At a time when many law firms and legal organizations have suddenly gone quiet related to their pro bono and diversity efforts, a handful of leaders at DFW corporate legal departments are following the advice of the great legal philosopher Bob Seger by going “against the wind.”
The Association of Corporate Counsel’s DFW Chapter and The Texas Lawbook announce that senior counsel at Phillips Enterprises, Toyota North America, 7-Eleven and Jacobs International will be honored for their extraordinary work and successes involving pro bono and public service and diversity and inclusion.
ACC-DFW and The Lawbook have partnered on the DFW Corporate Counsel Awards for nine years.
In fact, pro bono and diversity efforts are so important to ACC-DFW and The Lawbook that they are honoring two different award recipients in both categories.
The 2025 DFW Corporate Counsel Awards for Achievement in Pro Bono and Public Service go to:
- Phillips Enterprises General Counsel Shannon Cagnina, who was nominated by Scott Hastings of Troutman Pepper Locke; and
- Toyota North America Managing Counsel Scott Young of Toyota, who was nominated by Baker Botts partner Christa Brown-Sanford and Reed Smith partner Sarah Cummings Stewart.
The 2025 DFW Corporate Counsel Awards for Achievement in Diversity and Inclusion go to:
- Jacobs Deputy General Counsel Sarah Wariner, who was nominated by Vinson & Ekins partner Quentin Smith and Jacobs Deputy GC Chasity Henry; and
- 7-Eleven Information Technology Counsel Nayelly Dominguez, who was nominated by Pearson counsel Ruth Jeremiah.
ACC-DFW and The Lawbook have previously announced the finalists for General Counsel of the Year, Senior Counsel of the Year, Corporate Legal Department of the Year, Business Litigation of the Year and M&A Transaction of the Year. More information about those DFW Corporate Counsel Award finalists can be found here.
The DFW Corporate Counsel Awards will be held Jan. 29. The money goes to the Texas Lawbook Foundation, a nonprofit that fully funds The Lawbook’s pro bono, public service and diversity coverage of the Texas legal profession.
“We are proud of the Corporate Counsel Awards program, which showcases the strength of our in-house legal community in Dallas–Fort Worth through the combined efforts of ACC-DFW and The Texas Lawbook,” said Canadian Solar U.S. Manufacturing General Counsel Olesja Cormney, who will be president of the DFW Chapter of the Association of Corporate Counsel in 2026. “Recognizing peers for their contributions, talent and leadership not only celebrates individual achievements but also elevates the entire profession in our area. The credibility and prestige of the Corporate Counsel Awards rest on the strength of this community’s participation and on the rigor of our judging process.”
For more information about the awards ceremony, please contact Brooks Igo at brooks.igo@texaslawbook.net.