Class Notes

Samoneh “Sammy” Schickel has joined McDermott Will & Emery as a partner specializing in patent litigation. Schickel previously served as a senior associate at Baker Botts LLP.

Aashish Kapadia has joined McDermott Will & Emery as a partner specializing in intellectual property litigation, post-grant trials and patent prosecution. Kapadia previously served as a senior associate at Baker Botts LLP.

Alex Toney has joined Bain & Company as counsel for employment law, managing employment litigation and counseling Bain on emerging issues in employment law. Toney was previously an associate at McGuireWoods LLP, where he represented employers and business owners on employment law matters.

Steve Peterson has co-founded a new Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP office in Houston. Peterson is a member of the firm’s Corporate and Securities practice group. He previously worked at Locke Lord LLP .

Jennifer Crabb has been recognized as a 2020-2022 Outstanding Advocate in Capital Cases by the Association of Government Attorneys in Capital Litigation (AGACL). Crabb currently serves as as Chief of the Oklahoma Attorney General’s Capital Appeals Unit.

Hannah Roblyer has joined the Houston office of appellate firm Alexander Dubose and Jefferson LLP.  Roblyer will collaborate with trial teams pre- and post-verdict and continue her state and federal appellate practice.

Rae Guyse has begun her practice in commercial litigation at Carrington Coleman as an associate attorney. Guyse previously served as an associate and intern at Haynes and Boone, where she focused on insurance recovery.

Ethan Glenn has joined the Commercial Litigation group at the international law firm Butler Snow LLP. Glenn previously served as a judicial law clerk under Hon. Alia Moses and Hon. Renee Harris Toliver, and as an assistant attorney general.

Austin Whitmore has joined McGuire, Craddock & Strother as a senior associate, specializing in real estate law. He previously served in the same position at Reed Smith LLP.

Hilda Galvan has been selected as a 2023 Dallas Business Hall of Fame inductee by Junior Achievement (JA) of Dallas. Galvan currently serves as the partner-in-charge at Jones Day, specializing in intellectual property litigation. She is a trustee of The University of Texas Law School Foundation.

Kevin Robnett has been appointed to the Texas Mutual Insurance Company Board of Directors by Governor Abbott. A Navy veteran and double Longhorn, Robnett is the co-founder and co-CEO of Lithos, a critical materials exploration and production company.

Nelson R. Block has been elected a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society. Fellows  are historians elected to the Society in recognition of a “contribution to historical scholarship.” A retired shareholder from Winstead PC, Block is active in community service and also serves as chairman of the “Green Bar Bill” Hillcourt Foundation.

Reid Phillips was included in the 2022 edition of Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business, as one of North Carolina’s top attorneys in the category Litigation: General Commercial. He is a  managing partner at Reid Phillips.

Rebekah Prince has joined Blank Rome LLP’s Corporate, M&A, and Securities practice group as a partner in the Los Angeles office. Her diverse corporate practice includes representing public and private companies as well as clients in the sports, media and entertainment, and franchising industries. Previously she worked at Barnes & Thornburg LLP.

Darren Walker has been named Commander of France’s Order of Arts and Letters – France’s highest cultural honor – in recognition of his support of the arts and artists. Darren Walker currently is the president of the Ford Foundation, a position in which he has served since 2013.

Michael Dierberg has been named the new chairman of the Today and Tomorrow Educational Foundation (TTEF) Board of Directors. Dierberg is the current Chairman of First Bank, and has been with the company since 2010. Previously, Dierberg served as an attorney at the United States Department of Justice in Washington, D.C.

Marty Green has been appointed to the Finance Commission of Texas by Governor Abbott. Green has served as principal and attorney in charge for Polunsky Beitel Green, LLP, since 2011, specializing in financial services and consumer credit arenas.

John A. Bonnet III has been named a partner at Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP. Bonnet specializes in M&A transactions, debt and equity financings, investment funds, general business transactions, contracts, corporate governance, and other business law matters. While at Texas Law, he was associate editor of the Texas Law Review.

Harry Reasoner was awarded the Clarence Darrow Award, which recognizes outstanding advocates who give their time and talent to benefit others, by the Harris County Democratic Lawyers Association. Reasoner is a senior partner at Vinson & Elkins, where he practices primarily in complex civil litigation.

Doanh “Zone” Nguyen has been named new permanent city attorney for the City of Laredo. Nguyen has more than 27 years of experience as a litigator and employment attorney.

Jonathan Graham is the recipient of the 2022 Corporate Leadership Award presented by the International Institute for Conflict Prevention and Resolution. Graham currently serves as executive vice president, general counsel and secretary at Amgen, where he is an advisor on strategic business, legal, governance and related matters.

Alistair Dawson has been elected 2022–2023 Chair of the Texas Bar Foundation Board of Trustees. Dawson has been a partner at Beck Redden LLP for nearly 30 years, where he specializes in commercial litigation.

Christine Aguilera has been named CEO of MedHealth Partners. Aguilera previously served as the company’s president and CFO since 2020; she will retain her role as president. Aguilera is also a board member at the marketing company Belardi Wong.

Michael “Mike” Lee has been appointed by Governor Abbott to the 256th Judicial District Court in Dallas County. Lee is an attorney in private practice and former Judge of the 95th Judicial District Court in Dallas.

Kristofer Monson has been reappointed by Governor Abbott as Chief Administrative Law Judge for the State Office of Administrative Hearings. Monson has served as Chief ALJ since 2019, and previously was Assistant Solicitor General in the Office of the Attorney General of Texas.

Bartholomew W. Nebergall has joined the law firm Polsinelli as counsel in the Dallas office. Nebergall will work in the firm’s Corporate and Transactional Practice, which is part of the National Business Department.

Mary Evelyn McNamara received the 2022 Professionalism Award from the Texas Center for Legal Ethics and the Austin Bar Association. She is a founding partner of the law firm Rivers McNamara.

Joshua Kelly has joined Austin’s Wittliff | Cutter as an associate in the firm’s commercial litigation group, handling business, intellectual property, and employment disputes. While at UT Law, Josh was an editor for the Texas Environmental Law Journal, a research assistant, a student attorney in the Domestic Violence Clinic, and a judicial intern in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas.

Jonathan Curth has been named executive vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary of W&T Offshore. Curth has served as an attorney in international law and general counsel at multiple companies in the oil and gas industry, where he has specialized in acquisitions, capital markets, and corporate transactions.

John G. Browning received the Luther (Luke) H. Soules III Award for Outstanding Service to the Practice Award, presented by the State Bar of Texas Litigation Section to recognize an attorney “who embodies excellence in the practice of law and exemplary service to the State Bar.” Browning is a partner at Spencer Fane in Plano; he also served as an appellate justice on the 5th District Court of Appeals in Dallas.

Kayla Dreyer has been elected chair of the Colorado Bar Association Litigation Section’s Executive Council. Dreyer has been actively involved with the Litigation Section for six years, previously serving in chair-elect, treasurer and secretary roles. Dreyer is a shareholder at Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck’s Denver office.

Jackie Furlow was awarded with the Texas’ Outstanding Young Litigator Award at the State Bar of Texas annual meeting. Furlow is a partner at Beck Redden LLP, where she represents clients in matters including business disputes, professional malpractice, products liability and more.

Reid Phillips was presented with the John B. McMillan Distinguished Service Award, North Carolina State Bar’s highest honor, at a meeting of the State Bar Council. The award honors current and retired members of the North Carolina State Bar who have demonstrated exemplary service to the legal profession. Reid Phillips is currently the managing partner of Brooks Pierce LLP.

An article authored by Michael J. Ritter – “Resolving the Anders Dilemmas: How & Why Texas Should Abandon the Anders Procedure” that was published in the St. Mary’s Journal on Legal Malpractice & Ethics – has received two honors. It was selected as the 2022 Outstanding Law Review Article Award by the Texas Bar Foundation and also won the Michael K. Moore Award from the State Bar of Texas Legal Services to the Poor in Criminal Matters Committee for excellence in research or writing in the area of indigent criminal defense. Ritter is senior counsel at Schmoyer Reinhard LLP.

Irina B. Plumlee has been recognized as a top immigration attorney by Chambers USA, an independent research company delivering rankings and insight into the world’s leading lawyers. Plumlee is a shareholder for Musch Hardt PC,  where her practice focuses on business and family immigration.

Daniel Sternthal has been recognized a s a top healthcare attorney by Chambers USA, an independent research company delivering rankings and insight into the world’s leading lawyers. Sternthal is a shareholder for Musch Hardt PC,  where he serves as strategic counsel to a diverse range of health care entities as they evaluate and navigate through regulatory, administrative and transactional opportunities.

Stuart Miller has been recognized a s a top healthcare attorneyby Chambers USA, an independent research company delivering rankings and insight into the world’s leading lawyers. Miller is a shareholder for Musch Hardt PC, working in the Houston office where he represents health care clients in a variety of corporate and regulatory matters.

Jhett Nelson has been named a Rising Star by Law360, an honor awarded to top legal talents under 40. Nelson is a partner at Kirkland & Ellis LLP, where he co-led a team advising on one of the largest private acquisitions of oil and gas assets in recent years.

Paul Hobby has been elected to the Baker Institute Board of Advisors at Rice University. Hobby is the co-founder and managing director of Genesis Park, a private equity firm specializing in industrial intelligence, energy transition, and communications investments.

Wayne Kreis was inducted into the Panhandle Sports Hall of Fame. Kreis played basketball at TCU and was named to the All-Southwest Conference First Team as a junior and the Frogs’ MVP. In his career, Kreis served as a lawyer and entrepreneur in oilfield technology before his death in 2019.

Sandra Phillips Rogers has been promoted to newly created position of senior vice president, corporate resources and general counsel for Toyota Motor North America (TMNA). Rogers has been with TMNA since 2012.

John Kinchen has been named a litigation partner at Smyser Kaplan & Veselka LLP, where he will serve in white collar defense and government investigations practice. Kinchen was previously a partner at Hughes Arrell Kinchen LLP, and also served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney.

Stefan Smith has been named a partner at BakerHostetler, where he specializes in helping employees navigate benefits and executive compensation matters. Previously, Smith was a partner at Locke Lord.

Francisco Solis has been named interim president at San Antonio College. Solis previously served as the college’s Dean of Performance Excellence since 2016, and professor of mortuary science from 1999 to 2016.

Chante (Prox) Brantley has been promoted to Clinical Professor of Law at the Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law.  Brantley also has received the Lois Bacon Special Services Award presented by the Dallas Volunteer Attorney Program (DVAP), for exceptional leadership, mentoring student associates in the practice of law, the clinic’s pro bono work, and partnership with DVAP.

Shannon Sims, an economy and government editor at Bloomberg, has been named Secretary of the Board of Trustees of the Institute of Current World Affairs.

Scott Clark has joined Houston-based global intellectual property and commercial litigation firm Alavi Anaipakos as a partner. He represents clients in high-stakes intellectual property cases and business disputes.

Michael McBride has joined the recently established Houston law firm Alavi Anaipakos, which specializes in global intellectual property and litigation. McBride represents clients in high-stakes intellectual property cases and business disputes.

Faisal Al Alam has joined the Dallas office of Steptoe and Johnson PLLC as an associate. He will work in the professional liability practice group in the litigation department.

Ravez Javelidze has been appointed the new Head of Government Administration for Georgia by the country’s Prime Minister. Previously he held the positions of Deputy Head of the Administration of the Government of Georgia, Parliamentary Secretary of the Government, and Deputy Minister of Sport and Youth. Javelidze holds a Master of Law degree from Texas Law.