For Premium Subscribers Former Avantax GC Tabitha Bailey discusses the factors she uses in hiring outside counsel and specific items outside lawyers need to know about her. But she also
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GC Tabitha Bailey is ‘A Force to Reckon with for Many Years to Come’
For 18 months — from the last quarter of 2022 through the first quarter of 2024 — Tabitha Bailey faced trials and tribulations that few young corporate general counsel have encountered. As GC of Avantax, Bailey played a critical role in the $720 million sale of its TaxAct software business in October 2022. Days later, the Richardson-based wealth management firm became embroiled in an alleged data breach crisis that led to congressional inquiries, state and federal investigations, four class action lawsuits and hundreds of individual arbitrations, which required extensive communication with investors and the private equity fund buyer that was making noises about terminating the deal.
The excitement for Bailey was only starting. In the months that followed, Avantax faced its third activist challenge and proxy contest in three years, executed a $250 million tender offer, overhauled its executive compensation plan and successfully completed a $1.2 billion take-private merger with competitor Cetera. Earlier this year, the Association of Corporate Counsel’s DFW Chapter and The Lawbook honored Bailey with the 2023 DFW Corporate Counsel Award for General Counsel of the Year for a Midsized Legal Department. This is her story.
The Texas Lawbook Laterals Database
Texas Lawbook Premium Subscriber Content If you see lateral partner moves that occurred between 2012 and 2024 that are not included, please contact me at christi.trammell@texaslawbook.net. The data is sorted by
Testimony Ends in ExxonMobil’s $1.9B Lawsuit Against IRS
In lieu of closing arguments, the company and the U.S. government agreed to file post-trial briefs with Chief Judge David C. Godbey of the Northern District of Texas, who presided over the weeklong tax dispute trial stemming from ExxonMobil’s natural-gas mining venture with Qatar.
Movie Review: Clemente is a Fitting Tribute to Baseball’s ‘Great One’
When Roberto Clemente made it to “the show” in 1955, sportswriters and baseball card manufacturers took to calling him “Bob” — not out of informality but because they felt the need to deracinate his name and his appeal. Baseball was still decades away from the days when every big league roster became stocked with Latin players, and the Puerto Rican phenom posed some sort of threat to the established (white American) order. Those same writers would quote Clemente by denoting his thick accent — for example, “heet” instead of “hit.” If Clemente sometimes seemed to have a chip on his shoulder, it’s not difficult to see why. The man bluntly and accurately nicknamed The Great One is now the subject of an affectionate and thorough documentary, simply called Clemente, that premiered at the SXSW Film Festival in March. (Photo credit: Les Banos)
Corporate Law Firms Hired Record Number of Texas First-Years in 2023
The competition for first-year associates hit a fevered pitch 2023 as corporate law firms in Texas hired 503 brand new lawyers last fall to join their Texas offices — a 15 percent jump over 2022, according to exclusive new Texas Lawbook 50 data. Twenty-six law firms operating in Texas increased their hiring of new law school graduates in 2023, while 15 firms reduced their first-year hires and nine firms hired the same number in 2023 as they did the prior year.
Locke Lord in Merger Talks with Troutman Pepper
Both sides are confirming that Texas-based Locke Lord is in merger talks with the Georgia-founded firm. Texas Lawbook 50 research shows Locke Lord’s revenues in Texas stayed flat in 2023, but profits per partner increased. An analyst says he sees growth in depth and breadth for both sides in the proposed merger. This isn’t the first time Troutman has tried to break into Texas.
Not Serious, Substantial, or Similar: SCOTUS Holds Title VII Transfer Claimant Must Show Only ‘Some Harm’
The ruling is likely to result in more discrimination cases about job changes surviving defense challenges and moving forward to trial.
SCOTUS Narrows Application of Exchange Act Rule 10b-5(b) to Half-Truths
Until last week, federal circuit courts were split on whether so-called “pure omissions” could support securities fraud claims under Securities Exchange Act Rule 10b-5(b). For those not fluent in the application and enforcement of Rule 10b-5(b), its text does not exactly roll off the tongue and its concepts can be tricky to apply in practice.
Mike Boone Named to Texas Business Hall of Fame
The co-founder of Haynes Boone will be inducted into the TBHF alongside such luminaries as former NBA great David Robinson, EnCap Investments’ David B. Miller and Taylor Sheridan, creator of TV’s “Yellowstone” franchise.