A group of high-ranking in-house counsel and private practice pro bono specialists swapped stories and methods for how they’ve been able to achieve pro bono engagement and keep their lawyers incentivized to give back through pro bono. Plus, the in-house lawyers discussed their positions on partnering with law firms on pro bono projects.
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TX Minority Counsel Program’s 30th Anniversary Shows How Far We’ve Come, How Far We Have to Go
This year’s Texas Minority Counsel Program saw record levels of participation by corporate and governmental entities. TMCP also honored the recipients of its annual awards for Corporate Counsel of the Year, Trailblazer, Rising Star and Lifetime Achievement.
Lawsuit: Elite Privately Owned Texas A&M Dorm ‘Contaminated with Toxic Mold’
A 19-year-old Texas A&M business student has sued the owner and operator of an upscale private dormitory called The Callaway House claiming that her room and other areas of the housing unit are contaminated with toxic mold.
Experts: The Present and Future Needs of the SEC’s Fort Worth Regional Office
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is looking for a new sheriff to aggressively police corporations, cryptocurrency operations, hedge funds and thousands of investment brokers and dealers in Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma and Kansas. Only a handful of people even qualify for the position, legal experts say.
“The challenge, though, will be to look around the corner for risks that are coming, which may depend on a number of unpredictable variables such as the economy, the markets and financial innovation,” said David Peavler, who resigned as SEC regional director last week.
Five Takeaways from the FTX Cryptocurrency Exchange Fallout
Sam Bankman Fried (SBF) and his FTX exchange became the latest very public example exposing risks in cryptocurrency companies. It will take time before the entire impact of the FTX failure and bankruptcy is known. However, here are five things for investors to take away from the recent events involving FTX when considering the future of digital assets.
Jury Awards Families of Fatal Crash Victims $12.1M
A Harris County jury awarded the money to the families of three individuals who were among six killed when a twin-engine plane crashed outside Kerrville in 2019. Deliberations took about five hours before the panel determined a Raymond James financial advisor who was piloting the plane was responsible for the crash and was on the clock at the time.
Winstead Elects Jeff Matthews as Next Leader
Shareholders at the corporate law firm Winstead have elected the chair of its business and transactions practice, Jeff Matthews, as the firm’s next chairman and CEO. A 2003 graduate of the University of Texas School of Law and the son of a former Exxon general counsel, Matthews replaces David Dawson, who has led Winstead since 2014. In an interview with The Texas Lawbook, Matthews discusses the Texas firm’s position in the legal market, how 2022 has gone so far and whether there is any interest in a future merger.
CDT Roundup: 26 Deals, 11 Firms, 172 Lawyers, $12.7B
There’s no surprise in the fact that global PE deals are down. With inflation, market volatility and geopolitical concerns, investors have become increasingly cautious and borrowers increasingly concerned, according to a new Mergermarket report. But there are also indications that some underlying changes are taking place in the PE pipeline. This week’s CDT Roundup has more on the Mergermarket survey, as well as the usual roster of lawyers who reported deals last week.
This Associate Logged 100 Hours of Pro Bono in the Last Year. Here’s How He Did It
As the year comes to an end, some may be reflecting on their legal practice and looking for ways to squeeze more pro bono into their life. The Texas Lawbook spoke with Stinson associate and pro bono pro Grant DuBois, who manages a pro bono misdemeanor criminal docket in his spare time and provides tips for weaving more pro bono work into the daily grind.
“Attorneys have been viewed by the general public as an undesirable group since the beginning of our profession,” DuBois says. “Many refer to us as ‘money-sucking vampires’ motivated not by client service, but by greed. One of the ways we can start to change this generalized perception is to provide pro bono services as often as we can.”
Litigation Roundup: Targa Wants $129M Award Axed, 5th Circ. Won’t Rehear Courtroom Prayer Case
In this week’s edition of litigation roundup, Targa Channelview files its opening brief with the Texas Supreme Court in a long-running $129 million fight with Vitol Americas, Maersk says its not responsible for cargo lost at sea and a former Abraham Watkins’ associate accused of taking files and clients from the firm fires back with an anti-SLAPP dismissal bid.