When Mark Chavez was brought on board as general counsel at Ocean Point Terminals in June 2021, he knew he had his work cut out for him. Its major client, a refinery on the island of St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands, had been shut down by the EPA after a series of environmental incidents and was barreling towards bankruptcy.
With the two companies bound together in service agreements that threatened both, all he had to do was negotiate a divorce with the other company, fend off four class-action lawsuits, defend dozens of other lawsuits, arrange more than $100 million in bridge financing and new capital, help re-permit the refinery and salvage the company’s relationship with its island neighbors.
And as a result of his guidance through the company crisis, which last through much of 2022, Chavez has been named a finalist in the 2023 Houston Corporate Counsel Awards as GC of the Year for a Small Legal Department (five or less lawyers).
Mark Curriden, founder of The Texas Lawbook, had a chance to discuss with Chavez some of his remarkable life experiences, the challenges of 2022 and what he expects from outside counsel when he seeks their help.
Lawbook: Tell us about your most memorable experiences as a Staff Sergeant in the U.S. Army.
I would say that there are three that fall into the category of “most memorable.” I remember that the first time I called my mother from basic training, and she asked if I had permission to call her and I said, “yes, they let you use the phone as much as you want in the hospital.” I had been hospitalized immediately upon arriving at basic training for pneumonia. I think it was at that point that both my mother and I started wondering if it was wise for a kid who had never run from here to there in his life to have joined the Army! In retrospect, everything turned out well and it was only a small speed bump in what became a wonderful career.
My second memorable experience was the first time I performed at the White House. I have played trumpet since I was 11 years old. Ever since I started playing trumpet, I used to tell people that one day I would perform at the White House. As you might imagine, there were many people who said that would never happen. But, after a couple of years in the Army, I won a position with the Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps, which is the Army’s Official Musical Escort to the President. Not long after joining that unit, I was able to stand on that lawn and perform for the President of the United States. It was one of the proudest moments of my life.
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Even more memorable than that, however, was an interaction I had in Germany. I was there on a musician exchange program and went on a tour of a small pottery shop. The owner was an older gentleman who, knowing I was a solider, pulled me out of the crowd and helped me paint a small cup. Even though it looked like a four-year-old had painted it, he said he was going to glaze and bake it and bring it to me the next day. I said we were going to be in the next town performing and he said he would find me.
The next day, I finished performing and was walking back to our bus. Standing next to the bus was the shop owner with my cup. I was so excited and thanked him for his generosity. I asked him why he was being so kind; and he said that the first time he ever ate an orange was when he was seven-years-old and that the orange was given to him by a United States soldier who liberated him from a concentration camp.
He said he never forgot that moment and he wanted to thank me for my service. In that moment, I realized the meaning behind the uniform I wore as a United States soldier; and I was humbled to be compared to the heroes that liberated this kind man. I will never forget that moment and I still have that small cup to this day. It is my most prized possession.
Lawbook: What do you consider to be your two or three biggest challenges in 2022?
If I had to name two or three biggest challenges, I would have to say that they were all on the litigation front. When we started 2022, we were involved in an arbitration with a nine-figure amount in controversy, and we were trying to collect on an eight-figure claim in our neighboring refinery’s bankruptcy and negotiate a services agreement with the new owners going forward. None of these matters were easy.
Luckily, through great team work, we obtained an amazing result in our arbitration, were able to resolve our bankruptcy claim and have been relatively successful in establishing a new norm for providing services to our neighboring facility. All in all, I would have to say that we managed our 2022 challenges better than anyone could have imagined.
Similarly, what were your two or three biggest successes last year?
Easily, there is one success that dwarves all others and that was our arbitration win. Our company is relatively small, so when you have an arbitration involving hundreds of millions of dollars, there isn’t a lot of room for error. Lucky for me, we obtained an outstanding result that marked a turning point for my company. Since then, we have put together a string of big wins and I couldn’t be happier with the direction we are headed.
What are the factors you consider when deciding about hiring outside counsel?
For me, it comes down to results and trust. There are a number of tremendous law firms out there, but I look for ones who are willing to think outside the box in order to get results and firms who I can trust wholeheartedly. The law firms I currently utilize are creative and always have my back. They anticipate my needs and work to get my company to its goals as quickly and efficiently as possible. I couldn’t be happier with my current slate of external lawyers and I am sure I will work with them for years to come.
What has been your best day working at Ocean Point Terminals?
Well, it isn’t everyday that you get an arbitration award worth hundreds of millions of dollars. I would have to say that the day I got that arbitration award was my best day at Ocean Point. It solidified our future and, on a personal level, I was very proud of the result. We stuck to our guns and litigated the matter all the way through to conclusion and were rewarded for that commitment. I have always felt supported by my Board and sponsor, but when they trust you to take a case like that all the way to trial, knowing that losing is not an option, you really feel like they are behind you and there is no better feeling than that.
What does outside counsel need to know about you?
I don’t procrastinate. I jump right on issues and pride myself on resolving matters as quickly as possible for my company. My clients will tell you that it is pretty common for me to respond to emails within a few seconds. I want each of my clients to know that I am always ready to hop on their issues and am being responsive to their needs. I want outside counsel that has the same mindset.
What role does diversity play in your decision for hiring outside counsel?
I am always evaluating outside counsel in a variety of areas and diversity certainly makes that list. I see a firm with a diverse work force as having a competitive advantage. In order to get the best results in a legal matter, you need to see problems from every angle. That means that you need to have lawyers who come from a variety of backgrounds, with differing experiences. With that diversity of backgrounds and experiences comes a variety of perspectives and having each of those perspectives represented in a firm’s legal analysis quite simply leads to a more complete analysis and, hence, better results.
Are you working on any pro bono or public service matters that you want to highlight?
For the last several years I have mentored a number of law students through the Hispanic Bar Association. This work is extremely important to me. As a young attorney, I didn’t really have a mentor, so I had to figure out how to navigate the legal profession largely on my own. Because of that experience, I devote a great deal of time trying to help law students and younger lawyers not make the same mistakes I made. If I can make their career journey a little easier, I will feel I have done the legal profession a great service.