Class Notes

Last year, Ms. Alden was named the Director of the Dallas Volunteer Attorney Program and received the Pro Bono Coordinator Award from the State Bar of Texas.

University of Texas School of Law alumnus Reid Phillips was among 39 Brooks Pierce attorneys recognized as industry leaders in the 2018 edition of North Carolina Super Lawyers. This prestigious list is announced annually to honor top lawyers in North Carolina. Phillips, who received his law degree in 1977, was recognized as a “Super Lawyer” for Business Litigation. He was also ranked amongst the Top 100 attorneys in North Carolina.

Salvador Davila, an attorney in the Austin office of Littler, the world’s largest employment and labor law practice representing management, has been accepted into the Austin Bar/Austin Young Lawyers Association (AYLA) Leadership Academy class of 2018. In his practice at Littler, Davila advises and represents employers, focusing on matters involving discrimination, retaliation, workplace safety, workers’ compensation retaliation claims, Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) collective actions, and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) compliance.

Attorney Jay Jackson of Abraham, Watkins, Nichols, Sorrels, Agosto & Aziz has been named to the Texas Super Lawyers list for 2017. This marks Mr. Jackson’s sixth consecutive year of selection to the Super Lawyers list.

Jamie Hall, Land Use and Environmental Attorney and President of the Laurel Canyon Association in Los Angeles, spearheaded an effort to acquire 17 acreas of open space in the Hollywood Hills to preserve as wildlife habitat. The “Let’s Buy a Mountain” project was a collaboration between the Laurel Canyon Association, Citizens for Los Angeles Wildlife and the Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority. Over $1.6 million was raised to acquire the parcel. Donors included Don Henley.

Judge Peter Sakai, presiding judge of the 225th District Court, Bexar County, Texas was honored by St. Philip’s College, San Antonio, Texas, to be the 2017 Distinguished Commencement Speaker. The Texas Diversity Council recognized his contributions to the San Antonio community by naming him the DiversityFIRST Individual Award Winner. The Bexar County District Court judges have unanimously elected Judge Sakai to be Local Administrative Judge for a two year term, effective January 1, 2018.

GableGotwals is pleased to announce Robert S. Glass was selected as a 2017 Oklahoma Super Lawyer in the practice areas of Health Care, Business Litigation and Business/Corporate Law. Robert has been elected to Super Lawyers since 2006.

GableGotwals is pleased to announce David L. Bryant was named to the Top 50 List of Attorneys in Oklahoma. He was selected as a 2017 Oklahoma Super Lawyer in the practice areas of Business Litigation, Insurance Coverage, and Professional Liability. David has been elected to Super Lawyers since 2006.

GableGotwals is pleased to announce David E. Keglovits (1990) was selected as a 2017 Oklahoma Super Lawyer in the practice areas of Business Litigation, Utilities and Construction Litigation. David has been elected to Super Lawyers since 2006.

GableGotwals is pleased to announce John H. Rule (1977) was selected as a 2017 Oklahoma Super Lawyer in the practice area of General Litigation. John has been elected to Super Lawyers since 2015.

GableGotwals is pleased to announce Lisa T. Silvestri (1996) was named as a 2017 Oklahoma Super Lawyer in the practice areas of Business Litigation and Energy & Natural Resources. Lisa was selected to Oklahoma Super Lawyers Rising Stars in 2008 and Super Lawyers in 2013.

Jeff Plotkin, UT JD ’92 with Honors, CPA, Realtor® & VP of Habitat Hunters, Inc., celebrates his company’s win as the Austin Chronicle’s “Best of 2017” awards for both Best Realtor® and Best Apartment Locator out of ~3200 other realty companies! Habitat Hunters is one of Austin’s oldest, independent, locally owned real estate firms. They handle both commercial and residential transactions. Contact Jeff for expert assistance with all of your Austin area property needs, Jeff@HabitatHunters.com.

Kruger Carson PLLC attorney, Smita Bhakta, has been accepted into the 2018 Class of Leadership San Antonio, a highly selective annual program, launched in 1975, which helps to train the city’s next generation of leaders. The 2018 Class (Class 43) will be remarkable because it will integrate San Antonio’s tricentennial into the program.

Blank Rome LLP is pleased to announce that Partner Robert Scott has been named a Law360 2017 MVP in recognition of his hard-earned successes in high-stakes litigation, complex global matters, and record-breaking deals. Robert Scott practices in the area of civil litigation with primary emphasis on toxic tort defense and commercial litigation. He is a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates, is certified in civil trial law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, and is a member of the Texas Association of Civil Trial and Appellate Specialists.

Mary Evelyn McNamara, of Rivers McNamara in Austin, has been admitted as a fellow in the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers. McNamara specializes in family law and family law appeals.

Joshua W. Mermis, name partner in the Houston-based litigation boutique West Mermis PLLC, has been recognized on the list of Texas Super Lawyers for the second consecutive year. Mr. Mermis is named to the select list in the area of construction law. For almost 15 years he has focused on the representation of property owners, contractors, and other companies involved in the development of condominium high-rises, master-planned residential communities, single-family homes, and public buildings.

University of Texas School of Law graduate Brad Caldwell of Dallas’ Caldwell Cassady & Curry once again has earned a spot on the annual Texas Super Lawyers list, and he also has been named as one of only 25 attorneys in the state on the Lawyers on the Rise list by the publishers of Texas Lawyer newspaper. He was recognized in both listings for his work in intellectual property litigation and business litigation.

T. Ray Guy, a partner in Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP’s Dallas office, has been named a Texas Super Lawyer. Texas Super Lawyers is a rating service of lawyers from more than 70 practice areas that is based on peer recognition and professional achievement. Though published in Texas through Texas Monthly magazine, the ratings are conducted through a national publication, Super Lawyers magazine, which publishes Super Lawyer rankings in each of the 50 states.

John Flynn was listed in The Best Lawyers in America 2018 for his work in Litigation Construction and Construction Law.

Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease LLP is proud to announce that Michael Schira, a partner in the Vorys Columbus office and a 1990 graduate of the University of Texas School of Law, has been included on the 2018 Best Lawyers in America list. Schira was selected as a Best Lawyer in Real Estate Law.

Trusts & Estates magazine has announced the winners of its 2017 Distinguished Author awards. Marvin E. Blum, JD, CPA has been named the winner of the Trusts & Estates 2017 Distinguished Author award in the Thought Leadership category. Blum is a nationally-recognized estate planning expert known for creating customized, cutting-edge estate plans. His firm, The Blum Firm, P.C., has offices throughout Texas and has grown to be the largest group of estate planning attorneys in the state.

Carlos Eduardo Cardenas ’80 is serving as the 2017-2018 Chair of the Litigation Section of the State Bar of Texas.

Wyatt, Tarrant & Combs, LLP is pleased to announce that Virginia Hamilton Snell, Partner and University of Texas School of Law alumna, has been recognized by Woodward White’s The Best Lawyers in America©, one of the most highly regarded peer-review publications for the legal profession. Ms. Snell received recognition for her work in the following practice areas:
• Appellate Practice
• Bet-the-Company Litigation
• Commercial Litigation
• Litigation – Securities

Dana Paul, owner of Paul Law Firm, PLLC, has been appointed to the school board for Life Way Christian School in Centerton, Arkansas, a K-12th grade private school with over 500 students.

James P. Hill ’78 was selected by his peers for inclusion in the 24th Edition of The Best Lawyers in America® in the fields of Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights/Insolvency and Reorganization Law. Hill is a founding member of Sullivan Hill, member of its Executive Committee and chair of the firm’s Insolvency and Commercial Bankruptcy practice group, Hill practices primarily in the areas of bankruptcy, insolvency and commercial law.

Christopher V. Hawkins ’ 93 was selected by his peers for inclusion in the 24th Edition of The Best Lawyers in America® in the fields of Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights/Insolvency and Reorganization Law. Hawkins is the Managing Partner of the firm and member of the Executive Committee; he practices in the Insolvency and Commercial Bankruptcy, Business Transactions, and Commercial and Business Litigation practice groups.

Jamila Mensah, a Sr. Associate at Norton Rose Fulbright in Houston, has been recognized by Best Lawyers in America for her work in employment law. Recognition by Best Lawyers is based entirely on peer review.

Stuart F. Miller, a shareholder in Baker Donelson’s Houston office, was named to the 2018 edition of Best Lawyers in the area of Health Care Law.

Wyatt, Tarrant & Combs, LLP is pleased to announce that Virginia Hamilton Snell, Partner, has been recognized in Litigation Law and Securities Law by Best Lawyers® as “Lawyer of the Year” for the publication’s 2018 edition. Best Lawyers® is the oldest and most respected peer-review publication in the legal profession. Only one lawyer in each practice area in a given community is honored as the “Lawyer of the Year.”

David Conrad, a principal in Fish & Richardson’s Dallas office, has been named a “Lawyer on the Rise” by Texas Lawyer. The award honors Texas’ most promising lawyers under the age of 40 who have wielded influence and are excelling in their practice areas in the Lone Star State. An intellectual property litigator, Conrad, who has in-depth knowledge of computers, software and engineering, represents clients in matters relating to business litigation, patent litigation and trade secret litigation.

Brooks Pierce managing partner Reid Phillips has been recognized by North Carolina Lawyers Weekly as one of its 2017 North Carolina Leaders in the Law.

Lanier Law Firm associate Ryan D. Ellis has been selected by Texas Lawyer to the magazine’s 2017 Lawyers on the Rise list of leading young attorneys in the state.

Texarkana lawyer Winford Dunn recently was honored by the Arkansas Bar Association and the State Bar of Texas in recognition of 50 years of legal practice in each state. Dunn, a Texarkana native, has practiced in the same firm—Dunn, Nutter & Morgan—his entire career. Dunn serves as national director of the American Board of Trial Advocates. He has been named Texas Lawyer of the Year by TEX-ABOTA and has received the Meritorious Service Award from the East Texas Chapter of ABOTA. East Texas ABOTA created the Winford L. Dunn Jr. Meritorious Service Award, which is given annually to an outstanding East Texas ABOTA lawyer.

Kennon L. Wooten has been elected to the American Law Institute. As an attorney at Scott Douglass McConnico, she represents individuals and entities involved in complex commercial litigation, general civil litigation, and civil appeals. At the trial level, she represents both plaintiffs and defendants. To the appeals, she brings experience and expertise that she gained as the rules attorney and as a law clerk to former Chief Justice Wallace B. Jefferson of the Supreme Court of Texas.

Jane Webre has been elected to the American Law Institute. She practices civil appellate law at Scott Douglass McConnico and handles most of the firm’s appeals. Her practice also includes trial court litigation involving complex matters that present significant legal issues, including oil and gas litigation and land use regulation. Jane has argued appeals in the Supreme Court of the United States, the Fifth Circuit, the Supreme Court of Texas, and many of the courts of appeals around the state.

John G. Browning (Class of ’89) has been selected, along with Chief Justice Carolyn Wright of the Fifth District Court of Appeals, to receive the J.L. Turner Legal Association Foundation’s “Texas Legal History” Award at the Foundation’s annual gala on October 21, 2017 in Dallas. The award recognizes Mr. Browning’s and Chief Justice Wright’s achievement and body of work in researching and writing about the earliest African-American lawyers in Texas, published in the Howard Law Journal and others.

Arizona Foundation for Legal Services and Education Honors Don Bivens with the Walter E. Craig Distinguished Service Award

The Real Estate, Probate and Trust Law Section of the State Bar has selected Jim Aycock as the 2017 Recipient of the Distinguished Texas Probate and Trust Attorney Lifetime Achievement Award.

Scott McDonald was cited as a noted practitioner in the prestigious Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business publication.

The 2017 edition of Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business recognized Brooks Pierce partner Reid Phillips for Litigation: General Commercial. Phillips was previously nominated by his peers for inclusion in “The Best Lawyers in America” in Commercial Litigation, Banking & Finance Litigation, and Intellectual Property Litigation, and was named “Lawyer of the Year” in 2015 for Banking and Finance Litigation.

Jean Noonan, a partner in Hudson Cook’s Washington, D.C., office and a founding member of the American College of Consumer Financial Services Lawyers (ACCFSL), has been elected an officer on the ACCFSL’s Board of Regents. Her position is secretary.

Salvador “Sal” Davila, an attorney in the Austin office of Littler, has been voted president-elect of the Hispanic Bar Association of Austin. In his practice at Littler, Davila advises and represents employers, focusing on matters involving discrimination, retaliation, workplace safety and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) compliance. In addition to serving in a leadership role for HBAA, Davila is a chairperson on the Board of Directors of the Austin Young Lawyers Association.

Cullen M. “Mike” Godfrey of College Station received the 2017 Lola Wright Foundation Award from the Texas Bar Foundation. The Lola Wright Foundation Award, established in 1985, is presented in memory of Coleman Gay, who was a distinguished Texas lawyer and who exemplified the highest standards of professional ethics. The award is presented in recognition of outstanding public service in advancing and enhancing legal ethics in Texas. Mr. Godfrey will be publicly recognized at the Texas Bar Foundation Annual Dinner held on June 23, 2017 at the Hilton Anatole in Dallas. He has selected Voices for Children, Casa of the Brazos Valley to receive a $5,000 donation in honor of his acceptance of the Lola Wright Foundation Award.

Daniel Sternthal, a shareholder in Baker Donelson’s Houston office, has been ranked as a leading practitioner in the recently released 2017 edition of Chambers USA in the “Up and Coming” category in the area of health care in Texas.

Husch Blackwell is pleased to announce that partner Chalon Clark has been recognized as a recipient of the 2017 “40 Under Forty” Achievement Awards by The Network Journal (TNJ). Clark, a member of the firm’s Financial Services & Capital Markets group, serves on Husch Blackwell’s Diversity Council. She assists clients in disputes involving contracts, review of contracts and leases to identify potential litigation risks, employer/employee relations, collection-related matters, foreclosures, fraud, banking, partnership, real property, mortgage lending, construction and brokerage/securities issues. Clark is active in the Dallas Association of Young Lawyers and the Dallas Bar Association, and is a Mentor for the Dallas Women Lawyers Association.

Pillsbury lawyer Amanda Halter 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. According to the foundation, Halter’s election is a mark of distinction and a recognition of her contributions to the legal profession. Halter, a counsel in Pillsbury’s Environmental & Natural Resources practice, helps companies resolve environmental liabilities and manage financial and reputational losses associated with a crisis. She is based in Houston.

Gray Reed family law senior counsel Jack H. Emmott has been named in the National Law Journal (NLJ)’s second annual “Divorce, Trusts & Estates Trailblazers” list. According to the NLJ, each of the attorneys honored have “shown a deep passion and perseverance in pursuit of their mission, having achieved remarkable successes along the way.” Emmott was selected from a competitive field of nominees, all of whom have “changed the practice in their respective fields through innovative and exceptional legal strategies.” Emmott, a board certified family law attorney and one of two Houston-area lawyers recognized by Collaborative Divorce Texas as a Master Credentialed Collaborative Professional, focuses his practice on collaborative divorce.

Brad Caldwell earned his second consecutive selection to D Magazine’s annual listing of the Best Lawyers in Dallas based on nominations from other lawyers and an extensive review conducted by the publication’s researchers and editors. His selection to the 2017 roster of Dallas’ top attorneys follows Mr. Caldwell’s successful representation of clients in three multimillion-dollar lawsuits last year against technology giant Apple Inc. The three cases were tried in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, and all three ended with top-ranked verdicts that helped Mr. Caldwell earn two national Litigator of the Week honors from The American Lawyer magazine.

International law firm Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP today announced that Ray Guy of the firm’s Dallas office has been named to D Magazine’s Best Lawyers in Dallas 2017 list.

Sullivan Hill Lewin Rez & Engel is pleased to announce that Jim Hill has been listed in San Diego Magazine as 2017 Top Lawyers in San Diego. Mr. Hill is the founding member of the firm, member of its Executive Committee and chair of the firm’s Insolvency and Commercial Bankruptcy practice group. Hill practices primarily in the areas of bankruptcy, insolvency and commercial law. His bankruptcy experience includes representation of creditors, bankruptcy trustees and select bankruptcy debtors in Chapter 11 business reorganization cases. He also works regularly with clients on asset sales and acquisitions, on state and federal court receivership cases, and on business workouts and dissolution matters, among other commercial law matters.