EFH & TCEH In-House Legal Departments Take Shape

© 2016 The Texas Lawbook.

By Mark Curriden
(Oct. 21) – Energy Future Holdings General Counsel Stacey Doré is out. Stephanie Zapata Moore and Andy Wright are in.

When EFH officials announced two weeks ago that its two subsidiaries, TXU Energy and Luminant, had emerged from bankruptcy under the parent company named TCEH, it also meant a shake up in the power giant’s legal department.
Doré, who had been EFH’s top legal officer since March 2012 and served as the company’s co-reorganization chief, officially left Oct. 4.
That day same, EFH named Wright, who was Doré’s chief deputy, to be its general counsel, while TCEH named Moore, who had been the GC at Luminant, to be its new chief legal officer.
Moore has named Cecily Gooch, Dan Kelly and Gabe Vazquez as her top assistant general counsel.
Andy Wright, who worked with Doré at V&E, has been promoted from deputy general counsel to GC of EFH, which remains in bankruptcy. Wright will oversee the final stages of the chapter 11 proceedings, including the sale of Oncor to NextEra. EFH owns 80 percent of Oncor.
“My job is basically to see the bankruptcy through to the finish, whether that is six months or nine months,” Wright said.
Doré said she is taking a month or two off from work to be with her family before she re-enters the legal job market. Those who know Doré say it is unclear whether she will return to practice law (she spent a decade in the litigation section at Vinson & Elkins before joining EFH), seek another general counsel position or try something completely different.
“Stacey is so smart and such a hard worker that she can do anything she wants to do,” says Jeff Chapman, a partner at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, who worked with Doré at V&E.

Just this past week, the Dallas Women Lawyers Association honored Doré with its general counsel of the year award.
Moore, who has the title executive vice president and general counsel of TCEHl, joined EFH in 2005. In 2012, she was promoted to GC at Luminant. Moore advises the company’s leadership team on legal, regulatory and corporate governance matters, in addition to overseeing the corporate secretary’s office and leading the company’s legal and compliance team.
A 1998 graduate of William & Mary School of Law, Moore spent seven years in the trial department at Gardere. She is active with a number of charities and community groups, including AVANCE-Dallas, Inc., Girls Inc. of Metropolitan Dallas and Attorneys Serving the Community.
Moore’s legal department will include:
• Cecily Gooch, senior vice president, chief compliance officer, associate general counsel and corporate secretary of TCEH Corp.
• Dan Kelly, vice president and associate general counsel for litigation, labor and employment and regulatory enforcement for TCEH Corp.
• Gabe Vazquez, vice president and associate general counsel for operations for TCEH Corp.