Kathryn Hand’s first job in 2013 after graduating college was, in her words, “a not-so-great job” as associate project manager at a telecom company that gave her “the final push to take the LSAT and go to law school.”
“The job itself wasn’t that bad, but it felt mindless to me,” she told The Texas Lawbook. “I knew I needed a career that was going to be challenging.”
Hand graduated magna cum laude from Texas Tech University School of Law in 2017 and spent five years gaining significant litigation and trial experience at a trio of law firms.
“I didn’t feel comfortable going in-house and being a generalist,” she said.
Then the Canada-based midstream energy giant Enbridge called.
“Enbridge had a role for someone to handle disputes and litigation — I jumped on it,” Hand said. “I mostly represented clients in the energy industry, so it was a natural fit.”
In the two years since she joined the Enbridge legal department, Hand has experienced extraordinary success, winning a case at the Ohio Supreme Court with hundreds of millions of dollars at stake, in addition to negotiating and resolving complex business disputes.
Citing her remarkable achievements in such a short time, the Association of Corporate Counsel’s Houston Chapter and The Texas Lawbook have named Hand, who was promoted to senior counsel in March, as one of two finalists for the 2025 Houston Corporate Counsel Award for Rookie of the Year.
ACC Houston and The Lawbook are honoring Houston Corporate Counsel Award finalists and announcing the winners at a ceremony May 22 at the Four Seasons hotel.
“Kathryn enjoys working in-house because it gives her the opportunity to problem-solve and address a potential dispute before it gets to the point of litigation,” said Baker McKenzie partner Kelsey Machado, who nominated Hand for the award. “She strives to keep relationships intact, keep everyone involved smiling and engaged, and to, of course, save the company money. She feels like her work now is focused on building and strengthening relationships and business deals, rather than merely fighting about past issues.”
Enbridge Managing Counsel Brandi Dorgan said Hand is “extremely thorough and calm in a crisis.”
“Kathryn doesn’t let time pressures rush her, so she doesn’t miss important details,” Dorgan said. “She also spends time proactively developing and maintaining relationships that improve her ability to be effective and efficient. Kathryn is always thinking about how to improve. Whether it be our team, her practice or her client’s position in a case, she is constantly striving for more, to be better, to be more efficient, to improve team process and options for her clients.”
Dorgan said Hand is “a fierce protector of anyone in a vulnerable position.”
“First, she watches out for those close to her, and she volunteers in the community to help those with whom she is not close,” she said. “Second, her faith is the underpinning for everything she does, including the incredible sense of ethics with which she practices law.”
Vinson & Elkins partner Nicholas Shum has worked with Hand on multiple Enbridge matters.
“I have been impressed by how quickly she has familiarized herself with their business and become an important part of their internal litigation team,” Shum said. “In my experience, Kathryn is very easy to work with. She is strategic, practical and does an excellent job empowering outside counsel to represent the company. She also adds a lot of value as a liaison between outside counsel and the commercial team at Enbridge.”
“Kathryn played an important role in bringing an early and favorable resolution to a significant contract dispute between Enbridge and one of its shippers,” he said. “In doing so, Kathryn played an active role in settlement discussions, helping to achieve the commercial goals while balancing potential risks of the litigation process.”
Premium Subscriber Q&A: Kathryn Hand discusses the traits she seeks in outside counsel, what outside counsel need to know when working with her and more.
Hand was born in Houston and grew up in Spring. Her father sold furniture, and her mother worked various jobs.
Hand has an uncle and three older cousins who are lawyers.
“My uncle Randy and my cousin Angela definitely influenced my decision to go to law school,” Hand said. “Angela only worked at a firm for a few years before opening her own practice, and to have her to look up to was wonderful for me. I was probably just starting college, so it was powerful to see a female going out on her own and making it work. I should say, not just making it work, but building a very successful practice.”
Uncle Randy was a criminal defense attorney in San Angelo who is now semi-retired. Her cousin Angela is a family lawyer in Houston with the Stout Law Firm.
Hand was a sophomore at the University of Oklahoma when she took a class called “Ancient Rhetoric.”
“I just loved it,” she said. “The readings were interesting, the discussions were lively, and I liked dissecting the different arguments.”
After graduating in 2017, Hand worked for Cotton, Bledsoe, Tighe & Dawson in Midland. In 2018, she moved to Houston to join Dobrowski, Larkin & Stafford as a litigation associate, and then she spent 18 months at Vorys, Sater, Seymour & Pease.
“Each of these litigation shops tend to provide their associates with fully hands-on training, which gave her the building blocks to not only master the skill of advocating for her clients in the courtroom back then, but also managing risk and providing litigation strategy for her clients now,” Machado said.
Vorys partner David Finck said Hand is “collaborative, practical and even-keeled, even in high-pressure situations.”
“Kathryn was a quick study on a very complex tax dispute that garnered significant attention,” Finck said. “She came onto the case and immediately began providing valuable input and guidance where necessary, while having the awareness to rely on and expound upon the expertise of the other members of the team.”
“Kathryn not only brings her legal expertise to cases, but she is also savvy to political components and how to balance those two — sometimes competing — objectives. Kathryn helps manage this dynamic and is very effective at doing so,” he said.
In 2023, Hand had the opportunity to go in-house.
“I really enjoy the feeling of getting a dispute resolved for a client, especially pre-suit or during mediation,” she said. “I think winning a hearing or trial is invigorating, but the parties aren’t necessarily any better off than when the litigation started. If you can reach a resolution before everyone spends a ton of money, you have a shot at preserving the relationship. Often times at a firm, by the time you get a matter, the parties have reached a boiling point so even if you see a reasonable solution, the parties aren’t listening.”
Joining the Enbridge legal department changed that by “finding resolutions for disputes early, and building relationship with my client groups so they bring those problems to me early,” she said.
Machado said Hand’s time working before going to law school helped her adjust to going in-house at a global energy company.
“At AT&T, she was exposed to the corporate world at an early age and learned how to thrive in an environment with formal processes and chains of command,” Machado said. “Her work at AT&T taught her how to navigate the inner workings of a large company and eased her transition from a firm litigator to Enbridge, a multinational energy company.”
Machado said a proud moment for Hand came when she handled an “informal settlement conference followed by the memorialization of a settlement and business deal with limited assistance from external counsel.”
“Kathryn was approached by the business to manage a delicate dispute and ultimately reached a settlement arrangement with complicated terms,” Machado said. “Following execution of the deal, Kathryn worked hard to keep the business motivated and engaged in adhering to the settlement terms to avoid disputes in the future. She was proud to have finalized the deal as a decision-maker, and that it was a successful outcome for the company.”
Fun Facts: Kathryn Hand
- Favorite book: I was in elementary school when the first Harry Potter came out, so I have to credit Harry Potter with my love of reading. One of my recent favorites is Learning to Pray by James Martin. Martin is a Jesuit priest, but he wrote the book for Catholics and non-Catholics alike, and it’s a great introduction to various types of prayer and meditation. Martin is also just a great writer; he takes complex topics and explains them clearly and succinctly — something not all lawyers can do.
- Favorite movie or TV show: One of my favorite shows is Call the Midwife. It follows a group of midwives in the East End of London in the 1950s. Every episode I’m moved by the courageous women bringing babies into the world at that time — and grateful that I had modern medicine for my own pregnancies.
- Favorite musician: I have a broad array of musical tastes, thanks to my parents, but I’m a loyal Taylor Swift fan.
- Favorite restaurant: Goode Co. Kitchen & Cantina, because our girls love it, so it’s an easy outing with our family. Plus, nothing beats chips, salsa and a frozen margarita.
- Hero in life: My mother. She was and still is my biggest cheerleader. And my late grandmother, who lived her life simply and in service to others.