Dallas-based Interstate Batteries CLO Chris Willis and GC Kelvin Sellers have been busy during the past two years. They opened operations in China and acquired a 19 percent ownership in a firm that recycles lead acid batteries, while also maintaining the company’s sponsorship of NASCAR driver Kyle Busch and the Joe Gibbs Racing team.
“We work hard to keep legal matters from distracting the business,” Willis says. This article peaks inside the legal department at Interstate.
More Stories
Texas GCs: The Billable Hour is Alive & Well
The death of the billable hour has been predicted for two decades. Skyrocketing rates often exceeding $1,200 an hour are causing corporate GCs to revisit alternative fee agreements again. But a new Texas Lawbook survey of 46 general counsel shows companies are hesitant to abandon the billable hour.
V&E Handles New Warburg Pincus Portfolio’s First Asset Acquisition
Fort Worth-based Chisolm, which formed this month, on Monday acquired a substantial amount of undeveloped acreage in the New Mexico region of the Delaware Basin from an undisclosed seller. More specifically, the acreage is located in the Bone Spring and Wolfcamp formations.
V&E Handles New Warburg Pincus Portfolio’s First Asset Acquisition
Fort Worth-based Chisolm, which formed this month, on Monday acquired a substantial amount of undeveloped acreage in the New Mexico region of the Delaware Basin from an undisclosed seller. More specifically, the acreage is located in the Bone Spring and Wolfcamp formations.
ACC-DFW & The Texas Lawbook Partner on Official Best Corporate Counsel Awards of 2017
The Dallas-Fort Worth chapter of the Association of Corporate Counsel announced Monday that it is officially partnering with The Texas Lawbook for the annual Best Corporate Counsel Awards of 2017. Each year, the ACC-DFW Chapter honors corporate in-house lawyers for their exceptional work and successes during the previous year.
“By teaming with The Texas Lawbook, we are taking the event to an all new level,” says ACC-DFW 1st Vice President David Kilpatrick, who is GC at EnvironX Solutions. Read for full details.
ACC-DFW & The Texas Lawbook Partner on Official Best Corporate Counsel Awards of 2017
The Dallas-Fort Worth chapter of the Association of Corporate Counsel announced Monday that it is officially partnering with The Texas Lawbook for the annual Best Corporate Counsel Awards of 2017. Each year, the ACC-DFW Chapter honors corporate in-house lawyers for their exceptional work and successes during the previous year.
“By teaming with The Texas Lawbook, we are taking the event to an all new level,” says ACC-DFW 1st Vice President David Kilpatrick, who is GC at EnvironX Solutions. Read for full details.
Patent Lit is AT&T Legal Team’s Specialty
Facing a mountain of patent infringement lawsuits, AT&T GC David McAtee created a specialized five lawyer group within the corporate legal department focusing exclusively on patent infringement litigation. The mission was twofold: enhance the ability to defend the company and reduce the attractiveness of AT&T as a target of frivolous lawsuits. The team is witnessing results, including overcoming the hesitancy of outside counsel to work so closely with the in-house team.
“An outside lawyer who doesn’t welcome this won’t remain our outside lawyer for very long,” says AT&T Assc. GC Neal Berinhout.
Patent Lit is AT&T Legal Team’s Specialty
Facing a mountain of patent infringement lawsuits, AT&T GC David McAtee created a specialized five lawyer group within the corporate legal department focusing exclusively on patent infringement litigation. The mission was twofold: enhance the ability to defend the company and reduce the attractiveness of AT&T as a target of frivolous lawsuits. The team is witnessing results, including overcoming the hesitancy of outside counsel to work so closely with the in-house team.
“An outside lawyer who doesn’t welcome this won’t remain our outside lawyer for very long,” says AT&T Assc. GC Neal Berinhout.
Andrews Kurth Helps Austin’s Owlchemy Labs Meet Google ‘IRL’
Austin-based video game developer Owlchemy Labs this week scored the gold mine that any tech startup looking for an exit would hope to score: an acquisition by Google, the mother of all tech giants. The score occurred not in one of the company’s state-of-the art games, but what gamers call “IRL” – “In Real Life.”
Mommy Helped Finance This Building
“Debt offerings of public securities happen when the market is favorable. As a result, her schedule was heavy and hard to predict. I had to learn to be an independent person and to do things on my own.”