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Texas Lawbook Honors Sidley Austin Chair Yvette Ostolaza

Yvette Ostolaza grew up in an immigrant neighborhood in Miami, the daughter of parents who fled Cuba in the 1960s. She learned English from watching Sesame Street. As a young teenager, she lied about her age to get a job at Sears to make extra money for her family. When she announced that she wanted to be the first in the family to go to college, they told her she was crazy.

Four decades later, Ostolaza became the first Latina and first Dallas lawyer to lead a global corporate law firm — a position she has held since 2022 at Sidley Austin, a 2,300-lawyer firm with 21 offices and more than $3.7 billion in annual revenue.

The Texas Lawbook announced Thursday that it is awarding the first-ever Texas Lawbook Law Firm Leadership Award to Ostolaza.

April 9, 2026 Mark Curriden

Ares Management Buys Whitestone REIT for $1.7B

Alternative investment manager Ares Management Corp. said on Thursday that it has agreed to acquire Houston-based Whitestone REIT for $19 a share, or about $1.7 billion, in cash.

Kirkland is outside legal advisor to Ares and Whitestone’s general counsel is Peter Tropoli.

April 9, 2026 Jason Philyaw

Asked & Answered with Norton Rose Fulbright’s Julie Searle: From DOJ to Walmart to BigLaw

In this edition of Asked & Answered, Norton Rose Fulbright partner Julie Searle talks about being inspired by her parents to go to law school and her decade of experience at the Department of Justice. From government to in-house to private practice, Searle draws on these experiences in her role as a litigator in Norton Rose Fulbright’s Austin office.

April 8, 2026 Alexa Shrake

Spencer Fane Adds 75 Lawyers in Merger with Tulsa-based Conner & Winters

Kansas City business law firm Spencer Fane is combining with Tulsa-based Conner & Winters, which has more than 75 attorneys practicing from offices in Northwest Arkansas, Oklahoma and Texas, specializing in energy, construction, health care, litigation, finance, and other commercial matters.

April 8, 2026 Jason Philyaw

SEC Names Dallas Lawyer as Nation’s Top Corporate Enforcement Cop

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has named Dallas lawyer David Woodcock as its new director of enforcement, overseeing the agency’s federal civil corporate securities and fraud investigations and prosecutions.

Woodcock is taking a multimillion-dollar pay cut by leaving Gibson Dunn, where he has been a partner in Dallas since 2023.

April 8, 2026 Mark Curriden

Omar Samji Heads Back to Gibson Dunn

Omar Samji, the Houston-based lawyer whose career in power and renewables spans more than two decades and six law firms, has left Weil for Gibson Dunn, the firm is announcing today.

April 8, 2026 Allen Pusey

ACC Houston, Lawbook Name Annual GCs, Senior Counsel of the Year, Pro Bono and Diversity Honorees

The Association of Corporate Counsel’s Houston Chapter and The Texas Lawbook announced more recipients of 2026 Houston Corporate Counsel Awards. General counsel and senior in-house counsel from six of the world’s largest corporate energy and chemical giants, a handful of thriving midsized energy industry operators and the top lawyer for Houston Rockets owner and entertainment billionaire Tilman Fertitta have been named.

During the next week, ACC Houston and The Lawbook will unveil the 2026 award winners in 17 different categories.

April 7, 2026 Mark Curriden

Trust as a Team Superpower: Why Trust is Your Most Powerful Tool as a Leader

Have you ever worked with someone or a group of people and everything was just easy?

But have you also experienced the opposite, where nothing seemed clear?

In both scenarios, the difference was trust.

April 7, 2026 Chasity Henry

Jackson Walker Draws Another Suit Over Bankruptcy Scandal

A group of 13 shareholders of biopharmaceutical tech company Sorrento Therapeutics allege in a new lawsuit that Dallas-based Jackson Walker’s decision to file its bankruptcy case in the Southern District of Texas was done to enrich the firm at the expense of the shareholders.

April 7, 2026 Michelle Casady

Two More Partners Move to King & Spalding’s Dallas Office

Another two Dallas partners have joined their former Winston & Strawn colleagues at King & Spalding. Jeff Cole and Brian Jansen were named partners in the finance and restructuring practice group.

April 7, 2026 Jason Philyaw