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More than 400 guests gathered at the George W. Bush Institute Thursday evening to honor the winners and finalists in 13 different categories of the 2019 DFW Outstanding Corporate Counsel Awards.
Hosted by the Dallas-Fort Worth Chapter of the Association of Corporate Counsel and The Texas Lawbook, the awards included two Lifetime Achievement Awards: To former American Airlines General Counsel Gary Kennedy and Metro by T-Mobile GC Chris Luna.
Luna was cited for both for his achievements as a longtime corporate counsel and for his far-reaching influence, both in public service and as a philanthropist.
In his acceptance, Luna said he was gratified to be receiving the award with Kennedy whom he referred to as “the gold standard of corporate counsel.” He acknowledged the latitude he’s received from colleagues over the years to pursue both public office on the Dallas City Council and a staggering number of minority mentoring projects.
Kennedy was heralded for his leadership in guiding the DFW-based air carrier through some of its most troubled times — from the tragedy of September 11, 2001 to one of the most complicated bankruptcies in corporate history.
At the other end of the spectrum was the Rookie of the Year, given to a lawyer who has served as corporate counsel for two years or less. Aundrea Holt of American Airlines took home the award for mastering tasks at American that ranged from moving the legal department to American’s new headquarters, Skyview 8, to establishing its innovative sexual harassment programs and policies.
Chasity Henry, assistant general counsel at Kimberly-Clark, won the Diversity Achievement by approbation. With her parents present, Henry observed that many of the ACC finalists are heavily involved in diversity and inclusion projects. “It shows that these aren’t just sidebars in our profession.”
In the Pro Bono/Pubic Service category, Senior Counsel Belinda Boling of AT&T accepted the award “for doing something that I truly believe in.” She was honored for, among other projects, handling multiple asylum cases, including the heartbreaking representation of a teenaged girl whose mother’s murdered body was found by the FBI. In addition, she recruited more than a dozen other lawyers at AT&T to help asylum-seekers.
With her mother, who lives in Mexico, present in the audience Boling used her moment to the hundreds of lawyers present to recruit “at least one lawyer to do pro bono work.”
There were two winners for Senior Counsel of the Year for a Large Legal Department: Alan Dorantes of AT&T and James Sheppard of Southwest Airlines.
Sheppard was recognized for his part in managing Southwest through two jury trials last year, both of them in California. Dorantes, a major figure in pro bono projects for the past 16 years, acknowledged that he is leaving Dallas and AT&T to become general counsel of Feeding America, the nation’s second largest charity, based in Chicago.
Litigation of the Year was shared between Pier 1 and Range Resources. Pier 1 and Bracewell won for its enduring a series of stockholder class actions while negotiating sea changes taking place in the business of home furnishings —and the untimely death of Pier 1 GC Bob Bostrom.
Range Resources, a Fort Worth oil and gas producer, rolled the dice with their outside firm, K&L Gates, in a complicated suit over royalties in Oklahoma and won.
Janie Perelman, assistant general counsel at The Michaels Companies, was cited for receiving a perfect score from judges as Senior Counsel of the Year for a Midsize Legal Department. Perelman guided the craft supply giant unscathed through a major cyber security breach as well as the lawsuits that followed.
Receiving the award, she noted drily: “You have no idea how exhausting it is to defend glitter.”
Here is a list of Thursday night’s winners:
Rookie of the Year: Aundrea Holt, American Airlines
Senior Counsel of the Year: Adelle Casey, The Freeman Company
Diversity Achievement Award: Chasity Henry, Kimberly-Clark
Lifetime Achievement Award: Chris Luna & Gary Kennedy
Pro Bono/Public Service: Belinda Boling, AT&T
General Counsel of the Year Large Legal Department: Stephanie Zapata Moore, Vistra
Senior Counsel of the Year Large Legal Department: Alan Dorantes, AT&T, Jim Sheppard, Southwest Airlines
Creative Partnership Award: Celanese, Haynes and Boone, Sidley Austin
M&A Deal of the Year: Greg Moundas, Ambridge Hospitality, and David Gail, of Weil.
Business Litigation of the Year: Pier 1, Mike Carter and Bracewell; Range Resources, David Poole and K&L Gates
Senior Counsel Mid-Sized Legal Department: Janie Perelman, The Michaels Companies
General Counsel of the Year Small Legal Department: Burton Brillhart, Varsity Brands
General Counsel of the Year Midsize Legal Department: Tracy Preston, Neiman Marcus
For comprehensive profiles of all the winners and finalists please see our GG/Legal Departments Section here.