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Dorsey Hires Litigator from McGuireWoods - Chelsea Hilliard joins Dorsey & Whitney as a partner from McGuireWoods. Her addition is part of the firm’s efforts to grow its litigation practice. January 21, 2026
Asked & Answered with Chrysta Castañeda: Cases, Career and Coffee - In this edition of Asked & Answered, trial lawyer Chrysta Castañeda reflects on her career and offers advice for young lawyers. While she has closed her firm, retiring for good is not in her plans. January 21, 2026Litigation Roundup: Egg-Cellent Settlement Nets 2.1M Eggs for Texas Food Banks - In this edition of Litigation Roundup, we give you details on the unusual terms of a settlement Texas reached with Cal-Maine Foods in a price gouging suit, the U.S. Court of Appeals issues a ruling being hailed as a victory for taxpayers, and a doctor in the Valley goes to prison for fraud involving adult day care centers. January 20, 2026
Bondholder Sues Ex-Judge Jones, Firms Over SDTX Bankruptcy Scandal - A proposed class action lawsuit filed in the Southern District of Texas claims former bankruptcy Judge David Jones, former Jackson Walker bankruptcy partner Elizabeth Freeman and major law firms allegedly hid the romantic relationship between Jones and Freeman. Jones resigned from the bench in 2023 after news of his relationship with Freeman was publicly reported. January 20, 2026
Energy Dominates as Deals Hit $18.4B (The Best Week Since November) - The week ending Jan. 17 saw 19 deals reported to the CDT Roundup with a total value of more than $18.4 billion.
The week prior had 18 deals valued at nearly $9 billion, and there were 19 deals worth about $7.4 billion during the same week last year. But last week was the best week by value since an absurd 21-deal, $75 billion week in early November.
That and more in this edition of CDT Roundup. January 18, 2026
The week prior had 18 deals valued at nearly $9 billion, and there were 19 deals worth about $7.4 billion during the same week last year. But last week was the best week by value since an absurd 21-deal, $75 billion week in early November.
That and more in this edition of CDT Roundup. January 18, 2026
Mitsubishi Enters U.S. Shale Business with $7.5B Deal - Mitsubishi Corp. said Friday that it has entered the U.S. shale gas business with the acquisition of specific assets from Dallas-based private investment firm Aethon Energy Management for about $7.5 billion. Latham & Watkins advised Aethon and Vinson & Elkins represented Mitsubishi. January 16, 2026
Harris County Judge Lauren Reeder Succeeds in Keeping Challenger Off Ballot - The race for the 234th District Court bench in Harris County has gotten ugly.
Incumbent Judge Lauren Reeder and challenger Kim McTorry both allege the other played a role in trying to coerce them into dropping out of the race. The allegations range from threats to expose a brief decade-old affair to offers of a $50,000 bribe.
At the conclusion of a hearing that stretched across two days, Senior Judge Christi Kennedy, who was sitting on the case by assignment, determined Thursday night that McTorry's petition was invalid and ordered that she not appear on the March primary ballot. January 15, 2026
Incumbent Judge Lauren Reeder and challenger Kim McTorry both allege the other played a role in trying to coerce them into dropping out of the race. The allegations range from threats to expose a brief decade-old affair to offers of a $50,000 bribe.
At the conclusion of a hearing that stretched across two days, Senior Judge Christi Kennedy, who was sitting on the case by assignment, determined Thursday night that McTorry's petition was invalid and ordered that she not appear on the March primary ballot. January 15, 2026
Talen Energy Acquires Three Midwestern Power Plants for $3.5B - Houston energy infrastructure company Talen Energy said Thursday that it has acquired two power generating plants in the PJM market from New Jersey-based investment firm Energy Capital Partners for $2.55 billion cash and about $900 million in stock. Talen General Counsel John Wander worked with Kirkland & Ellis and White & Case on the deal. January 15, 2026
Centerpiece
Brett Barnes Helps Build Presidio into a Publicly Traded Powerhouse - Brett Barnes is a landman.
His title is general counsel for Presidio Production, a Fort Worth upstream oil & gas company. But Barnes is a landman. Maybe not in the sense of the popular Paramount streamer — "I've never been kidnapped by a cartel," he notes — but a landman, nonetheless.
For the last eight years, he's been GC at Presidio Petroleum, a company that acquires mature, producing oil and gas properties in a market that is hitting a newfound stride. The company is on the cusp of going public thanks to a deSPAC merger announced late last year.
The DFW Chapter of the Association of Corporate Counsel and The Texas Lawbook have named him 2025 GC of the Year for a Solo Legal Department. January 21, 2026
PepsiCo Foods GC Adrienne Mosley’s ‘Remarkable Journey’ - PepsiCo Foods Deputy General Counsel Adrienne Mosley entered 2025 with a dizzying number of projects on her agenda.
Mosley started the year by leading the company’s $1.2 billion acquisition of the Mexican-American foods company Siete Foods. She guided the legal components of the rebranding and reformation of PepsiCo’s Lay’s and Tostitos brands. She played a leading role in the transformation of the company's North America legal department in the wake of the company combining its North America food and beverage operations. And she supported the overhaul of the law department’s adoption of digital technologies and process optimization. In March, corporate executives promoted Mosley to general counsel of PepsiCo Foods.
“Adrienne stepped into the GC role amid a perfect storm — a major restructure of both the law department and the business, a new executive team and a challenging business environment,” said Phillips Murrah director Leanne Oliver, who is the former PepsiCo Foods GC. “Adrienne provided the calm during the storm.” January 20, 2026
Expert Voices
AI as a Service — Divergent State Tax Approaches and Their Impact - Artificial intelligence as a service is transforming business operations across industries, but its tax treatment remains inconsistent among states. For example, Texas applies sales tax to many AIaaS offerings under its “data processing” framework by taxing 80 percent of the service charge, while Indiana exempts AIaaS entirely as a nontaxable service. These differences have significant implications for deal structuring, compliance risk and valuation in private equity transactions. This article examines Texas’ controversial stance, contrasts it with Indiana’s approach and explains why these distinctions matter for investors and operators. January 22, 2026
My Five Favorite Books: Kristen Cook (Chief Legal Officer at The Brink’s Company) - While I gravitate toward fiction, I do enjoy mixing in leadership and business books to challenge myself and broaden my perspective, but I won’t stray from fiction for too long, as I am convinced that even the lightest works of fiction offer valuable insights. Each of these works has moved me profoundly, resonating with me on a personal level. They all share themes that have shaped my outlook and contributed to my understanding of myself and the world. January 21, 2026
Stories You Might’ve Missed
The Legacy of Pennzoil v. Texaco 40 Years Later — The Civil Jury Trial of the Century - Pennzoil v. Texaco's legacy remains significant, as it changed how companies handle mergers and acquisitions, caused the Chamber of Commerce to designate Texas as a judicial hellhole in 1986 and directly led to two decades of massive tort reform efforts that dramatically limited the rights of Texans to sue businesses, doctors and insurance companies for wrongdoing. It also launched Texas trial lawyer Joe Jamail to national stardom and made him the richest trial lawyer in American history.
In this in-depth article, The Texas Lawbook provides a detailed timeline of the events involved in the historic litigation, as well as comments from more than a dozen lawyers about the legal strategies employed. November 18, 2025
