Retired Exxon Mobil GC Jack Balagia gets a new position. The American Bar Association recognizes retired Texas Criminal Court of Appeals Judge Elsa Alcala. And the Association of Corporate Counsel’s San Antonio Chapter seeks nominations for its prestigious Lee Cusenbary Ethical Life & Leadership Award.
Next week, The Texas Lawbook will announce a planned expansion of the Texas Lawbook Foundation and its mission. Also, a reminder: Please send us any information about scholarship programs set up by law firms, lawyers or legal organizations for students from low-income and disadvantaged families and communities.
ACC San Antonio Seeks Nominations
The San Antonio Chapter of the Association of Corporate Counsel is seeking nominations for its 16th annual Lee Cusenbary Ethical Life & Leadership Award.
The award is named after retired Mission Pharmaceutical General Counsel Lee Cusenbary, who was the San Antonio-based company’s GC for 17 years and is now GC at Cusenbary Holdings.
The deadline for submitting nominations is Monday, Sept. 16.
The award honors practicing or retired in-house or private lawyers, as well as corporate legal departments in San Antonio and its surrounding areas, who have demonstrated a strong and clear commitment to ethics as a core part of the nominee’s values.
Nominations are easy to do and can be made by anyone with personal knowledge of the nominee’s commitment to ethical conduct in the practice of law or ethical leadership in our community. Here is the link.
Jack Balagia Named KBH Energy Center ED
The Kay Bailey Hutchison Energy Center at the University of Texas has named retired Exxon Mobil General Counsel Jack Balagia as its new executive director.
Balagia, who now has an arbitration law practice in Houston, is a 1976 graduate of UT Law in Austin and has been an adjunct professor at the law school for eight years, teaching courses on oil and gas law.
“This new gig seemed like a natural fit given my career experience,” Balagia told The Texas Lawbook. “What is particularly appealing to me is that the center is not only student focused, with strong mentoring and internship programs, but also brings together, through its annual symposium, thought leaders from across the country to discuss and advocate for a secure national energy policy. That is a great foundation on which to build.”
The center is celebrating its 10th anniversary today at a symposium.
“I can think of no one better suited for this role and I am just delighted that Jack has accepted the position,” Sen. Hutchison said in the university’s announcement. “I am confident that his leadership will drive the center to new heights, furthering our mission to be the pre-eminent energy center in the nation.”
Balagia said the center has a unique position as the union of three of UT’s colleges — law, business and engineering.
“The KBH Center can be a leading national exponent for realistic energy policies, a resource for analysis of those policies, and a thought leader for utilization for all sources of efficient energy, from wind and solar to geothermal and nuclear to oil and natural gas,” Balagia said. “My goals in the job include building on the Center’s strong student focus and its annual symposia, increasing the body of scholarship published under the center’s umbrella, and providing support to the University of Texas as a voice for responsible and effective US energy policies.”
ABA Honors Texas Criminal Appeals Judge Elsa Alcala
The American Bar Association Death Penalty Representation Project this week honored the work of pro bono attorneys at its annual Volunteer Recognition & Awards event in Washington, D.C.
The ABA presented awards to law firms Arnold & Porter and Bryan Cave for their work in defending death row inmates.
The ABA chose retired Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Judge Elsa Alcala as its keynote speaker.
Judge Alcala was a Harris County prosecutor before serving on the state’s highest criminal appellate court for eight years, where she was often a lone dissenting voice. But her dissenting opinions often resonated with the U.S. Supreme Court, which multiple times followed her decisions in reversing death penalty convictions upheld by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals.
Judge Alcala retired in 2018 and shifted her focus to justice reform advocacy. She has co-written bills and advocated for legislation to improve the justice system and also serves as a board member for the Innocence Project of Texas and the Anthony Graves Foundation.
I invite you to watch the ABA program and Judge Alcala’s keynote speech here.