Jacobs GC Justin Johnson began his legal journey inspired by criminal law depicted in TV dramas. Initially pursuing criminal defense, he worked on felony appeals during law school. However, a 2L summer assignment shifted his focus to M&A. Captivated by its pace and complexity, Johnson is now known for his ability to calmly direct complex deals — and that’s why he is a 2024 finalist for the DFW M&A Deal of the Year Award.
More Stories
CDT Roundup: 14 Deals, 10 Firms, 125 Lawyers, $10.3B
Last year was a year of transition, particularly in M&A. According to a recent report by Goldman Sachs, that augurs a really optimistic outlook for M&A in 2025. Simplifications in strategies, governance and geography are driving a surge in M&A, particularly the corporate variety. This week’s Roundup looks at the data behind the Goldman optimism, as well as the deals that shaped last week.
Matador’s Cale Curtin: DFW Rookie of the Year or Multibillion-dollar Triple Crown Winner (or Both)?
Cale Curtin’s plan was to be a landman, but Chesapeake wasn’t hiring. So, he went to law school. Now, instead of negotiating with individual property owners to acquire mineral rights, Curtin is negotiating billion-dollar credit deals to acquire competitors. As such, Curtin has been recognized as a finalist for the 2024 DFW Corporate Counsel of the Year Award for Rookie of the Year.
Premium Subscriber Q&A: Cale Curtin
In this Q&A with The Texas Lawbook, Cale Curtin, senior counsel & corporate director for Matador Resources, discusses the traits he seeks in outside counsel, what outside counsel need to know when working with him and more.
Driving Ambition: How a Misguided Tee Shot Redirected Champion’s Career
Brennan Champion is assistant general counsel for ECI Software Solutions Inc., a provider of cloud-based business management software serving small and medium-sized enterprises. As one of two full-time lawyers at the Westlake company, he oversees a wide array of litigation and transactional matters across North America. He is praised for his can-do mentality and exceptional legal skills that often surpass those of more experienced lawyers. He has established himself as a trusted advisor within ECI, adeptly balancing legal risks while providing practical, business-focused legal advice across the company’s diverse global operations. For these attributes and others, Champion has been recognized as a finalist for the 2024 DFW Corporate Counsel of the Year Award for Rookie of the Year.
Premium Subscriber Q&A: Brennan Champion
In this Q&A with The Texas Lawbook, Brennan Champion, the assistant general counsel for ECI Software Solutions Inc., discusses the traits he seeks in outside counsel, what outside counsel need to know when working with him and more.
P.S. — Sam Prince Has a ‘Fierce Dedication’ to Legal Aid
In the mid-1990s, looking for “something to do in between other things,” a young Sam Prince took a job with the Dallas branch of legal services. Coming from a fundraising gig at the University of Dallas where he’d honed his development skills, the Buffalo, New York, native thought he would learn a few things about the legal nonprofit field and then move on to his next adventure. Twenty-eight years later, Prince is still adventuring with legal services (now Legal Aid of NorthWest Texas) where he’s raised more than $50 million for needy Texans.
Steve Gill Heading to Skadden
A 23-year veteran of Vinson & Elkins is leaving the firm for Skadden, his new firm confirmed Monday morning. The move is a big one. Gill has been co-head of V&E’s corporate practice group and has been involved in some of the firm’s largest transactions in recent years.
SCOTUS Expands Opportunities to Challenge Agency Action in Corner Post
One of the Supreme Court’s less-heralded decisions from last term promises to have major consequences for businesses affected by federal regulations: Corner Post v. Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.
Texas Capital Assoc. GC Ashley Ahn’s ‘Truly Inspirational Story’: ‘We Were Boat People and Refugees’
For six weeks in 1981, three-year-old Ashley Nguyen Ahn was stranded in a small boat in the middle of the ocean with her family in an effort to flee certain execution by the Viet Cong. They ran out of food and then water. She witnessed her eight-year-old neighbor die of starvation and dehydration first. Her uncle died next and then her father, whose body she watched being pushed overboard. Ahn experienced more trauma, death and desperation as a toddler than the rest of us face in a lifetime. And she remembers it all. “All of these early events made me who I am today,” she told The Texas Lawbook in an exclusive interview. Ahn is now the associate general counsel at Texas Capital, where she and her team spent the last three years rebuilding and transforming Texas Capital into a premier financial services firm in the state. And she is a finalist for the 2024 DFW Corporate Counsel Award for Senior Counsel of the Year for a Midsized Legal Department.