (including a Class 1 Railway company, a forest-products/real-estate conglomerate in TempleInland, and a family co.) as well as having worked in large law firms, I am excited to return to small private practice with my former H&K colleague and Christian brother John T. Wright. Together, I believe our nimble boutique firm is offering partner-level experience at a predictable price point that is below many big-law associates.