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SEC Says 3 DFW Residents Ran $91M Ponzi Scheme - Kenneth W. Alexander II, Robert D. Welsh and Caedrynn E. Conner are accused of defrauding more than 200 investors out of millions via a trust Alexander controlled called Vanguard Holdings Group Irrevocable Trust. The SEC filed the 37-page lawsuit against the trio in the Eastern District of Texas, Sherman Division, on Tuesday. April 29, 2025
57 Texas Law Students Sign Amicus Brief for Susman Godfrey - The amicus briefs in the case of Susman Godfrey v. Executive Office of the President continue to stack up. On Tuesday, 1,129 law students and 51 law school student organizations filed a brief claiming that President Donald Trump’s April 9 executive order against Susman Godfrey “will cause enduring damage to the legal profession and amici as America’s future lawyers.” Fifty-seven law students from all 10 of the law schools in Texas signed the amicus brief, as did three Texas law student groups. April 29, 2025
Janice Davis Makes Move to Haynes Boone from Morgan Lewis - The Baylor Law School grad moves to Haynes Boone after six years at Morgan Lewis — with the last five as managing partner of the firm's Dallas office. April 29, 20252025 Houston Corporate Counsel’s Lifetime Achievement and Rookie of the Year Awards - Sylvia Kerrigan and Ernest Kohnke have been corporate in-house counsel for 25 years. Kathryn Hand and Gillian Hobson have been in-house for less than two years. All four of them will be honored at the 2025 Houston Corporate Counsel Awards. April 29, 2025
Litigation Roundup: SCOTX Vacates Guardianship Divorce Decree - In this edition of Litigation Roundup, a woman whose Lyft driver was convicted of raping her settles a civil lawsuit against the company about a week before trial was to begin in Dallas County, members of a Houston megachurch allege an improper takeover by leadership, and a jury in Austin awards a seven-figure verdict in a revenge porn case. April 29, 2025
TPG to Acquire Sabre Subsidiary for $1.1B - Southlake-based Sabre, plans to use the proceeds from the all-cash transaction to reduce debt and focus on its core business objectives. Haynes Boone and Davis Polk advised on the deal. April 28, 2025
CDT Roundup: A ‘Rinse-and-Repeat’ Week - Last week looked much like the week that preceded it. The week ending April 26 saw a dozen deals for $8.8 billion. The preceding week saw 11 deals for $8.1 billion. This time last year we were reporting 19 transactions for $16 billion. Deals for the week included a couple of upstream asset acquisitions, a de-SPAC merger involving potential cancer cures, the sale of a waste-to-energy recycler, the acquisition by Japanese investors of Australian-owned asset management businesses, a couple of data center deals and the purchase of a school bus company still shaking off the effects of the pandemic. April 28, 2025
Centerpiece
Texas Lawbook 50 — Susman Godfrey Scores ‘Second Best Year Ever’ in 2024 - Even as Susman Godfrey is engaged in a monumental federal court fight with President Donald Trump that threatens the law firm’s very existence, the Houston-based litigation powerhouse reported 2024 revenues and profits that are once again the envy of their competitors. The firm's revenues last year were down from its record-smashing numbers of 2023, but it was still Susman Godfrey's second-best year in its 44-year history. April 30, 2025
M&A Newsmaker: A Wild, Busy Week for Brittany Sakowitz - The first week April was a busy one for Kirkland & Ellis' Brittany Sakowitz. The Houston M&A and PE partner led or co-led three separate deals. "[It] was an exciting one ... Three important clients, signing three different types of transactions and in three different industries, all in the same week." After pausing to catch her breath, Sakowitz caught up with The Texas Lawbook to discuss her career, M&A and her predictions for the rest the year. April 28, 2025Expert Voices
Texas Takes Aim at Delaware’s State of Incorporation Crown - Growing activism among Delaware courts, coupled with aggressive pro-relocation moves by the Texas Legislature, has contributed to the rise of a “DExit” movement, with businesses increasingly looking to move not only their headquarters, but their state of incorporation from Delaware to Texas. April 29, 2025
AI Addenda — Navigating the Legal Landscape Across the Software Lifecycle - Legal professionals and organizations must adapt to the shifting landscape by addressing AI-related risks across contracting, implementation and operational phases. The growing need for AI addenda, encompassing everything from privacy and cybersecurity to data ownership and hallucinations, underscores the importance of a proactive and comprehensive approach to managing AI risks. April 21, 2025
Stories You Might’ve Missed
Texas Firm Headcount Inched Up 1% in 2024 - Big corporate law firms operating in Texas dramatically slowed their hiring in 2024, adding the fewest new lawyers since the pandemic year of 2020. The 50 largest law firms doing business in Texas grew, on average, by only two attorneys last year — down from an average of four in 2023, according to new data compiled as part of the Texas Lawbook 50 annual firm business review. And that number is skewed due to the significant headcount growth of four law firms — Jackson Walker, Kirkland & Ellis, Paul Hastings and Sheppard Mullin. Remove those four firms and the average firm in Texas witnessed a lawyer headcount decline in 2024. April 28, 2025
