Local Heroes Firm Commitments HBA Nominees Take Top Honors in State Bar Pro Bono Awards Third Harris County Bench Bar Pro Bono Awards 26th John J. Eikenburg Law Week Fun Run Law Week Celebrates Legacy of John Adams
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THE HOUSTON
inside...
Volume 48 – Number 6
May/June 2011
The 61st Harvest Party raised $527,500 in underwriting for the Houston Bar Foundation. The Lawyers for Literacy Fall Book Drive collected 9,111 books for shelters and literacy projects, and the HBA team won its 9th title in the Great Grownup Spelling Bee, benefiting the Houston READ Commission. 9,031 students were reached through Constitution Day readings in local elementary schools, while the HBA’s partnership with the Chronicle in Education Program reached 19,899 students in middle and high schools. There were more than 13,600 people served by the Volunteer Lawyers Program, with volunteers handling 2,000 pro bono cases in 2010. The Campaign for the Homeless Committee collected 5,559 coats, jackets, and items of cold weather clothing for shelters that serve the homeless in the Fall Coat and Warm Clothing Drive, along with 222 suits for Dress for Success Houston and $1,871 in cash to purchase new suits for economically disadvantaged women entering the work force. The Fall and Spring IDEA Programs reached over 2,100 fifth graders in five Houston school districts through an interactive dialogue on the legal and health consequences of drugs, alcohol and tobacco. The Speakers Bureau provided speakers for 202 programs, reaching 8,353 people. 4,693 high school seniors participated in presentations on the Importance of Jury Service. 4,931 LegalLine calls were answered by volunteers. 1,400 youth and their parents went through the Juvenile Consequences Program last year. The Dispute Resolution Center conducted 2,867 mediations in 2010 and provided information and referral services for 47,336 people. The Continuing Legal Education Program provided 469 hours of free CLE. 271 people attended four luncheons hosted by the Senior Lawyers Forum. The Campaign for the Homeless Committee collected 4,000 items and a record $4,750 to purchase new diapers for shelters and agencies that serve children and families through the Spring Children’s Clothing and Diaper Drive. The Juvenile Justice Mock Trial Program taught 1,170 eighth graders about the justice system. 315 high school students learned about the Voir Dire process this fall. 2011 Law Week programs reached over 8,500 youth in Harris County through readings, contests, and other programs.
HBA Volunteers: Not Just Another Statistic
contents Volume 48 Number 6
May/June 2011
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FEATURES
10 Local Heroes Commitments 20 Firm By Elizabeth A. Campbell, Tamara Stiner Toomer and John S. Gray
Nominees Take Top 26 HBA Honors in State Bar Pro Bono Awards
By Tara Shockley
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Harris County 30 Third Bench Bar Pro Bono Awards Pro Bono Joint Initiative: 32 Houston Bringing Law Firms and InHouse Counsel Together to Serve Houston’s Pro Bono Needs By Keri D. Brown
John J. Eikenburg Law 34 26th Week Fun Run Raises Over $60,000 for The Center
Week Celebrates 36 Law Legacy of John Adams
The Houston Lawyer
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The Houston Lawyer (ISSN 0439-660X, U.S.P.S 008-175) is published bimonthly by The Houston Bar Association, 1300 First City Tower, 1001 Fannin St., Houston, TX 77002-6715. Periodical postage paid at Houston, Texas. Subscription rate: $12 for members. $25.00 non-members. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: The Houston Lawyer, 1300 First City Tower, 1001 Fannin, Houston, TX 77002. Telephone: 713-759-1133. All editorial inquiries should be addressed to The Houston Lawyer at the above address. All advertising inquiries should be addressed to: Quantum/SUR, 12818 Willow Centre Dr., Ste. B, Houston, TX 77066, 281-955-2449 ext 16, www.thehoustonlawyer.com, e-mail: leo@quantumsur.com Views expressed in The Houston Lawyer are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the editors or the Houston Bar Association. Publishing of an advertisement does not imply endorsement of any product or service offered. ŠThe Houston Bar Association, 2011. All rights reserved.
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The Houston Bar Association in 2010-2011
contents Volume 48 Number 6
May/June 2011
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departments Message 6 President’s Reflections on an Amazing Year By T. Mark Kelly the Editor 8 From Giving Back By John S. Gray The Bar 39 AtJudicial Investiture
Judicial Portraits
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Profile in Professionalism: 40 AMarie R. Yeates Partner and Appellate Practice Group Leader Vinson & Elkins LLP
Spotlight 41 Committee HBA Fee Dispute Committee Offers
Positive Experience for Both Sides
Reviews 42 Media Scorpions: The Battles and
Triumphs of FDR’s Great Supreme Court Justices Reviewed by Julie Barry
Trends 44 Legal Snyder v. Phelps: The United States
Supreme Court Rules that the First Amendment Protects Public Speech that Exploits Family’s Grief By Farrah Martinez
The U.S. Supreme Court Rules Corporations Do Not Have “Personal Privacy” Under the FOIA By Jill Yaziji
47 Placement Service 48 Litigation MarketPlace The Houston Lawyer
Cover: HBA members donated nearly 44,000 hours last year to HBA programs that include, clockwise from top left, the Veterans Legal Initiative, Habitat for Humanity, Law Week readings in elementary schools, the John J. Eikenburg Law Week Fun Run, the Lawyers for Literacy Fall Book Drive, and the Lawyers Against Waste Trash Bash. 4
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Join the Houston Bar Association’s 100 Club The Houston Bar Association 100 Club is a special category of membership that indicates a commitment to the advancement of the legal profession and the betterment of the community. The following law firms, corporate legal departments, law schools and government agencies with five or more attorneys have become members of the 100 Club by enrolling 100 percent of their attorneys as members of the HBA. Firms of 5-24 Attorneys Abraham, Watkins, Nichols, Sorrels, Agosto & Friend Abrams Scott & Bickley, L.L.P. Adair & Myers PLLC Ahmad, Zavitsanos & Anaipakos, P.C. Ajamie LLP Allen Boone Humphries Robinson LLP Andrews Myers, P.C. Bair Hilty, P.C. Baker Williams Matthiesen LLP The Bale Law Firm, PLLC Barker Lyman, P.C. Barrett Daffin Frappier Turner & Engel, LLP Bateman/Pugh, PLLC Bell, Ryniker & Letourneau, P.C. Berg & Androphy Bingham, Mann & House Brewer & Pritchard PC Buck Keenan LLP Burck, Lapidus, Jackson & Chase, P.C. Bush & Ramirez, L.L.C. Butler I Hailey Caddell & Chapman Cage Hill & Niehaus, L.L.P. Campbell Harrison & Dagley L.L.P. Campbell & Riggs, P.C. Chernosky Smith Ressling & Smith PLLC Christian Smith & Jewell, L.L.P. Cokinos Bosien & Young Conley Rose P.C. Connelly • Baker • Wotring LLP Cozen O’Connor Crady, Jewett & McCulley, LLP David Black & Associates De la Rosa & Chaumette De Lange Hudspeth McConnell & Tibbets LLP Devlin Naylor & Turbyfill PLLC Diamond McCarthy LLP Dinkins Kelly Lenox Lamb & Walker, L.L.P. Dobrowski L.L.P. Dow Golub Remels & Beverly, LLP Doyle Restrepo Harvin & Robbins, L.L.P. Drucker, Rutledge & Smith, L.L.P. Ebanks Taylor Horne L.L.P. Edison, McDowell & Hetherington LLP Ellis, Carstarphen, Dougherty & Griggs P.C. Ewing & Jones, PLLC Fibich Hampton Leebron Briggs Josephson, LLP Fisher, Boyd, Brown & Huguenard, LLP Fisher & Phillips LLP Fizer Beck Webster Bentley & Scroggins, P.C. Fleming & Associates L.L.P. Foreman DeGeurin & Nugent Frank, Elmore, Lievens, Chesney & Turet, L.L.P. Fullenweider Wilhite PC Funderburk & Funderburk, L.L.P. Galloway Johnson Tompkins Burr & Smith Germer Gertz, L.L.P. Givens & Johnston PLLC Goldstein & Vowell, L.L.P. Gordon & Rees LLP Greer, Herz & Adams, L.L.P. Hagans Burdine Montgomery & Rustay, P.C.
Harris, Hilburn & Sherer Harrison, Bettis, Staff, McFarland & Weems, L.L.P. Hays McConn Rice & Pickering, P.C. Heard, Robins, Cloud & Black, L.L.P. Heim, Payne & Chorush, L.L.P. Hicks Thomas LLP Hirsch & Westheimer, P.C. Hogan Lovells US LLP Holm I Bambace LLP The Hudgins Law Firm Hunton & Williams LLP Jackson Gilmour & Dobbs, PC Jackson Lewis LLP Jenkins Kamin, L.L.P. Johnson DeLuca Kurisky & Gould, P.C. Johnson Radcliffe Petrov & Bobbitt PLLC Johnson, Trent, West & Taylor, L.L.P. Jones, Walker, Waechter, Piotvent, Carrere & Denegree, L.L.P. Joyce, McFarland + McFarland LLP Kane Russell Coleman & Logan PC Kasowitz Benson Torres & Friedman LLP Kelly Hart & Hallman, LLP Kelly, Sutter & Kendrick, P.C. Kroger | Burrus LeBlanc Bland P.L.L.C. Legge Farrow Kimmitt McGrath & Brown, L.L.P. Linebarger Goggan Blair & Sampson LLP Liskow & Lewis Lorance & Thompson, PC MacIntyre & McCulloch, LLP Manning, Gosda & Arredondo, L.L.P. McGinnis Lochridge & Kilgore LLP McLeod Alexander Powel & Apffel PC MehaffyWeber PC Miller Scamardi & Carraba Mills Shirley L.L.P. Morris Lendais Hollrah & Snowden Munsch Hardt Kopf & Harr, P.C. Murray | Lobb PLLC Myers & Associates Nathan Sommers Jacobs Ogden, Gibson, Broocks, Longoria & Hall, LLP Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart, P.C. Okin Adams & Kilmer LLP Olson & Olson LLP Osha Liang LLP Pagel Davis & Hill PC Perdue Brandon Fielder Collins & Mott Perdue & Kidd, L.L.P. Phelps Dunbar LLP Phillips & Akers, P.C. Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP Ramey, Chandler, McKinley & Zito Ramsey & Murray PC Roach & Newton, L.L.P. Roberts Markel Weinberg PC Ross, Banks, May, Cron & Cavin, P.C. Royston, Rayzor, Vickery & Williams, L.L.P. Rusty Hardin & Associates, P.C. Rymer, Moore, Jackson & Echols, P.C. Schiffer Odom Hicks & Johnson PLLC
Schirrmeister Diaz-Arrastia Brem LLP Schwartz, Junell, Greenberg & Oathout, LLP Schwartz, Page & Harding L.L.P. Seyfarth Shaw LLP Shannon Martin Finkelstein & Alvarado, P.C. Shepherd, Scott, Clawater & Houston, L.L.P. Shipley Snell Montgomery LLP Short Carter Morris, LLP Singleton Cooksey LLP Slusser Wilson & Partridge LLP Smith & Carr, P.C. Smith Murdaugh Little & Bonham, L.L.P. Smyser Kaplan & Veselka, L.L.P. The Spencer Law Firm Sprott, Rigby, Newsom, Robbins & Lunceford, P.C. Steele Sturm P.L.L.C. Stevenson & Murray Strong Pipkin Bissell & Ledyard, L.L.P. Sutherland Asbill and Brennan LLP Tekell, Book, Allen & Morris, L.L.P. Thompson & Horton LLP Thompson, Coe, Cousins & Irons, LLP Tucker, Taunton, Snyder & Slade, P.C. Ware, Jackson, Lee & Chambers, L.L.P. Watt Beckworth Thompson & Henneman, LLP Weycer Kaplan Pulaski & Zuber, P.C. White Mackillop & Gallant P.C. Williams, Birnberg & Andersen, L.L.P. Williams Kherkher Hart Boundas LLP Williams Morgan & Amerson, P.C. Willingham, Fultz & Cougill, LLP Wilson, Cribbs & Goren, P.C. Wilson, Elser, Moskowitz, Edelman & Dicker Wong, Cabello, Lutsch, Rutherford & Brucculeri, P.C. Wright Abshire, Attorneys, PC Wright & Close, L.L.P. Yetter Coleman LLP Ytterberg | Deery LLP Zimmerman, Axelrad, Meyer, Stern & Wise, P.C. Zukowski, Bresenhan & Sinex, L.L.P.
Firms of 25-49 Attorneys Adams & Reese LLP Baker & McKenzie LLP Beck Redden & Secrest, L.L.P. Gibbs & Bruns LLP Hoover Slovacek LLP Littler Mendelson, PC
Firms of 50-100 Attorneys Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP Baker Hostetler LLP Beirne, Maynard & Parsons, L.L.P. Chamberlain Hrdlicka White Williams & Martin Coats I Rose Gardere Wynne Sewell LLP Jackson Walker L.L.P. Jones Day King & Spalding LLP Martin, Disiere, Jefferson & Wisdom, L.L.P. Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP
Porter Hedges LLP Thompson & Knight LLP Winstead PC
Firms of 100+ Attorneys Andrews Kurth LLP Baker Botts L.L.P. Bracewell & Giuliani LLP Fulbright & Jaworski L.L.P. Haynes and Boone LLP Locke Lord Bissell & Liddell LLP Vinson & Elkins LLP
Corporate Legal Departments Anadarko Petroleum Corporation AT&T Texas BP CenterPoint Energy El Paso Corporation Kellogg Brown & Root Inc LyondellBasell MAXXAM Inc Newfield Exploration Company Petrobras America Inc. Plains Exploration & Production Co. Pride International Inc. Rice University Sysco Corporation Texas Children’s Hospital Total E&P USA Inc. University of Houston System
Law School Faculty South Texas College of Law Thurgood Marshall School of Law University of Houston Law Center
Government Agencies City of Houston Legal Department Harris County Attorney’s Office Harris County District Attorney’s Office Harris County Domestic Relations Office Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County Texas Port of Houston Authority of Harris County Texas
president’s message
By T. Mark Kelly Vinson & Elkins LLP
Reflections on an Amazing Year
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The Houston Lawyer
s I reflect on my final column for The Houston Lawyer, I want to tell you what an amazing year it has been at the HBA and how grateful I am to the membership for their efforts. It is frightening to think how fast the year went; perhaps this is a reflection of me getting up in years. Despite some of the negative press lawyers engender, our organization through the participation of its members truly does strive to make a difference. This year our members dedicated nearly 44,000 volunteer hours to our many programs. In the last twelve months, I had the privilege of participating in numerous events and gave countless speeches to constituencies I otherwise would not have had the opportunity to know. A significant number of our members dedicate a good part of their day to serving others and striving to make a difference in the lives of other people. These experiences will stay with me forever, and makes me proud of our profession. I thought I would give you a summary of just some of the activities your Bar was involved in: • This year the HBA partnered with the Houston Youth and Alumni (HAY) Center, which offers resources, service and support to older youth as they leave foster care through Harris County Children’s Protective Services. The HBA provided educational and training programs on legal issues for HAY Center staff and youth who are preparing for their first independent living situation. Three Houston law firms volunteered to take cases to get juvenile records sealed or expunged, allowing these young adults
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to attend college or apply for jobs. The HBA also conducted a drive to stock a “Ready Room” with household items, dishes, bedding, cleaning supplies, toiletries, pantry non-perishables and other items for youth as they prepare to live on their own. The drive collected 4,610 items and $1,890 in cash to purchase items. • The HBA partnered with the Houston Young Lawyers Association to distribute the TYLA video “R U Safe? Protecting Yourself in Cyberspace” in Houston area school districts. The HBA contacted all school districts in Harris County and arranged for the distribution of DVDs in nearly 600 schools in 18 school districts and 34 private and charter schools. The HYLA then stepped in and provided live presentations for schools that wanted follow up to the DVD. • The Juvenile Justice Mock Trial Program completed its 36th year of teaching eighth grade students about the justice system through the preparation and enactment of mock trials held in real Harris County courtrooms. • An annual Voir Dire Program taught 315 high school students about the juror selection process. • The Interprofessional Drug Education Alliance (IDEA) Program provided teams of physicians and lawyers to talk to fifth grade classes about both the medical and legal consequences of substance abuse. • On Constitution Day, September 17, nearly 100 HBA members, including 18 judges, read “The Bill of Rights” by Norman Pearl to over 9,000 elementary school students through 196 separate readings in 16 local school districts. The
HBA also sponsored a classroom guide, “The Constitution in the News,” in partnership with the Houston Chronicle, that reached 19,899 students through 244 teachers in 201 public schools and 43 private/parochial schools. • For Law Day, HBA members taught elementary school students about the importance of our national traditions by reading the book, Ordinary Mary’s Extraordinary Deed by Emily Pearson, to 194 classes at 98 elementary schools in the Houston area, reaching 8,262 students. The books were donated to the school libraries. • The Adopt-A-School Program completed its 18th year of providing activities that enhance the learning environment at B.C. Elmore Middle School in the troubled North Forest ISD, the area’s poorest school district. The program includes tutoring in math and reading, as well as field trips, reading incentive parties, books, school supplies and other enrichment activities. • The HBA’s program, “The Importance of Jury Service,” reached 5,745 students and adults this year, bringing the total to over 24,745 high school students and adults reached since the program began in 2005. • The HBA partners with Communities in Schools Houston to place high school students from at-risk schools in a Legal Internship Program for summer employment in law firms, corporate law offices, courts, legal agencies and the HBA. The program has placed 140 students over the last three summers. • The Juvenile Consequences Program gave youths charged with minor offenses the opportunity to stay out of
the system if they complete a program prescribed by the court. This bar year, over 1,400 youth ages 10-17 attended the program. • Elder Law programs reached 1,200 seniors this year providing free wills and medical directives for low-income seniors. • The Speakers Bureau provided volunteer attorneys to speak on legal topics requested by 232 schools, civic associations and other groups, reaching 10,413 children, teens, adults and seniors. • The Habitat for Humanity Committee collected $70,000 to build the association’s 14th Habitat home this spring. • A Lawyers for Literacy Book Drive collected 9,111 books for 28 shelters and literacy projects. • The fall Coat and Warm Clothing Drive collected 5,559 coats, jackets, sweaters and items of cold weather clothing for shelters that serve the homeless, along with 222 suits for Dress for Success Houston and $1,871 in cash donations to purchase new suits. The spring Children’s Clothing and Diaper Drive netted nearly 4,000 items and over $4,750 to purchase disposable diapers. • The 26th annual John J. Eikenburg Law Week Fun Run raised over $60,000 for The Center, serving persons with developmental disabilities, bringing contributions over the life of the race to nearly $929,400. • 512 attorneys have volunteered this year to answer 4,971 calls from the public during the HBA’s LegalLine program, held on the first and third Wednesday of each month, from 5-9 p.m. • HBA volunteers devoted over 2,000 hours to Special Olympics Texas athletic events for special athletes. • The HBA created a new section on its website, www.hba.org, to help law students get involved with the HBA and make the most of their law school experience, and to help recently-licensed attorneys as they transition into law practice in a tough economy. continued on page 47
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from the editor
By John S. Gray Gardere Wynne Sewell LLP
Associate Editors
Keri Brown Baker Botts L.L.P.
Catherine Le Law Firm of Catherine Le
Robert W. Painter The Painter Law Firm
The Houston Lawyer
Don Rogers Harris County District Attorney’s Office
Tamara Stiner Toomer Attorney at Law
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Giving Back
e have all heard some version of the phrase “to whom much is given, much is expected” in church or from our parents. When thinking about this idea, many immediately associate it only with financial resources. While that is valid, it is just one way in which we may have been blessed. But we should be cognizant of other yardsticks by which to measure and count our blessings. As lawyers, each of us has obtained skills and abilities that make us uniquely suited for our practices and to help those around us in need. The main idea here is that we are accountable for the knowledge, resources and abilities with which we have been blessed or perhaps struggled mightily to obtain through sheer force of will and hard work. Either way, if we have been given much, then society expects that much more from us. While we are not perfect, we can be faithful stewards over the skills and blessings that have been entrusted to us. As lawyers practicing and living in Houston, we all have an opportunity to promote equality and fairness, and to help level the playing field for those less fortunate than ourselves. This is why we believe strongly in supporting and giving back to our community. We can find opportunities to give back to our community through the many HBA-affiliated programs as well as the numerous religious and community-based organizations in our neighborhoods. Whether it is coaching Little League or a high school mock trial team, or speaking at local schools on various issues, we all thehoustonlawyer.com
should be active members of our community. Through the HBA, you have an opportunity to give back by participating in LegalLine, the HBA’s Houston Volunteer Lawyers Program, and the Houston Lawyer Referral Service. Additionally, many lawyers participate in will-a-thons, elder law services, veterans legal advice clinics and through the Dispute Resolution Center. If you are curious about these services, click on the big red button that says “Services to the Public” on the HBA homepage, www.hba.org, or go to http://hba. org/folder-services/ pdfs/Public-Info. pdf to download a brochure that provides information and phone numbers for the HBA’s many programs. If you have time and interest, look for ways to assist one or more of these programs. With all of the budget cuts our community is facing over the next two fiscal years, we are in need of your unique skills and abilities, and you will be rewarded by knowing how much your time, energy and effort has meant to our community. Throughout each year The Houston Lawyer publishes articles on a vast array of topics. This year, those topics have ranged from children at risk to environmental law to tax law and many areas in between. Yet, there is one topic that we at The Houston Lawyer always return to: highlighting the volunteer spirit of this city’s lawyers. This issue documents some of the commendable causes and many contributions of members of the Houston Bar Association. One of those volunteers I personally want to highlight is Julie Barry, who deserves our thanks for coordinating the articles for this issue. continued on page 47
BOARD OF DIRECTORS President
Secretary
T. Mark Kelly
David A. Chaumette
President-Elect
Treasurer
Denise Scofield
Brent A. Benoit
First Vice President
Past President
M. Carter Crow
Barrett H. Reasoner
Second Vice President
Laura Gibson
DIRECTORS (2009-2011)
Alistair B. Dawson Jennifer A. Hasley
Benny Agosto, Jr. Warren W. Harris
Hon. David O. Fraga Daniella D. Landers
DIRECTORS (2010-2012) Todd M. Frankfort John Spiller
editorial staff Editor in Chief
John S. Gray Associate Editors
Keri D. Brown Robert W. Painter Tamara Stiner Toomer
Catherine Le Don Rogers
Editorial Board
Julie Barry Angela Dixon Dori Kornfeld Goldman Farrah Martinez Caroline C. Pace Joy E. Sanders Hannah Sibiski Mark R. Trachtenberg N. Jill Yaziji
Sharon D. Cammack Don D. Ford III Al Harrison Judy L. Ney Maidie Ryan Mark Schuck Lisa Brindle Talbot Gary A. Wiener
Managing Editor
Tara Shockley
HBA office staff Membership and Technology Services Director
Executive Director
Kay Sim
Ronald Riojas
Administrative Assistant
Ashley G. Steininger
Membership Assistant
Administrative Assistant
Billy Salinas
Bonnie Simmons
Director of Committees & Events
Claire Nelson
Receptionist/Resource Secretary
Committees & Events Assistant
Lucia Valdez
Brian Edwards
Director of Education
Lucy Fisher Continuing Legal Education Assistant
Amelia Burt Communications Director
Tara Shockley
Community Education Assistant
Natasha Williams Communications Assistant/Web Designer
Brooke Eshleman
Advertising sales Design & production QUANTUM/SUR
12818 Willow Centre, Ste. B, Houston, TX 77066 281 . 955 . 2449 • www.quantumsur.com Publisher
Leonel E. Mejía Production Manager
Marta M. Mejía Advertising
Mary Chavoustie & Liz C. Searcy
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Local
Heroes
For many of the HBA’s members, volunteering in the community is an integral part of their lives. HBA members donate nearly 44,000 volunteer hours to HBA programs alone each year. They spend countless hours helping other organizations, agencies, schools, churches, museums, and other nonprofits fulfill their missions to assist and educate Houstonians of all ages. The HBA members profiled here represent a small sampling of the diverse efforts of lawyers in our community. They improve the profession, enrich their own lives, and empower the lives of others.
Bob Devlin & Cliff Hayes Veterans Serving Veterans
Bob Devlin
By Tara Shockley
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Cliff Hayes
ob Devlin and Cliff Hayes are both retired from long careers in law practice, but they are still sharing their legal expertise with Houston-area veterans. Both men are veterans themselves – Bob served as a captain in the U.S. Army during the 1960s, while Cliff is a World War II Army Combat Infantry veteran who served in Europe. They volunteer on a regular basis for the HBA’s Veterans Legal Advice Clinic, held from 2:00-5:00 p.m. every Friday at the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center. Volunteer attorneys meet with any veterans who walk into the clinic and provide
legal advice and counsel. If the veteran needs further legal assistance, they are assigned a pro bono volunteer through the HBA’s Houston Volunteer Lawyers Program. Cliff is a native of New York City who attended law school at the University of Houston from 1969-1973, when it was still Bates College of Law. Until his retirement in 1991, Cliff had a general solo practice he describes as a “fly paper practice – I handled anything that would stick.” When he heard about the need for attorneys at the HBA’s legal clinic at the VA Medical Center, he knew he wanted to volunteer. A trained mediator, Cliff said he sees a lot of veterans who have family law issues, such as child support, or who need wills. He also mentors other attorney volunteers at the clinics who don’t have as much experience. Some of the stories he has heard from veterans are truly affecting. “These poor fellows are like most people,” says Cliff. “They don’t know the law. They get into tangles, and they need someone to help them get things sorted out.” The legal clinic is not Cliff’s only volunteer service. He also makes “beep eggs” for the Lighthouse for the Blind, which allows visually-impaired clients to participate in Easter egg hunts and other games. And, he repairs talking books that are supplied by the Library of Congress for the visually impaired. After 46 years of law practice, Bob Devlin retired in August 2010 from his seven-attorney firm, Devlin, Naylor & Turbyfill. Even before his retirement, he started volunteering for the HBA’s Veterans Legal Advice Clinic after seeing a story about it in the Houston Bar Bulletin. Since January 2010, he has missed only a few Fridays. “When you talk to veterans, you realize they have no one to talk to regarding their legal problems,” Bob says. “It is crucial for them to be able to talk to an attorney. Ninety-five percent of the time, you can see the relief on their faces after they’ve talked to someone and gotten advice.” Bob, also a licensed mediator, says he
sees a lot of problems involving housing and foreclosure issues among the veterans he counsels, as well as family law, wills and guardianships. “The HBA needs to be applauded for this program,” he says. “I don’t know that most of the bar knows the needs our veterans have, and I don’t think they realize the satisfaction they would get from volunteering. You can’t put it into words.” Bob and Cliff both say that finding time to volunteer at the Veterans Legal Advice Clinic may be easier now that they are retired, but they wish they had gotten involved even earlier. “You’re so busy in your practice and you think it’s so important. It’s really not,” says Bob. “You take a couple of hours out of your practice on a Friday. You can’t put a value on what is done here every Friday.” Cliff often has lunch with his daughter on Fridays, and then heads for the VA Medical Center. “You are there for an afternoon. You help them get started, and you feel so good about it,” says Cliff about the legal counsel he provides for veterans. “You wonder why you haven’t done it all these years.” Tara Shockley is the communications director for the Houston Bar Association.
Angela Dixon Lone Star Sister
Angela, Jamalia and Gov. Rick Perry at State Award Ceremony.
By Catherine A. Le ngela Dixon is the state’s best big sister, and she has the award to prove it. In April, Angela was
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named Big Brothers Big Sisters 2011 Big Sister of the Year for the State of Texas, with Governor Rick Perry recognizing her achievements and dedication to mentorship. Big Brother Big Sisters (BBBS) is the country’s largest donor and volunteer supported mentoring network that pairs mentors with children from 6 to 16 years of age. Since 1927, Big Brothers Big Sisters has “improved children’s odds for succeeding in school, behaving nonviolently, avoiding drugs and alcohol, and breaking negative cycles.” The recognition as Big Sister of the Year is given annually to “outstanding volunteers who provide exceptional and life-changing impact to the children they mentor.” Angela was chosen to receive this award among thousands of other Big Sisters throughout the Big Brothers Big Sisters Texas area, which includes 106 counties across Texas, serving cities from San Angelo to the Dallas/FortWorth Metroplex to Paris, Texas. Angela’s first role as a Big Sister began in Moline, Illinois and continued through law school. Angela appreciated that BBBS gave considerable attention to pairing the “Bigs” with compatible “Littles.” When Angela moved to Houston, she recommenced her mentorship within the BBBS program and was paired with Jamalia M. Williams, who was 11 years old and in the 6th grade. Angela and her Little have spent much time together, attending various concerts, movies, sporting events, and sponsored BBBS events. One of their favorite things to do is trying all types of food. After seven inspiring years, Jamalia, now 18 years old, was encouraged by Angela to go to college and has achieved academic success. Jamalia is the first person in her family to graduate from high school. Angela reminds her fellow attorneys who are busy or think they do not have the time, that the need for Bigs is really great. Hundreds of kids sit on the waiting list, simply wanting someone to talk to and provide encouragement. Angela suggests that attorneys can also volunteer through the Houston Young Lawthehoustonlawyer.com thehoustonlawyer.com
March/April May/June 2011
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yers program, which collaborates with Big Brothers Big Sisters. In addition to the time she devotes to BBBS, Angela also serves on the editorial board of The Houston Lawyer and has been active in the HBA’s musical production, Night Court. Angela’s distinction of being awarded Texas’ Big Sister of the Year feels gratuitous, she says, because the honor of such an award is outshined by the relationship developed out of the time spent with Jamalia. The reciprocity of support, growth, and instilling confidence has impacted both their lives. Angela’s great pride comes from assisting her Little to strive to be a caring young woman who will become a Big herself. Angela expects to hear wonderful stories from Jamalia, and asks that other attorneys take note of their responsibility and capacity to offer optimism and aspiration to the young members of our city. Catherine A. Le is the owner of The Law Firm of Catherine Le, PLLC, practicing in business and commercial litigation.
Emily Paige Harbison Creating Bonds that Last
By Julie Barry magine this life: You are an educated woman and a political activist, but your thoughts and your intellect are a curse, not a treasure. You marry, as ar-
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ranged by your family, and soon thereafter, your nightmare begins. Your husband beats you and rapes you repeatedly, and even attempts to kill you. When you become pregnant, you suffer several miscarriages as the beatings continue, but somehow you manage to carry a few of the pregnancies to term. After several attempts to escape, you finally make it to the United States–but without your three children. Working from her office on the 33rd floor of Pennzoil Place in downtown Houston, Emily Harbison cannot imagine such a life more different than her own. Among other things, she is valued by her husband, her family and friends, and her law firm for her intelligence and her ambition. And yet, by reaching out, taking a chance, and devoting a part of herself to this other woman’s life, she has created bonds that will never be broken. As an associate at Baker & McKenzie LLP, Emily directs her professional practice to labor and employment law. As a member of the firm’s pro bono committee, Emily devotes her free time to changing lives. In 2008, as a new associate with her firm, she coordinated the Houston office’s participation in a build for Habitat for Humanity. Emily has also participated in Baker & McKenzie’s national and international pro bono projects, assisting with research for cases before the Ninth Circuit on immigration-related issues and before international war crimes tribunals. But in 2010, she took a bold step forward and accepted a pro bono case through the Tahirih Justice Center. Tahirih Justice Center, which is based in Washington D.C., opened a second office in Houston in the fall of 2009. Its mission is to help women and girls seeking protection in the United States from gender-based violence, by providing them with health and social services and legal assistance. Emily became aware of Tahirih when Baker & McKenzie’s pro bono committee sent out a list of possible projects for the firm to consider. Intrigued, Emily investigated the organi-
zation and decided to become involved. Emily had no experience with political asylum cases, and when she was first assigned to her case, she began to feel anxious as she became aware of what was at stake if she failed in her efforts. This woman, who had been repeatedly beaten and raped and had fled for her life, would be sent back to her abusive husband who would surely kill her. But thanks to the assistance of Andrew Biberstein, a fellow associate, and the Tahirih Justice Center, Emily was given the support she needed to do her job. Tahirih provided training seminars and manuals on the relevant law; she was assigned a mentor; and Tahirih’s e-library provided Emily with access to model briefs and forms for use in her case. Tahirih afforded Emily the opportunity to contribute not only in a meaningful way, but also competently. With Emily’s help, her client was granted asylum and was eventually able to bring her children to the United States as well. Emily gives a great deal of the credit to Baker & McKenzie for fostering and promoting her pro bono activities. “From day one, I saw that pro bono work was valued by the firm, and I knew they would support my contributions,” she explained. One of the biggest surprises to Emily was the bond her work has created within the firm. “In addition to working closely with others in the office on the case, every week colleagues would stop me in the hall to ask how the Tahirih case was going. I feel it drew the firm together and also encouraged others to take on similar cases.” Emily volunteers her time to pro bono matters because she believes it is a nice way to give back. For Emily Harbison, it has also become a means to forming bonds with others that will last a lifetime. For more information on Tahirih Justice Center, visit www.tahirih.org. Julie Barry is an attorney specializing in transactional law and a member of The Houston Lawyer editorial.
James Flodine
Scoutmaster and Lawyer
By Katie Chatterton n most Thursdays, a dedicated group arrives at Yellowstone Academy to encourage Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts to develop into well educated and mature young people. Among the group of volunteers is James Flodine, Scoutmaster and lawyer. James serves as the Scoutmaster of Troop 255, a group that faces special challenges because most of the parents, for various reasons, are not involved with the troop. James is not the only lawyer volunteer for the troop. Rita Leader, a fellow HBA member, is a Scout Leader, who works alongside lawyers Garvin Stryker, John Dawson, John Meredith, Dale Smith and Billy Murphy. Since becoming a Cub Scout at the age of six, James progressed through the organization, then became involved in Scout leadership during his college days and continued through the time his children were Scouts. In 2009, James founded Troop 255 after participating in a reading program at Yellowstone Academy, a school for children who live in extreme poverty. On the day I visit the troop, a group of volunteers is teaching horticulture to the older Scouts. Leading a group of fifth, sixth and seventh graders outside, James shows me what efforts the volunteers are making to teach the value of service to others. The boys work tirelessly using shovels, spades and forks to clear dead trees and undergrowth from
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the school grounds. “You have to get the roots,” says James. With more children than tools to go around, some give up the efforts to join in a game of basketball. With an easygoing attitude, James understands the distraction and encourages the remaining boys to continue to clear the grounds. At the end of the day, James rounds up the Scouts to hand out flyers for an upcoming service day at the school, where volunteers plan to replant those areas just cleared by the fifth graders. James explains that in traditional Scouting, parents usually provide uniforms, camping supplies, transportation and governance of the Troop. For example, Troop 55, based out of the Saint John the Divine Episcopal Church, has around 150 boys and around 175 adults who run the troop. In contrast, Troop 255 has 85 boys and 15 adult volunteers. With no parents involved in this program, volunteers with Troop 255 have to fund everything for the boys on their own or hope for donations. There are other challenges for Troop 255, as these children rarely have stable home lives away from the Troop. The weekend before the horticulture lesson, James took a group of boys skating. However, one of them could not attend because James could not reach him. As the boy later explained, he lives with his Grandma during the week but he is now staying with his father on the weekend. Taking it in stride, James asks where his father lives so that he can ensure the boy makes future Scouting events, but the boy is unable to give the address, even after trying to identify the apartment on James’s smart phone map. Taking down the father’s phone number instead, James says he will call if there is another event and they will figure out the address then. Having experienced similar logistical issues in the past, when the Troop plans a campout, James and his wife often open up their home to the boys to stay the night before so that they all make it to camp the next day. “Sometimes their families move during
the night to avoid the landlord or the police and we lose them for a while,” James says. With all these challenges, it would seem hard to give the boys the Scouting experience that will last them a lifetime, but James and the other volunteers of Troop 255 are doing their best to make that happen. Still, as James points out at the end of my visit: “We need more volunteers.” Hopefully others will follow in James’s footsteps. Katie Chatterton is an associate in the Labor and Employment and Immigration Practice Groups at Haynes and Boone, LLP.
George A. Kurisky, Jr.
Using Gifts and Talents to Help Others
By Farrah Martinez eorge A. Kurisky, Jr. is a veteran lawyer and partner at Johnson DeLuca Kurisky & Gould, where he primarily focuses on commercial litigation and corporate transactions. For as long as Kurisky has practiced law, he also has generously given of his time and talents to a myriad of diverse nonprofits and professional associations. These days a large portion of Kurisky’s community involvement is dedicated to the Spring Branch Education Foundation, Goodwill Industries of Houston,
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and the Rotary Club of Houston Westchase. Kurisky currently serves as chair of the Spring Branch Education Foundation, which was founded in 1993 to enhance the quality of education for Spring Branch Independent School District students. He and fellow board members raise money to provide financial resources for class room projects, enhance technologies, field trips, staff positions and award numerous student scholarships. Approximately 12 years ago Kurisky joined Rotary Club and it was there he met Steve Lufburrow, the President and CEO of Goodwill Industries of Houston. Since that encounter, Kurisky has dedicated his legal skills to assist the Goodwill’s Business Advisory Council (BAC) and now is the incoming chair of the BAC. Kurisky also plays an active role in fundraising and achieving Goodwill’s central goal to improve the quality of life through the power of work. Kurisky speaks with great conviction and a true belief that by providing job training to veterans, the disabled and recently released convicts, these individuals can live self-sustaining productive lives. Among his other activities, he is actively involved with the Knights of Columbus and the Asian Chamber of Commerce, and serves as his firm’s pro bono coordinator for the HBA’s Houston Volunteer Lawyers Program. Kurisky is the proud father of two daughters and says his wife of 18 years is equally engaged in community activities. The Kuriskys believe if each human being gives back a small portion of the talent and resources at their disposal, then our society is much better as a result of those individual contributions. Farrah Martinez is the Director of Legislative Affairs at the Harris County District Clerk’s Office. She is a member of The Houston Lawyer editorial board. 14
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Harry Lawrence Recreating History at Lone Star Flight Museum
By Don Rogers arry Lawrence, a former Galveston police officer, started with the Harris County District Attorney’s Office as an investigator in 1977. After graduating from South Texas College of Law in 1986, he became an assistant district attorney, and has prosecuted cases handled by that office’s Consumer Fraud Division since 1990. Harry has always had a deep interest in history, especially World War II. In 1996, he visited the Lone Star Flight Museum in Galveston, which began as a private aircraft collection and expanded into a self-supporting educational museum after acquiring a facility at Galveston’s Scholes Field in 1991. He was impressed by its substantial collection of military planes used during World War II and the Korean War, including the B-17 Flying Fortress and B-25 Mitchell bombers and P-51 Mustang, P-47 Thunderbolt, and F4U Corsair fighters that became legendary during World War II. He was also impressed by the museum’s stated purpose of acquiring, displaying, and operating historically significant vintage aircraft relating to the technology, development, and history of aviation. As a result, Harry became a volun-
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teer at the Lone Star Flight Museum in 1997, and currently serves it in several capacities. He leads the Marshaller Unit, a group of volunteers who direct taxiing incoming and outgoing planes at the airport during the air shows and events in which the museum participates, including the Wings Over Houston Air Show. He also serves as crew chief on the museum’s B-17 bomber, and flies with the plane and assists its pilot and copilot during its frequent exhibition flights. Dressed in a World War II era air force uniform, Harry gives living history presentations for the museum’s visitors and educates them about the history of the museum’s planes and the service personnel who operated them during the war. Harry finds volunteering with the Lone Star Flight Museum very rewarding. He has frequently met veterans, including WASPs (Women Air Force Service Pilots), who actually flew or maintained the types of aircraft displayed by the museum during World War II or Korea, and enjoys learning about their experiences and the sacrifices they made serving the United States. Some of his more memorable experiences as a museum volunteer include meeting Paul Tibbets, who piloted the B-29 Superfortress bomber named “Enola Gay” when it dropped the first atomic bomb used in warfare on Hiroshima; Richard Cole, who copiloted then Lieutenant Colonel Jimmy Doolittle’s B-25 Mitchell bomber during his famous air raid on Tokyo; and Robert Morgan, who piloted the Memphis Belle, the first B-17 to complete twenty-five European combat missions with its crew intact. When asked why he devotes so much of his time to volunteer work at the museum, Harry Lawrence responded, “I feel it is important to honor those men and women who served our country and made sacrifices to preserve the freedoms that we enjoy today. I try to do this by helping to preserve these planes and the memory of those who flew them.” The Lone Star Flight Museum is lo-
cated at the Galveston International Airport at (Scholes Field), and is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. In addition to its numerous exhibits, the museum offers flights on its vintage planes. It offers many volunteer opportunities, and gladly accepts donations. Don Rogers is an assistant district attorney with the Harris County District Attorney’s Office and a member of The Houston Lawyer editorial board.
Brendettae Payne Advocate for Youth
the students in discussions on what they learned and their experiences. “It was a joy to share that experience with the students,” Brendettae said. “The experience was beyond amazing. Although it was very hot, it was just wonderful to fellowship with other believers, especially youth.” Brendettae said it was not about egos or who’s who, but was just about likeminded people trying to figure out how they can have better youth programs at their respective churches. Brendettae said that sometimes when serving, volunteers can grow tired and weary from the day to day dealings, so it was refreshing to be in a place like Branson where she was able to appreciate the surroundings, greenery and hillside. A supporter of the youth at her church for over 10 years, Brendettae has accomplished a lot. “I do everything from planning meetings, to mentoring kids, to discussing issues like peer pressure and dating, and sometimes I even represent the kids in my capacity as a lawyer,” she
said. Brendettae stressed that sometimes many of the kids do not get the love and attention they seek, so she is glad that she can be there for them. “The kids need it,” she said, “That is what I have been called to do.” She often has family and friends who call on her to speak to their children on their behavior, selfesteem or outlook on life because they know her passion for the youth runs so deep. Brendettae also volunteers with Hope For Youth, an organization that partners with the Star of Hope for kids who have been through transitions or are currently experiencing a transition. She volunteers every second and fourth Friday for Friday Night Lights, which is an opportunity for youth ages 11-18 to come together for small group discussions, entertainment, prayer and general fellowship. Brendettae said it is great to be called on because she can pass on what she has learned. “So many people have helped me along the way and it is an honor for me to do the same for others.”
Brendettae in Ghana.
By Angela L. Dixon or Brendettae Payne, working with youth is her calling. She began working in the youth ministry at her church, Higher Dimension, when she was a student in law school. Over the years, she has taken on more responsibility. She has coordinated lockins where students stay overnight and play games, have talk sessions, and learn about life skills. Last summer, she served as the “Kaleo,” meaning the chosen one, leader for a group of 70 students ages 8-18 years who traveled from Houston to Branson, Missouri for the Kids Across America camp, a Christian sports camp. During the week, students were involved in many activities including canoeing, basketball, volleyball, softball, swimming, and golfing. At the end of each night, Brendettae would lead
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Brendettae’s love for youth has even stretched across the world. In 2008, she traveled to Accra, Ghana for two weeks. While there, she visited the St. George’s International School in Kusmasi, Ghana. “I just felt a need to visit the youth in Ghana,” she said. “I went to volunteer at the school while the kids were on recess, and they were so excited when I taught them how to do ‘ring around a rosie, a pocket full of posies.’ I was in the center of the kids. It was a wonderful experience because we laughed and played just as if I had known them forever. I guess I am just a magnet for the kids,” she laughed. Angela L. Dixon is is the owner of the Law Office of Angela L. Dixon, PLLC and a member of The Houston Lawyer Editorial Board.
Mike Rutledge
Mr. Baseball [Scholarship]
By Mark Schuck y day, Mike Rutledge is a partner in the tax section of Locke Lord Bissell & Liddell LLP, where he handles tax matters for clients involved in mergers and acquisitions and in IRS controversies. He also serves as the deputy managing partner of the firm’s Houston office. By night, by weekend, and during much of his other non-work time, Mike is heavily involved in Houston Kyle Chapman Baseball. This is especially so
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in the summer when he estimates he spends 25 percent of his time managing and administering Houston KC Baseball. Time well spent considering the over 400 Houston KC Baseball participants who have earned baseball scholarships for college. Mike founded Houston KC Baseball in 1988. Initially, it was a league formed so that his stepson and other high school kids in the southwest Houston area would have a fall and summer league in which to play when they were not playing high school baseball. The league is named after a former Harris County Commissioner who set aside the land for the fields on which the teams play most of their games. Mike says that “fairly quickly after the formation of the league, college baseball coaches started coming by to watch games.” Since then, Mike has developed many college coaching contacts, especially at Rice and the University of Houston. Houston KC Baseball has developed into a select competitive league in which high level high school players from around the Houston area play, frequently in front of Division I college coaches and professional scouts. Mike, however, is not as concerned about the professional side of baseball. The mission statement of Houston KC Baseball is to “provide unique opportunities for outstanding high school baseball players in the Greater Houston Area to develop and showcase their skills” so that these players can “enhance the opportunity to obtain baseball scholarships to fund their college educations.” Judging by the 400plus former players who have received some portion of a college scholarship, of which 217 have signed with Division I college teams, Houston KC Baseball is very much accomplishing its mission. Mike says that his involvement in Houston KC Baseball “is my community service.” There are also ten to twelve other individuals who volunteer their time to the organization. The focus of Houston KC Baseball is selecting quality young men who are also serious about
playing baseball in college. “Good education is key in this life,” says Mike. He stresses to his players that very few of them will ever earn money playing baseball, and this is why “education comes first.” The reason that select teams and leagues like Houston KC Baseball are so important for high school players is that college coaches do not have time to attend many high school baseball games during the season because the coaches have their own college teams’ games to attend. Furthermore, Mike explains that attending a game between two high schools, where two or three potential college players might be on the field is not as efficient as attending a matchup of two select teams where 16 or 17 of the players might have legitimate Division I aspirations. Mike acknowledges that many of the former Kyle Chapman standouts would have obtained scholarships without Houston KC Baseball, but the blue-chip prospects enhance everyone else’s opportunities. Mike says that you want a “Jose Cruz, Jr. [a former Houston KC player] on your team, because coaches and scouts who are there to see him will then have an opportunity to see you.” Increased exposure to these coaches leads to increased chances that a player will land a scholarship. Mike also credits the success of the past participants for building Houston KC Baseball’s reputation. College coaches now know that players in this league are worth watching. Recently the Houston Athletic Committee, host of the Houston Baseball Dinner each year, named Mike the recipient of the Allen Russell Distinguished Achievement Award for 2010. Based on the success of Houston KC Baseball and Mike’s self-described passion for the game and playing it the right way, it is easy to see why he received it. Mark Schuck runs The Schuck Law Firm where he focuses on business and employment litigation. He is a member of The Houston Lawyer editorial board.
Y. Ping Sun
Shining Community Volunteer
By Christopher D. Porter hile driving to an event one evening in 2004, Y. Ping Sun gazed out over the Houston skyline and said to her husband, “This is home.” Given that the couple had only recently moved to Houston from New York City after Ping’s husband, David Leebron, accepted the position to become the seventh president of Rice University, this was a major declaration. In the short time they had been in Houston, Ping felt the openness, diversity, and energy that the city exuded. She was excited by the possibilities Houston presented, and the genuine commitment of its citizens to make the city a better place through service. Ping shares in this commitment, and it is something that she practices on a daily basis. It is difficult to describe a “typical” day for Ping, because she is involved in such a vast array of activities and organizations. Her day may begin by dropping her children, Daniel and Merissa, off at school, before heading to the law firm Yetter Coleman LLP, where she is of counsel, and then on to host guests at Wiess House, the Rice University president’s residence, for lunch. After lunch, she will have a full afternoon that can include meetings for some of the boards on which she sits, including the Texas Children’s Hospital and the Asia Society Texas Center, and then on to an event at the Baker Institute, where she serves as an Honorary Chair for the
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Roundtable, or to a student event at Rice. She may then go to meet with children in an underprivileged school, where she discusses the importance of education, and lets them know that through hard work, they can become anything they choose. Afterwards, she heads home so that she can spend time with her children while they do their homework and have dinner, and then it is off to a gala event such as the Texas China Leadership Gala where she is honored for her work with Rice University and the City of Houston. While a schedule such as this may seem overwhelming to some, Ping manages it with remarkable ease. When asked if she had any complaints about the many demands on her time, Ping could not think of any. Well, that’s not entirely true, because she does complain that “there are only 24 hours in a day.” To find the root of Ping’s deep-seated commitment to community, one need only look to her childhood. Growing up in Tianjin, China, a city on the outskirts of Beijing, Ping observed firsthand her grandmother’s active involvement in the local community. Ping viewed her grandmother as her personal hero, and she learned from her the importance of service and helping to make the community in which you live a better one. Ping took these lessons to heart, and has carried them with her throughout her life. Ping came to the United States after earning a full scholarship to Princeton, where she was involved in community activities including international student organizations and Student Health Aid. Ping also worked jobs in the library and the cafeteria to help make ends meet. With her heavy course load, jobs, and extracurricular activities, Ping described her time at Princeton as a juggling act. But she managed to find ways to make it work. Indeed, when writing her thesis, Ping would arrive so early to the Woodrow Wilson School to use its computers that the building would be closed. Ping, not easily deterred, was able to receive a key to the building so that she could continue her early mornings in order to fit everything into her
busy schedule. After graduating from Princeton with honors, Ping attended Columbia University Law School. She went on to practice international transactional law in New York, and in 2004, Ping and her family moved to Houston. Since her arrival, Ping has been actively engaged in a number of community organizations. With her commitment to children and education, Ping serves on the board of trustees for the Texas Children’s Hospital, the board for St. John’s School, the Houston regional board of Teach For America, the advisory board at Rice’s Shepherd School of Music and the Kinder Institute for Urban Research, and the board of the United Way of Greater Houston. Ping also has an interest in fostering and maintaining strong ties between Houston and Asia, which has led to her serving on the board of the Asia Society Texas Center, the advisory board of the Asian Chamber of Commerce, and the advisory board of the Chinese Community Center, as well as being named to the Mayor’s International Trade and Development Counsel for Asia/Australia. Ping’s passion for Rice University and the City of Houston is demonstrated through her many activities as a Rice University Representative, and through her service on the honorary board of Houston Greeters. Although Ping herself will not talk about all that she does for the community, her service has not gone unnoticed. Ping was invited by Judge Keith Ellison to address nearly 1,400 new citizens in 2008 at a naturalization ceremony; was one of three recipients for the 2009 Arrival Awards from the University of Houston Center’s Immigration Clinic; named one of the 50 Most Influential Women of 2010 by Houston Women Magazine; named one of the 2010 Ten Women on the Move by Texas Executive Women; honored, along with her husband, as the 2010 International Executive of the Year; honored, along with her husband, by Teach For America for their educational efforts for children in low-income schools; and the recipient of the 2010 Texas China Leadthehoustonlawyer.com
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ership Award. Recently, Ping received the Asia Society Texas Center’s Asian American Leadership Award at the 2011 Tiger Ball. And touching upon her lighter side, Ping was elected Rice’s Homecoming Queen by students in 2005. With all of her accolades, Ping continues to serve Houston with her trademark grace, modesty, and good humor. She is passionate in her spirit of service and works diligently toward the causes in which she believes. The early lessons Ping learned from her grandmother have stayed with her. She works to make every community in which she is a member a better place and encourages others to do so as well. Since 2004, Ping has shared her grandmother’s lessons on service with a community that she and her family soon came to call home. Houston could not be more pleased. Christopher D. Porter is an associate at Yetter Coleman LLP where his practice focuses on complex commercial litigation.
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Clark Thompson
Breaking the Cycle of Poverty
By Caroline Pace lark Thompson, a transactional attorney and partner at Bracewell & Giuliani LLP, freely gives his time, effort and talent to the operation, management, and growth of Yellowstone Academy. Not wanting to overshadow the institution he serves, the thoroughly humble and private Thompson deflected the personal spotlight by discussing the school to which he has so generously devoted himself. Since its inception in 2002, Yellowstone
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has exclusively served children who live under the most extremely impoverished circumstances. The median annual income of families whose children are served is $8,088. Thompson explains that by combating the circumstances that perpetuate poverty with educational, spiritual, social and practical resources, Yellowstone empowers children to transcend their circumstances and break the cycle of poverty. Yellowstone is a faith-based, non-denominational Christian school that does not accept state or federal funds. It endeavors to create an edifying and nurturing environment which fosters excitement for learning for the 320 children who attend pre-school through seventh grade. An eighth (and final) grade will be added next year, bringing the total number of students at Yellowstone to 352. One key to the academy’s operational success and continued growth is a multitude of volunteers who, like Thompson, use their professional expertise in areas such as contract negotiation and project financing to serve Yellowstone.
Another factor in Yellowstone’s vitality is its year-round commitment to fundraising. In the fall, Thompson and his wife, Anne, chaired an event that introduced community members to Yellowstone and the achievements made by its students that raised almost a quarter of the school’s annual operating budget. The school also sponsored a golf tournament in May. Serving on the Board of Directors since the inception of Yellowstone, Thompson provides the following insight about the challenges Yellowstone faces and the vision it has of its future: “Having the opportunity to be involved at Yellowstone Academy has been a huge blessing to me and to my family. Many doubt that kids who come from extreme poverty and highly atrisk circumstances can make it in today’s world. But Yellowstone is proving that it is making a huge difference in the lives of its students.” Caroline C. Pace is an attorney with Kane Russell Coleman & Logan PC and a member of The Houston Lawyer editorial board.
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Firm
commitments
For many Houston law offices, volunteering is part of the culture. By getting involved in volunteerism efforts, they help provide a strong and positive foundation for our community’s future leaders. The Houston Lawyer presents a look at how three Houston law firms have developed successful programs, both large and small, that have great impact.
The Andrews Kurth Jonathan Day Scholarships for Debate By Elizabeth A. Campbell
Students participate in the 2011 HUDL Varsity Finals in the Andrews Kurth City Championship on February 26. HUDL board members are seated, from left: Charlie Chafer, secretary and president-elect; Elizabeth Campbell, president; and U.S. Fifth Circuit Judge Jennifer Elrod. Andrews Kurth Of Counsel Jonathan Day, for whom the scholarship is named, is seated on the right.
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he year was 2007. Houston’s once thriving high school policy debate community had fallen on tough times, but was the focus of opportunity for the National Association for Urban Debate Leagues in Chicago. Enter Houston lawyers and former debaters Barbara Radnofsky and Ron Bankston, who co-authored a compelling op-ed piece in the Houston Chronicle in December 2007 advocating the need to restore policy debate programs in Houston’s public high schools. The issue was joined. Radnofsky and Bankston quickly formed an influential assembly of former debaters, including U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Marvin Isgur,
Texas State Rep. Sylvester Turner, attorney Kevin Dubose, aerospace executive Charlie Chafer, University of Houston Prof. Margaret Tellegen, Kinkaid Debate Coach Eric Emerson, and Andrews Kurth partners Griffin Vincent and Gene Locke. Under the guidance of the National Association for Urban Debate Leagues, this group and other committed professionals and community leaders helped form the Houston Urban Debate League (HUDL). With a clear mission—restoration of policy debate to Houston’s public high schools—HUDL won the support of the Board of Trustees of the Houston Independent School District, and policy debate emerged as an activity in 15 high schools for the 2008-2009 school year. Even though I had never participated in debate, Vincent convinced me to join the effort. The rationale: HUDL promotes diversity in the legal profession. My role at Andrews Kurth is to develop and implement the firm’s strategic plan as it relates to diversity and inclusion, broadly defined. Components of my work include marketing, branding, recruitment, and community relations. From a recruitment standpoint, my involvement is not only with traditional law school recruitment and lateral attorney hiring, but also with talent pipeline development. Increasing the diversity of the legal profession requires us to take a long-term approach and to examine opportunities to encourage more people of color and people from economically disadvantaged backgrounds—historically under-represented populations in the legal profession—to pursue careers in the law. Given the ethnic diversity of HISD’s high schools and the economic demographics of its student population, HUDL can promote the restoration of policy debate and at the same time enhance the diversity of the pipeline of collegebound students. Through policy debate, students learn advanced research techniques, practice their analytical abilities, and hone effective communication skills. These are the very skills that form the
basis for the development of successful business professionals, community leaders, and top-notch lawyers. Houston Welcomes HUDL With a highly-supportive and active Advisory Council, and a financial endowment of $25,000 from then Mayor Bill White, HUDL attracted approximately 200 students to participate in debate tournaments during HUDL’s first year, culminating in the inaugural Andrews Kurth City Championship in March 2009. The members of the tournament’s top two teams, Westbury High School and Reagan Senior High School, received the first Andrews Kurth Jonathan Day Scholarships: $2,500 each to the two members of the first-place Westbury team and $1,250 each to the two members of the secondplace Reagan team. In naming these scholarships after Jonathan Day, Andrews Kurth recognized Day’s long-time commitment to the Houston community. Day has worked with several local non-profit boards and his other recognitions include the 2008 Lifetime Achievement Award from the University of Texas Law School Alumni Association and a 2009 DiversityFIRST Award from the Texas Diversity Council. Day is a champion of diversity, and it is most fitting that successful high-school debaters will earn scholarships bearing his name. HUDL’s second year expanded the reach of the program to approximately 800 students. The 2009-2010 recipients of the Andrews Kurth Jonathan Day scholarships in March 2010 were members of the first-place team from Westbury High School and the second-place team from North Houston Early College High School. HUDL Continues to Grow The support for and recognition of high school debate in Houston continues to grow. Now completing its third academic year, close to 900 Houston public high school students have participated in HUDL-sponsored debate activities. With
HISD’s backing, debate programs are now in 28 high schools, supported by debate course curriculum, honors class opportunities, and seminars. The program depends on legions of dedicated teachers, coaches, parents, and volunteers to be successful. HUDL’s program operations at HISD are managed by League Director Bryan Weber and Deputy League Director Justin Whyte. Weber and Whyte are responsible for overseeing the HISD infrastructure necessary for these policy debate programs -- from classroom curriculum, to identifying available research materials, to managing volunteers and judges, to tournament transportation logistics. In just three years, HUDL has become the second largest and fastest growing urban debate league in the country. This year, the top two teams from the Andrews Kurth City Championship in February 2011, and winners of the Jonathan Day Scholarships, were the firstplace team from North Houston Early College High School and the second-place team from Yates High School. To date, Andrews Kurth Jonathan Day Scholarships totaling $22,500 have been awarded to 12 HISD high school students. The scholarships fund the post-high school studies of the winning students, who hopefully will pursue successful careers, including lawrelated professions. Debate Develops Good Students and Good Advocates The Jonathan Day Scholarship winners also have the opportunity to compete on a bigger stage. Each year, Houston’s top two debate teams advance to compete with other urban debate teams from around the country in the National Urban Debate Championships, held in Chicago in 2009 and in New York City in 2010 and 2011. For some of the HUDL students, these trips represent their first plane ride or even their first trip outside of the state of Texas. In this manner, debate is expanding their horizons. Research data from the National Association for Urban Debate Leagues, thehoustonlawyer.com
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supported by HUDL’s own data from its Houston students, demonstrate the positive impact that participation in policy debate has on academic performance. For students participating in high school debate, drop-out rates are lower, while grades, attendance, graduation rates, and college matriculation rates are higher. It is no wonder that an August 27, 2008 Houston Chronicle editorial referred to debate as the “smart sport.” Call to Action The award of the Andrews Kurth Jonathan Day Scholarship and the underlying policy debate competition create a unique and timely opportunity for the legal community of Houston. There are many organizations today focused on increasing the diversity of the legal profession—the Leadership Council on Legal Diversity, the Council of Legal Education Opportunity, Just the Beginning Foundation, and the Sponsors for Educational Opportunity, to name just a few. However, in the Houston Urban Debate League, we have
the present ability to favorably influence the lives of Houston’s public high school students. Not all of HUDL’s debaters will go on to become lawyers, but virtually all of them will exceed many of their peers and graduate from high school to become leaders and advocates in our community. Many will go on to post-secondary education and some will join us as members of the bar. With the help of scholarships like ours, and those awarded by Houston’s Young Lawyers Association, these students have an enhanced opportunity to continue their education and to become successful professionals, grounded with the skills developed through advocacy and debate. And maybe one student, or more than one, will follow in the footsteps of perhaps Houston’s most famous high school debater, the Honorable Barbara Jordan. To learn more about the National Association for Urban Debate Leagues, please visit: www.urbandebateleague. org. To learn more about the Hous-
ton Urban Debate League, please visit: www.houstonurbandebate.org. Elizabeth A. Campbell is a partner and the Chief Diversity Officer for Houstonbased Andrews Kurth LLP, where her full-time function is the development and implementation of the firm’s diversity and inclusion strategy. An employment lawyer and human resources professional by background, Elizabeth is a frequent speaker, CLE and training facilitator, and author on diversity-related topics. In February 2011 she became president of the Houston Urban Debate League Board of Directors.
The Bracewell & Giuliani LSAT Prep Program By Tamara Stiner Toomer
The LSAT prep program is sponsored by Bracewell & Giuliani’s Associate Inclusion Committee
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s part of its diversity efforts, Bracewell & Giuliani LLP partners with Princeton Review to offer eight scholarships to ethnically and racially diverse undergraduate students interested in attending law school. The scholarship covers the costs for each student to take a LSAT preparatory course, worth approximately $1,500. The idea for the LSAT prep program was the brainchild of Bracewell’s Associate Inclusion Committee. The firm’s goal was to broaden its diversity efforts by creating a pipeline of minority candidates. Instead of solely focusing on students at the law school level, Bracewell & Giuliani decided to target students early in the process when they form an interest
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in law as a career. For these reasons, the firm required students to be 18 months away from earning their undergraduate degree. When Bracewell & Giuliani began the LSAT prep program four years ago, only undergraduate students from Texas schools were allowed to apply, and only five scholarships were awarded. Since its inception, the program has grown in popularity and success and has expanded to include all areas where the firm has offices—Texas, New York, District of Columbia, Connecticut, and Washington. As a result, Bracewell & Giuliani’s LSAT Prep Program organizers say they have seen an increase in the pool of ethnically and racially diverse attorney candidates. The LSAT prep program started as an idea from a firm committee and has grown into a template for how the firm creates its footprint in the community. Tamara Stiner Toomer practices with the firm of Watt Beckworth and is an associate editor of The Houston Lawyer.
The Gardere Martin Luther King Jr. Oratory Competition By John S. Gray
2011 MLK Oratory Competition winner Morgan Hunter with Gardere partner Stephen Moll.
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t has become an annual tradition in Houston that hundreds of fourth and fifth grade students compete in an oratory competition, giving three to five
minute speeches incorporating ideals from Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s writings, speeches and other records about his life and dreams. Contestants answer the competition’s theme question, which addresses how Dr. King inspires them and how his words can motivate the community as a whole. Each year, the finals are held in January in the beautiful and historic downtown Antioch Missionary Baptist Church, a perfect venue in which to showcase some of the brightest young minds in Houston. Anyone who has seen snippets of the speeches on local television will attest to the incredible poise and confidence of these young participants standing on a stage in front of the packed church giving their speeches like seasoned professionals. While all due praise goes to the contestants, as well as their parents and teachers, this annual competition would not have begun without the dream of one man and without the continued hard work and commitment of many HBA members and their staff at the law
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firm Gardere Wynne Sewell. The Annual Gardere MLK Jr. Oratory Competition, which will soon celebrate its 20th anniversary, is now a well-established event in which students from 24 HISD schools write speeches and participate at in-school competitions with the hopes of being one of the final 24 selected to advance to the preliminary competition. The Preliminary Competition is held the week before the finals and reduces the 24 school representatives to 12 finalists. The final competition is the Friday before MLK Day. As recognition for all their hard work, the 12 finalists receive savings bonds and a participation plaque, and all participating schools receive a book on civil rights for their libraries. Starting Small This past year, more than 100 Gardere attorneys and staff volunteered to make the program a success and without these volunteers, the event would not be possible. But, like many events of its kind,
whether sponsored by Gardere, other Houston law firms or the HBA, the MLK Jr. Oratory Competition had humble beginnings. It was established in Dallas in the early 1990s by Donald C. McCleary, Gardere’s former managing partner, as a vehicle to encourage everyone in the firm to get involved in the community in a spirit of learning and celebration. The program was expanded to Houston in 1997. The competition was also a means to highlight the cultural diversity of our community while at the same time recognizing and encouraging the writing and speaking skills of elementary school students. It did not start with the full participation of the local school district and dozens of schools. Like most programs of this nature, it began as a much smaller and more manageable endeavor in school class rooms and in Gardere’s offices. When Gardere held the first Oratory Competition in Houston, only three schools participated and the final competition took place in one of the law
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firm’s conference rooms. The competition was a success, however, because the students, parents, teachers and schools found value in the competition format, and the firm and its members found great value in being part of helping children find their voice. It became a vehicle to teach not only about Dr. King’s life, speeches and dreams, but also about writing and presentation skills. Slowly, the competition grew as other Houston schools and the HISD embraced the event. As the event grew, it became clear that a more fitting venue was needed for the final competition, and the Antioch Missionary Baptist Church agreed to partner with Gardere by hosting the final competition each year. Coordination is Key A law firm cannot manage and coordinate an event such as the MLK Jr. Oratory Competition without the hard work and dedication of both its attorneys and staff. The firm must coordinate with the schools, its teachers and the school administration as well as schedule the volunteer judges. To keep the competition fresh and engaging Gardere changes the theme on which the students speak yearly, and to allow adequate time for the teachers to create their lesson plans, Gardere provides the theme to the participating schools shortly after the school year begins. The theme for the 2011 competition was: “How will you carry forward the legacy of Dr. King in your personal and professional life?” Some previous themes have included: • “What will I be able to achieve in my life because of what Dr. King achieved in his?” • “If you could share your dream with Dr. King what would it be?” • “If Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. were alive today, what would he say about where we are?” • “How is the Dream of Martin Luther King Jr. meaningful in today’s world?” The in-school competitions are judged by Gardere attorneys and staff members
who volunteer throughout October, and preliminary competition winners are selected by judging panels consisting of both Gardere attorneys and school district members in early January. The top 12 students then advance to the final competition where they are judged by a panel of local judges, community and business leaders on their delivery, stage presence and decorum, content, and memorization. Every student that participated in the competition is invited to watch the final competition with a catered lunch before returning to their schools. With incredible poise and confidence, these young orators talk about the many lessons learned from Dr. King and how they could apply those lessons on injustice and inequality and apply them to their own lives and to building a better future for themselves and their communities. The 2011 winner in Houston was Morgan Hunter, a fifth-grader at Dodson Elementary School. Ten-yearold Morgan, an aspiring physician, won
first place by sharing her ambition to become a “change agent” by following in the footsteps of the late civil rights leader. She challenged the audience to “…glance past the outward appearance and see [people] just like you and I,” and then offered her audience a “prescription,” just as “Dr. King gave the world a prescription for injustice, [which] was the legacy of his dream.” Morgan’s prescription included a “daily dose of hope to ease heartaches…a tablespoon full of faith…and a drop of compassion as needed to help cure community.” Through this volunteerism effort, Gardere is helping children to learn about and to gain an understanding about the realities of Dr. King’s fight and the past injustices and inequities he sought to right. Their belief in his movement, coupled with their strong ambition, arms them with the strength to help solve tomorrow’s problems. The competition’s organizers say it is the hope of every Gardere volunteer that, as a result of the oratory competition, these young
students will embrace the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and recognize his continued influence on our culture, society and the political landscape. John S. Gray is a partner at Gardere Wynne Sewell and editor in chief of The Houston Lawyer.
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Compiled by Tara Shockley
HBA Nominees
Three Houston Bar Association nominees have been selected as the recipients of statewide awards for excellence in providing pro bono legal services by the State Bar of Texas and its Legal Services to the Poor in Civil Matters Committee. The awards were scheduled for presentation during the State Bar Annual Meeting June 23 in San Antonio.
Take Top Honors in State Bar Pro Bono Awards
The Houston Bar Association’s Houston Volunteer Lawyers Program is the recipient of the Pro Bono Award; Fulbright & Jaworski L.L.P. is the recipient of the W. Frank Newton Award; and Ellyn Josef of Vinson & Elkins is the recipient of the Pro Bono Coordinators Award. The 2011 awards were based on services provided during 2010. Pro Bono Award
HBA’s Houston Volunteer Lawyers Program
Jon Rice, left, and Brent Benoit offer advice and counsel at a veterans’ legal clinic in February.
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he Pro Bono Award honors a volunteer attorney organization that has made outstanding contribu-
tions toward guaranteeing access to the legal system by the poor. The Houston Volunteer Lawyers Program was established by the Houston Bar Association in 1981 with a mission to provide pro bono representation through volunteer attorneys to indigent and low income residents of Harris County. HVLP provides an important link between the applicant seeking legal assistance and the volunteer providing pro bono services. During 2010, HVLP dramatically increased the number of low-income men, women and children who benefited from its services within the Harris County area. HVLP screened a total of 24,852 requests for assistance. Volunteer attorneys donated 17,832 hours of their time and accepted 1,956 pro bono cases. Using $200 per hour as the base rate, volunteers provided legal services valued at $3,566,400. HVLP also closed 14,664 cases in 2010, in which applicants either qualified for ongoing representation or received advice and counsel. HVLP has traditionally accepted and referred to volunteers cases in a variety of practice areas including family law (divorce and child custody); property law (landlord/tenant, foreclosures, title and homestead taxation); consumer law (bankruptcy, contracts and credit, insurance matters, and collections and repossessions); tort law that is not fee generating; probate law (wills, probate, and guardianships); and IRS tax controversies and U.S. Tax Court representation. HVLP also has the following special projects: • Legal Advice Clinics • Courthouse Information Booth • Drive Time Clinics • Veteran’s Clinics • Wills and Estate Planning • AIDS Project/Disability Unit • Low Income Taxpayer Clinic • Bankruptcy Program • Community Development Program The Veterans Legal Initiative was established in 2006 and expanded in 2008 by then HBA president, Travis Sales, to include weekly legal clinics at the Mi-
chael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center, monthly speakers and legal clinics at the US VETS at Midtown Terrace residential facility; quarterly speakers and legal clinics at the DeGeorge at Union Station residential facility; legal advice booths at stand downs and other venues that serve veterans, and two annual Saturday legal clinics at VFW and American Legion posts. The program was a model for the successful statewide Texas Lawyers for Texas Veterans program established by 2010-2011 State Bar president, Terry Tottenham. In 2010, the Veterans Legal Initiative served 1,411 veterans with assistance from 395 volunteer attorneys. The program also for the first time provided wills for 90 active Marine Reservists about to be deployed overseas from Ellington Field. During 2010, HVLP also diversified its program to bring legal services to Houston’s large Asian-American community through Vietnamese and Chinese legal advice clinics. In September, HVLP celebrated the first anniversary of its merger with the Southeast Texas Legal Clinic, which enabled it to expand its Disability Unit capacity to include 39 legal advice clinics at Houston area health clinics and AIDS service organizations. The Family Law Courthouse Information Booth, which is staffed by an attorney and a program assistant, helped 7,597 pro se litigants in filing family law cases such as divorce and child custody matters and motions to modify. While assisting a record number of clients in 2010, HVLP was dealing with one of the biggest challenges of its 29-year history. On the evening of August 30, 2010, a fire on the 27th floor of its downtown offices caused extensive damage to HVLP’s suite. The server room, which housed the primary server hub and computer equipment, was destroyed, and both floors suffered extensive fire, smoke and water damage. Beginning the day after the fire, HVLP resumed serving clients through a secondary office outside downtown and deployed legal teams to community centers through-
out the city to ensure that services were not interrupted. The organization made its final move back to the downtown offices in March 2011. Thanks to planning and procedures by HVLP’s board and management, and the commitment of its volunteers and staff, the organization continued to serve its pro bono clients during a difficult period.
The W. Frank Newton Award
Fulbright & Jaworski L.L.P
Layne Kruse, left, accepts Fulbright’s 11th award for outstanding service to the HBA’s Houston Volunteer Lawyers Program from 2010 Houston Bar Foundation chair, Rocky Robinson.
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ach year, Fulbright & Jaworski attorneys contribute tens of thousands of hours of pro bono service to a variety of activities, including active representation of those who are unable to pay for legal services, as well as legal assistance for charitable non-profit organizations and community development organizations. The firm continues a long tradition of fulfilling public service and pro bono responsibilities. Statewide in 2010, the firm accepted 141 cases from the HBA’s Houston Volunteer Lawyers Program, as well as cases from the Dallas Volunteer Attorney Program, the Austin Bar Association program, the Volunteer Legal Services of Central Texas, and the San Antonio Bar Association Pro Bono Project. There were 494 Fulbright attorneys who participated in pro bono activities, representing 92 percent of the firm’s attorneys statewide. In addition, 223 non-attorney volunteers participated in pro bono activities, not
including the secretarial and legal assistant services provided on pro bono cases handled by the firm. The firm staffed three Saturday Legal Advice Clinics for the HBA’s Houston Volunteer Lawyers Program, assisted with the Day of Giving Saturday Veterans Legal Advice Clinic, and assisted with a Saturday Will Clinic for active duty reservists about to be deployed from Ellington Field in Houston. In Dallas, Fulbright & Jaworski founded and staffed for the first 12 months the Dallas Veterans’ Assistance Clinic. In all of its Texas offices, the firm has handled a number of “unaccompanied abandoned immigrant minor” cases, successfully assisting these children with INS and immigrant status representation. In Houston, the firm conducts a monthly program to educate detained immigrant children about their rights. And, the firm regularly assists Catholic Charities by serving as attorney ad litems for immigrant children. The kinds of pro bono cases the firm handles involve civil matters for organizations, criminal court-appointed cases, civil court-appointed cases, death penalty appointments, legal services for the poor, legal matters for churches and synagogues, work for organizations that provide services to the poor, as well as non-profit pro bono work for organizations. Those organizations have included Texas Special Olympics, Gospel Rescue Mission, trademark work for Language Arts Enterprises, Pine Cove Camps, the Roman Catholic Diocese in several cities, Public Education Legal Services Project, Bedrock Foundation, the Zoological Society of Houston, District of Columbia Social Services Commission, American Friends of Rabin Medical Center, Brian Kelly Foundation, YMCA Refugee Project, Junior Achievement of Dallas, Montgomery Hospice Society, People’s Health Clinic, Reading to Learn and Thurgood Marshall Academy, among many others. Historically, the firm had pro bono policies in place long before they were popular. In the early 1980s, James B. thehoustonlawyer.com
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Sales, one of the firm’s farsighted partners, saw the desirability of bringing pro bono programs back under the umbrella of a non-profit foundation, as had been done earlier by the Houston Legal Foundation in the 1960s and 1970s, to great national acclaim, rather than having that work continue on an individual and ad hoc basis. Under Sales’ leadership, the Houston Bar Foundation was established, and he served as its first chair. The Foundation provides major funding for the Houston Volunteer Lawyers Program (which Sales also was instrumental in establishing in 1980), as well as the Juvenile Justice Mock Trial Program, support for training that benefits the administration of justice, and support for community service and educational projects of the Houston Bar Association Auxiliary. In 2004, Fulbright’s Jim Sales was named chair of the Texas Access to Justice Commission, with the mission of developing and implementing initiatives designed to expand access to, and enhance the quality of, justice in civil legal matters for low-income Texans. Sales was instrumental in a statewide planning process for the delivery of legal services to the poor, resulting from the Legal Services Corporation’s directive that each state receiving LSC funding must create a comprehensive, integrated delivery system of legal services to the poor. He continued in this statewide leadership role until 2009. Other Fulbright partners have assumed important leadership roles in statewide organizations that serve the less fortunate. Tom Godbold serves on the board of directors of the Texas Equal Access to Justice Foundation, the leading funding source for legal aid in Texas. Layne Kruse serves on the board of directors of Texas Appleseed, and Stewart Gagnon serves on the Texas Permanent Judicial Commission for Children and Families, which designs pro bono and grant-funded programs to assist children. As president of the State Bar of Texas this year, Terry Tottenham cre28
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ated Texas Lawyers for Texas Veterans, a statewide program to assist Texas veterans with pro bono legal services. The Houston Bar Foundation this year recognized Fulbright & Jaworski for the 11th consecutive year for Outstanding Large Firm Contributions to the Houston Volunteer Lawyers Program, an unprecedented honor. In 2008, Fulbright & Jaworski received the inaugural Harris County Bench Bar Pro Bono Award for a Large Firm. The firm’s Tax Department recently received the Pro Bono Award from the American Bar Association Tax Section for establishing and staffing a Tax Assistance Clinic. Fulbright was the first law firm to receive the recognition.
Pro Bono Coordinator Award
Ellyn Haikin Josef of Vinson & Elkins LLP
Co-chairs of the HBA’s HAY Center Task Force, from left: Lynn Kamin of Jenkins & Kamin; Greg Ulmer of Baker Hostetler; and Ellyn Josef of Vinson & Elkins with HBA president, Mark Kelly, also of Vinson & Elkins.
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llyn Josef has served as firm-wide Pro Bono Counsel for Vinson & Elkins since 2008. Her volunteers comprise approximately 700 attorneys in the firm, both domestically and internationally. She has the responsibility for managing and coordinating Vinson & Elkins’ pro bono program, including the daily coordination of all pro bono activities and committees, the substantive supervision of many pro bono matters, the development of firm-wide and local pro bono projects, the presentation of pro bono information both internally and externally, and the guidance of the
pro bono program’s strategic planning. Prior to Ellyn’s arrival as Pro Bono Counsel, the firm’s Pro Bono Committee, made up of partners from each of the firm’s offices, had oversight for the pro bono program. By hiring Ellyn, Vinson & Elkins centralized the administration and strategic planning of its pro bono program and enhanced its long-term strategies and vision, further ensuring its long-term commitment to pro bono services and increasing the efficient use of its resources. Ellyn has worked diligently to build larger and stronger human resources for the firm’s pro bono program. In order to gather as many volunteer attorneys as possible to help with community needs, Ellyn provides countless pro bono opportunities to Vinson & Elkins lawyers, in a variety of subject areas from many different providers in the community. To enhance the quality of legal service provided on pro bono matters, Ellyn continually provides live training sessions and written materials to the lawyers working on these matters, bringing in experts in different areas of law. Ellyn has created several innovative programs at V&E to meet previously unmet needs in the community: V&E/TCH Guardianship Project In 2009, Vinson & Elkins and Texas Children’s Hospital (TCH) entered into a partnership to provide lawyers to assist families in obtaining guardianship over their incapacitated adult children. In Texas, once a person reaches the age of majority at 18, that person receives all of the rights, duties and obligations of adulthood – which means that other adults cannot access that adult’s medical records, enroll that adult in school or other programming, or make any other decisions on the adult’s behalf, even when an adult is completely incapaci-
tated, physically or psychologically. In order for a parent or other caregiver to continue to provide the care and decision making necessary for their child (or grandchild, in some circumstances), they must be established as the Guardian of the Person of that incapacitated adult in a Texas Probate Court. To date, the V&E/TCH Project has handled approximately eight matters, with several more in the pipeline. V&E’s Veteran’s Initiative The firm has established its own Veterans’ Initiative to coordinate pro bono projects that assist veterans and servicemen without the financial resources to meet their legal needs. Through this program, the firm has handled cases ranging from improper denial of benefits, to efforts to take unfair financial advantage of veterans while they are deployed, to defending a Marine Corps officer in a 17 day trial in front of the first Marine Court of Inquiry in over 50 years. Under Ellyn’s leadership, the V&E Veteran’s Initiative grew from a small project conducted by a few lawyers in the Dallas and Washington, D.C. offices to a firm-wide project. In response to this growth, the firm created a 35-lawyer Veteran’s Initiative Practice Group, with Ellyn serving as administrative director, which monitors and screens incoming cases, assists in staffing the matters, and serves as an information sharing mechanism. The majority of the matters come from several legal service providers dedicated to the pro bono representation of veterans and servicemen in financial needs. In addition, Ellyn coordinates the firm’s participation in pro bono projects related to veterans that are sponsored by local bar associations. She coordinates the firm’s participation in the Houston Bar Association’s Veterans’ Legal Initiative, where V&E attorneys commit to staffing a number of the weekly Friday afternoon legal clinics at the DeBakey VA Medical Center. She also coordinates the firm’s participation in two HBA/HVLP
Saturday clinics for veterans each year, and she coordinated its participation in a wills program for active reservists at Ellington Field in September 2010. HAY Center Project In the fall of 2010, the HBA created a new task force to offer assistance to the Houston Alumni and Youth (HAY) Center, and Ellyn served as one of the first co-chairs. The HAY Center is an organization created in 1986 by the State of Texas to ensure that older youth in foster care are prepared for their inevitable departure from Family and Protective Services. The first prong of the project is offering pro bono legal assistance to youth at the HAY Center to seal or expunge their juvenile criminal records, in order to pave the way for better job opportunities or college in the future. Ellyn coordinated and hosted training for V&E and lawyers from two other firms who are assisting – Baker Hostetler LLP and Jenkins & Kamin, L.L.P. – to learn how
to represent these youth in the sealing process. She also helped coordinate an all-day seminar at the HAY Center for social workers, including training about family law, criminal law and other social issues that would impact these youth. This spring, Ellyn helped coordinate a successful drive to collect items that these youth will need when establishing their first independent home. Ellyn’s efforts have resulted in recognition of Vinson & Elkins’ pro bono program from a number of sources. In June 2009, the State Bar of Texas recognized the firm with its W. Frank Newton Award. In Houston, V&E was honored by the Houston Bar Foundation for outstanding contributions to the HBA’s Houston Volunteer Lawyers Program by a large firm for 2010, and HVLP has recognized the firm as its STAR Volunteer in the Houston Bar Bulletin several times. Tara Shockley is the communications director for the Houston Bar Association.
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Third Harris County Bench Bar Pro Bono Awards
Presented May 6
The Harris County judiciary, in conjunction with the Harris County bar, presented the third annual Harris County Bench Bar Pro Bono Awards to law firms, corporate legal departments and an individual in a special ceremony on May 6 at the Harris County Civil Courthouse. The keynote speaker was the Honorable Douglas C. Warne, retired judge of the 311th District Court and former Administrative Judge of the Harris County Family Courts. The awards program was established to recognize outstanding pro bono service through local legal service providers, and to encourage law firms, corporate legal departments and individual attorneys to volunteer direct legal services to low-income Harris County residents. A committee of eight judges and four attorneys selected the recipients in six selfnominated categories. Each year, the award winners names are featured on permanent plaques in the lobbies of the Civil Courthouse, Criminal Justice Center, Family Law Center and Juvenile Justice Center in downtown Houston. Recipients of the Third Harris County Bench Bar Pro Bono Awards are: Large Firm —Baker Botts L.L.P. Baker Botts attorneys devoted 9,891 hours to pro bono work in 2010. The firm’s service included over 2,400 hours for Houston Municipal Court’s Volunteer Prosecutor Program and more than $100,000 in pro bono legal services to The Women’s Home of Houston, an affordable housing project for women who are rebuilding their lives while earning modest incomes. Baker Botts attorneys also contributed pro bono legal services to the HBA’s Houston Volunteer Lawyers Program, Catholic Charities, Texas Accountants and Lawyers for the Arts, and the Supreme Court 30
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of Texas Pilot Pro Bono Program, among others. Mid-size Firm —King & Spalding LLP King & Spalding attorneys logged 2,202 pro bono hours in 2010. The firm’s representation included nearly 400 hours in
a child abduction case under the Hague Convention referred by the U.S. Department of State, and assistance to Catholic Charities St. Francis Cabrini Center in cases involving human trafficking, immigration, child abuse and domestic violence. King & Spalding attorneys also provide pro bono services through the HBA’s Houston Volunteer Lawyers Program, Lone Star Legal Aid and other local providers and non-profits. Small Firm —Abrams Scott & Bickley, L.L.P. Attorneys at Abrams Scott & Bickley provided over 792 hours of pro bono legal services in 2010. The firm’s attorneys represented pro bono clients in immigration cases through the American College of Trial Lawyers’ Access to Justice Committee, family law cases through the HBA’s
Houston Volunteer Lawyers Program, and disability issues through Advocacy, Inc. Large Corporation —Exxon Mobil Corporation Law Department Exxon Mobil’s law department has a long history of pro bono service, through both attorneys and support staff. Exxon Mobil attorneys accepted or closed 48 pro bono cases in 2010. In addition, Exxon Mobil volunteers provided over 400 hours to legal clinics sponsored by the HBA’s Houston Volunteer Lawyer’s Program, the HBA’s Veterans Legal Initiative, the HBA’s Consumer Law Task Force, the HBA’s Will-A-Thon, Houston Stand Down and the SEARCH Legal Clinic. Small Corporation —Rosetta Resources, Inc. Rosetta Resources is receiving the Harris County Bench Bar Pro Bono Award for a small corporation for the second consecutive year. Associate general counsel Norman Ewart provided nearly 60 hours of pro bono legal services to the Habitat for Humanity Homeowners Association, as well as provided wills and staffed legal advice clinics for the HBA’s Houston Volunteer Lawyers Program and the Association of Corporation Counsel Houston. Individual —Lan T. Nguyen Lan Nguyen was selected for the honor from among an outstanding field of individual nominees. In 2010, Lan handled 86 pro bono cases, including 75 wills and medical directives, as well as cases involving protective orders, guardianships and complicated divorces. She has provided pro bono legal services for North Oaks Baptist Church and the Watangorchum Cambodian Buddhist Temple, often serving Vietnamese-speaking pro bono clients. Her long history of pro bono service earned Ms. Nguyen the American Bar Association’s Pro Bono Publico Award in 2010.
Equal Access
Champions
What does it take to become an “Equal Access Champion”? The firms and corporations listed below have signed 5-year commitment forms that indicate they will uphold a pledge to provide representation in a certain number of cases each year, based on the number of attorneys in the firm or legal department. The goal is to provide pro bono representation in at least 1,500 cases through the Houston Volunteer Lawyers Program each year, and to increase that goal each year. For more information contact Kay Sim at (713) 759-1133.
Large Firm Champions Andrews Kurth LLP Baker Botts L.L.P. Bracewell & Giuliani LLP Fulbright & Jaworski L.L.P. Locke Lord Bissell & Liddell LLP Vinson & Elkins LLP Corporate Champions Baker Hughes Incorporated BP CenterPoint Energy, Inc. ConocoPhillips Continental Airlines, Inc. Exxon Mobil Corporation Marathon Oil Company Port of Houston Authority Rosetta Resources Inc. Shell Oil Company Intermediate Firm Champions Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP Beirne, Maynard & Parsons, L.L.P. Gardere Wynne Sewell LLP Haynes and Boone, L.L.P. King & Spalding LLP Thompson & Knight LLP Mid-Size Firm Champions Adams & Reese LLP Baker & Hostetler LLP Chamberlain, Hrdlicka, White, Williams & Martin Greenberg Traurig, LLP Jackson Walker L.L.P. Jones Day Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP
Porter & Hedges, L.L.P. Strasburger & Price, L.L.P. Susman Godfrey LLP Weil, Gotshal & Manges Winstead PC Small Firm Champions Abraham, Watkins, Nichols, Sorrels, Agosto & Friend Beck, Redden & Secrest, L.L.P. Gibbs & Bruns LLP Hays, McConn, Rice & Pickering, P.C. Hughes Watters Askanase LLP Johnson DeLuca Kennedy & Kurisky, P.C. Kroger | Burrus Schwartz, Junell, Greenberg & Oathout, L.L.P Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP Weycer, Kaplan, Pulaski & Zuber, P.C. Yetter Warden & Coleman LLP Boutique Firm Champions Abrams Scott & Bickley, L.L.P. Coane & Associates Connelly • Baker • Wotring LLP Edison, McDowell & Hetherington LLP Fullenweider Wilhite PC Funderburk & Funderburk, L.L.P. Hicks Thomas LLP Jenkins & Kamin, L.L.P. Ogden, Gibson, Broocks, Longoria & Hall, L.L.P. Squire, Sanders & Dempsey L.L.P. Strong Pipkin Bissell & Ledyard, L.L.P. Wilson, Cribbs & Goren, P.C.
Solo Champions Law Office of O. Elaine Archie Basilio & Associates, PLLC Peter J. Bennett Law Office of Fran Brochstein Law Office of Barbara Calderon Law Office of Robbie Gail Charette De la Rosa & Chaumette Law Office of Papa M. Dieye Frye & Cantu, PLLC Fuqua & Associates Terry L. Hart Law Office of David S. Hsu Law Office of James and Stagg, PLLC Katine & Nechman L.L.P. The Keaton Law Firm, PLLC Gregory S. Lindley Law Office of Maria S. Lowry Martin R. G. Marasigan Law Offices The Law Office of Evangeline Mitchell, PLLC Morley & Morley, P.C. Bertrand C. Moser Pilgrim Law Office Robert E. Price W. Thomas (Tommy) Proctor Law Offices of Judy Ritts Cindi L. Robison Scardino & Fazel Shortt & Nguyen, P.C. Sadler Law Firm Jeff Skarda Teal & Associates Tindall & England, P.C. Diane C. Treich Norma Levine Trusch
By Keri D. Brown
Houston Pro Bono Joint Initiative:
Bringing Law Firms and In-House Counsel Together to Serve Houston’s Pro Bono Needs
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everal years ago, two Houston attorneys, Sylvia Mayer, a partner with Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP (Weil), and Charles Kelley, a partner with Mayer Brown LLP (Mayer Brown), launched the Houston Pro Bono Network (HPBN), which is an informal network of attorneys in private practice in Houston focused on expanding the pro bono base in Houston. HPBN meets on a quarterly basis for informal dialog about pro bono (challenges, successes and opportunities) and periodic CLE programs. Mayer was prompted to form HPBN following discussions with Miriam Buhl, Weil’s Pro Bono Counsel. Buhl, in turn, proposed the idea to Mayer following her discussions with Marc Kadish, Mayer Brown’s Director of Pro Bono, about pro bono networks in various jurisdictions around the U.S. Buhl had spearheaded the formation of similar networks in other cities. Mayer embraced the idea and recruited Kelley to co-chair the group. At one of the early meetings of HPBN, discussions turned to working with inhouse counsel to further expand pro bono support in Houston. Various ideas were explored, but ultimately, the concept crystallized one day in 2008 while Mayer had lunch with Peggy Montgomery, who was, at the time, a practicing attorney and pro bono leader at Exxon Mobil. (Montgomery recently retired from Exxon Mobil) With her broad base of in-house contacts, Montgomery offered to work with Mayer to reach out
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to those involved in pro bono. From that, the Houston Pro Bono Joint Initiative (HPBJI) was born. Put simply, the goal of HPBJI is to bring together people who are involved in pro bono and offer CLE and round table discussions, with the ultimate goal of better serving the pro bono needs of the greater Houston area. Focus then turned to recruiting participants to form a coordinating committee for HPBJI. Response was positive and, in early 2009, a Coordinating Committee was formed including representatives from Halliburton (Ivett Hughes), Marathon Oil (Karen Lukin), Exxon Mobil (initially Peggy Montgomery and now Susan Sanchez), BP (originally Laney Vasquez and now Mike Rigo), Weil (Sylvia Mayer), Mayer Brown (Charles Kelley), Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP (Christian Callens), Cozen O’Conner (Patrick Cohoon), and Baker Botts L.L.P (Rob Fowler). The HPBJI Coordinating Committee divided into three subcommittees to focus on developing HPBJI’s aspirations, programming and participants. After several months of planning, the HPBJI was formally launched in December 2009. HPBJI works toward its goal by offering seminars, presentations, and round tables to any lawyer participants who want to attend. The meetings generally occur four times a year. Once the Coordinating Committee has selected a topic for a program, HPBJI recruits speakers to address the topic, organizes and pub-
licizes the event, and endeavors to offer pro bono opportunities on that topic at the conclusion of each meeting. At its inaugural event in December 2009, Esther Lardent from the Pro Bono Institute (PBI) presented a CLE program on in-house pro bono programs and partnering on pro bono between private practice attorneys and in-house counsel. PBI’s participation was made possible as a result of a donation to PBI by Scott Atlas of proceeds from an award recognizing his long term commitment to exemplary pro bono service. Since the initial meeting, HPBJI has held quarterly meetings highlighting topics that include: • Pro bono wills and estate planning (January 2010), featuring Mary Galligan, a private practice attorney specializing in this area, as well as representatives from the Houston Bar Association (HBA) and the HBA’s Houston Volunteer Lawyers Program (HVLP) • Pro bono forum (April 2010), which was a round table where participants discussed how to develop pro bono participation within their organizations and the Houston community • Pro bono start-up nonprofit seminar (June 2010), featuring Jody Blazek, a well-known non-profit entity lawyer and author; and a presenter from Texas Accountants and Lawyers for the Arts (TALA) • In a joint program with HPBN, a panel presentation by local and na-
tional legal service organizations (September 2010), including presenters from the American Civil Liberties Union, Anti-Defamation League, Cathedral Justice Project, HBA, Innocence Project, Justice for Children, Kids in Need of Defense (“KIND”), Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, ProBar, Tahirih Justice Center, TALA, Texas Appleseed, Texas C BAR, and the YMCA • A “how to” for family law (December 2010), featuring Judy Ritts, an experienced family law practitioner • Assisting low-income taxpayers & microentrepreneurs (February 2011), featuring speakers from HVLP and Texas C-BAR’s LAMP Program • Pro bono immigration issues (April 2011), featuring speakers from Catholic Charities and KIND HPBJI’s next meeting is September 15, 2011. The September meeting will feature a round-table discussion regarding the development, maintenance, expansion, and support of pro bono programs, including ethical issues. The final meeting of 2011, tentatively scheduled for December 7, will focus on consumer law issues. With its programming up and running, HPBJI is now working on expanding its coordinating committee. Mayer is hoping to bring in one or two more in-house counsel, along with a private practice representative. Lawyers from all areas of practice are always invited to attend the meetings, and HPBJI offers free lunch and free CLE. The meeting locations rotate among the Coordinating Committee members’ offices. If you would like more information about HPBJI or would like to receive information about future events, you can find HPBJI on LinkedIn or contact one of the Coordinating Committee members: • Ivett Hughes: ivett.hughes@halliburton.com
christian.callens@skadden.com • Patrick Cohoon: pcohoon@cozen.com • Rob Fowler: rob.fowler@bakerbotts.com.
• Karen Lukin: kblukin@marathonoil.com • Susan Sanchez: susan.b.sanchez@exxonmobil.com • Mike Rigo: michael.rigo@bp.com • Sylvia Mayer: sylvia.mayer@weil.com • Elizabeth Berry: elizabeth.berry@weil.com • Charles Kelley: ckelley@mayerbrownrowe.com • Christian Callens:
Keri D. Brown is an associate in the private clients section of Baker Botts L.L.P., where she serves on the firm’s Houston pro bono committee. She is also the Legal Trends Editor of The Houston Lawyer.
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May/June 2011
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26th John J. Eikenburg Law Week Fun Run Raises Over $60,000 for The Center
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he 26th John J. Eikenburg Law Week Fun Run, held March 26th in Sam Houston Park, raised nearly $60,776 for The Center, a nonprofit agency that provides opportunities that promote individual choice, personal growth and community involvement for persons with mental retardation and those needing similar services, so they may reach their maximum potential. This event brings the total to nearly $929,400 in contributions to The Center over the life of the race. Over 900 walkers and runners participated in the event. Named after the late former HBA president who founded the race in 1985, the John J. Eikenburg Law Week Fun Run is truly a team effort that involves many months of plan-
Members of the Eikenburg family come out each year to support the race.
Overall Female Finisher Amanda Barth and Overall Male Finisher William Blancett with HBA President Mark Kelly. 34
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ning and coordination. Race directors were Danielle Harsany of Thompson, Coe, Cousins & Irons, LLP and John Spiller of Strasburger & Price LLP. The 2010-2011 Fun Run Committee included: George H. Arnold, Eduardo Aviles, Evelin Yaribel Bailey, Sherry L. Bankhead, Peter Bennett, Hon. Jeff Brown, Keri D. Brown, Debra S. Collins, Tonja De Sloover, Madison Finch, Gregory M. Hasley, Jennifer A. Hasley, Robert Jacobson, Simon Mayer, Scott Michelman, Joshua Nix, Andrew Pearce, Kara Stauffer Philbin, Miles Sasser, John Shepperd, Iain Simpson, Tom Stilwell, Ryan Tarkington, Wesley Ward, MaLinda Edwards Watson and Mark Wege. Photos by Anthony Rathbun. To see all Fun Run photos, see the link on the HBA website, www.hba.org.
HBA President Mark Kelly presents the President’s Trophy for the fastest all-lawyer team from a law firm to Zach Thomas and John Spiller of Strasburger & Price LLP. Team member Trent Stephens is not pictured.
Medals were awarded to all participants in the onemile childrens’ run.
Fun Run Committee Race Directors Danielle Harsany and John Spiller.
Platinum Sponsor South Texas College of Law Gold Sponsors Baker Botts L.L.P. Exxon Mobil Corporation Fulbright & Jaworski L.L.P. Vinson & Elkins LLP Silver Sponsors Abraham, Watkins, Nichols, Sorrels, Agosto & Friend Amicus Search Group Bertini & Associates BoyarMiller PC Copy One Source De la Rosa & Chaumette Doug & Hon. Jane Bland Doyle & Raizner, LLP Ellison & Keller, P.C. Fizer, Beck, Webster, Bently & Scroggins, P.C. Fulkerson, Feder, Lucero & Wollam, L.L.P. Houston Bar Association Auxiliary Hughes Watters Askanase Johnson, Trent, West & Taylor, L.L.P. King & Spalding LLP Legal Directories Publishing Co. Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP Shannon, Gracey, Ratliff & Miller, LLP Shook, Hardy & Bacon LLP Smith, Murdaugh, Little & Bonham L.L.P. Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP Tejas Toyota Thompson, Coe, Cousins & Irons, LLP Westside Lexus Bronze Sponsors Todd Lonergan Norman Roser 26 for 26 Those listed below comprise a special category of contributors who registered at least 26 people for the 26th John J. Eikenburg Law Week Fun Run. Joey de la Cerda Jennifer Hasley Kay Sim
OTHER IMPORTANT SUPPORTERS Printing of Race Brochures RR Donnelly of Houston Security Constable Jack Abercia and the staff from Precinct 1 Master of Ceremonies Lee Jolly
Runners take off in the 8K race
Refreshments Faust Distributing Houston Coca-Cola MMM Cupcake Phoenicia Specialty Foods Watermill Express Grand Prize Golden Nugget, Las Vegas Door Prizes Alden Houston Hotel Barri Solo Beauty by Irma BRC Gastropub Cactus Music Carmelo’s Ristorante Chuy’s Restaurant Comedy Sportz Damian’s Cucina Italiana Hilton Americas Houston Hotel House of Blues Houston Astros Houston Marriott Energy Corridor Hotel Houston Symphony Houston Zoo JonesMcClure Publishing Landry’s Lucky Strike Main Street Theater Massage Envy MD Anderson Cancer Center Children’s Art Project Messina Hof Winery & Resort Pappas Restaurants Saint Arnold Brewing Company Sprinkles Cupcakes The Center The Grove Restaurant Treebeard’s Tri-on-the-Run Water 2 Wine
Lee Jolly volunteers his time every year to emcee the Fun Run.
The top three finishers in the Male 65-69 Age Group.
Margaret Montgomery, top finisher in the Female 70-79 Age Group, and Rosa Herst, second place finisher in the Female 65-69 Age Group.
Twin sisters participate in the one-mile children’s run. thehoustonlawyer.com
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Law Week Celebrates Legacy of John Adams
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n 1958, President Dwight Eisenhower proclaimed the first Law Day, May 1, as “a day of national dedication to the principle of government under law.” Since then, the American Bar Association has established an annual theme for Law Day and encouraged bar associations and other organizations across the nation to develop programs that educate people about the importance of the rule of law. The Houston Bar Association celebrates “Law Week,” since it plans programs that span more than one day. The theme for Law Day 2011 was “The Legacy of John Adams, from Boston to Guantanamo.” The theme was designed to highlight the nation’s first lawyer president and to foster understanding of the historical and contemporary role of lawyers in de-
fending the principle of due process and the rights of the accused. Each year the HBA Law Week Committee plans numerous educational and public service events that celebrate Law Day and its theme. The HBA Law Week Committee was co-chaired by Justice Kem Frost of the 14th Court of Appeals and Laura Gibson of Ogden, Gibson, Broocks, Longoria & Hall. Committee members were Michael Alexander, Anita Barksdale, Bret Bosker, James Patrick Cohoon, Amy Craft, Ephraim del Pozo, Lena Liddell Engel, Michelle Fraga, Angela Garcia, Kenneth Krock, Mary Markantonis, Anita Mayur, Tracy Penn, Brendetta Scott, Deshonda Charles Tackett, Travis Torrence, Anastassios Triantaphyllis and Marlen Whitley.
Naturalization Ceremony Nearly 2,000 new citizens were naturalized at a Law Day ceremony on March 23 at M.O. Campbell Center. U.S. District Judge Vanessa Gilmore presided and HBA President Mark Kelly welcomed the new citizens. A number of members of the Armed Forces became naturalized citizens during the ceremony.
HYLA Law Day Luncheon The HBA recognized the winners of its Law Week Poster, Essay and Video Contests at the Houston Young Lawyers Association Law Day Luncheon on April 27. Pictured at top are winners in the poster and essay contests with contest sponsors Jo Simmons and Blake Pratz of UBS. Directly above are winners in the high school video contest with contest sponsor Frank Hinnant of Innovative Legal Solutions and HBA President Mark Kelly. 36
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Texas Supreme Court Justice Eva Guzman was the keynote speaker for the HYLA Law Day Luncheon.
The HYLA recognized several people for outstanding service to the community and the profession. From left, HYLA Law Day Chair Colleen Cockrum; HBA Law Week Co-chair Justice Kem Frost; HYLA President Courtney Palm,; HYLA Outstanding Young Lawyer Tanya Garrison; Liberty Bell Award winner Andrea Schmauss of Mothers Against Drunk Driving; and Outstanding Mentor, Dean T. Gerald Treece of South Texas Collage of Law.
Jury Service To commemorate Law Day, on May 2 District Clerk Chris Daniels, Administrative Judge Joseph J. “Tad” Halbach, Jr., and HBA President Mark Kelly distributed copies of the Constitution to everyone who reported for afternoon jury duty at the Harris County Jury Assembly Room.
HBA volunteers read the book, Ordinary Mary’s Extraordinary Deed, to 194 classes in 98 elementary schools throughout the area, then donated the books to the schools.
Anita Mayur reads to students at Scroggins Elementary School.
Travis Torrence with students at Felix Cook Elementary School.
Benny Agosto with a student at Brill Elementary School.
Brent Benoit reads to students at Genoa Elementary School.
Pattie Chapman reads to students at Kujawa Elementary School. thehoustonlawyer.com
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Dialogues The HBA sponsored “Dialogues on Law” in five high schools in the Houston area. Teams of attorneys and judges gave interactive presentations on the Law Day theme. Judge Josefina Rendon, pictured here, talks with students at Mt. Carmel High School.
Poster Workshops The Law Week Committee once again partnered with the Mexican American Bar Association of Houston and the Hispanic Bar Association to sponsor a Law Day Poster Workshop for students in the East End, with volunteers from the legal community working with elementary and middle school students to create posters on the Law Day theme.
The Law Week Committee this year partnered with the Houston Lawyers Association to add a Law Day Poster Workshop for elementary and middle school students in the Third Ward. Pictured here, from left, Ron Haggerty, chair of the HLA Poster Workshop Project; Texas Supreme Court Justice Dale Wainwright, who spoke to the students during lunch; HBA Law Week Committee Cochairs Laura Gibson and Justice Kem Frost; and Harrison Gregg, president of the Houston Lawyers Association.
First Place: Houston Bar Association Law Day Essay Contest
The Legacy of John Adams, from Boston to Guantanamo By Victor Lam, Cypress Lakes High School
As the young lawyer strolled along the snow-covered sidewalk, he found the only place he could receive solace and the only place that inspired him. He put his hand on the cold, nearly frozen handle and forced it to turn. Shards of ice cracked and attacked his face like a woodpecker drilling away at a tree. He pulled the heavy wooden door and felt a gust of warm air suddenly melting all the snow near the entrance. He could only stare in amazement at the rows of antique benches from which screams of “Guilty!” echoed from the opinionated and patriotic mouths of the American colonists. Past the thick forest of benches and chaos of the spectators stood two sturdy desks used by the defense, led by John Adams, and prosecution, led by Samuel Quincy and Robert Paine. As the lawyer placed his hand on the desk of the defense, a vision came to his mind. The floor turned into stone and was suddenly dyed a deep blood red as a thin smoke filled the air. The sound of muskets firing broke the silence of March 5, 1770 and the screams of terror could be heard for miles. The symphony of gunfire ended as the audience of smoke cleared, revealing the blood soaked bodies of the victims of the performance. The conductor and his virtuoso stood there with their instruments still aimed at where the crowd was. A young messenger dashed from the side of the redcoats and disappeared into the cobblestone streets of Boston as he left a trail of blood in what used to be untouched snow. As the lawyer followed the trail, he heard panting and a knock. An imposing figure answered the door. The young messenger, gasping for air, whispered into the ear of John Adams, “The redcoats opened fire on protestors in the square. Captain Preston requests a defense attorney for his trial.” John Adams did not answer. There was a spark in his eye as he looked at the messenger and gave a simple nod. The lawyer was ripped away from the moment and brought to the day of the fateful trial, October 30, 1770. Captain Preston, proudly wearing his army uniform, stands proudly in the center of the courtroom as he awaits his fate. The judge, perched high on the lookout where he hunts criminals, reads the verdict: “Captain Thomas Preston is hereby acquit38
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ted of all charges. There is no evidence of any command to fire given to his soldiers.” When the trial began nearly a week before the final verdict, justice was deafened by the partisan screams of the patriots while truth was buried in the snow by opinion and inference. In the end, the truth found justice with the help of John Adams, preventing the execution of Preston and revealing the full truth. Then, the lawyer was thrown further into the future, to December 14. Six soldiers stood on the hardwood floor. However, not all were declared innocent. Two soldiers were charged with manslaughter, but justice was still protected. When the patriots nearly ripped the blindfold from the eyes of justice, John Adams defended it. Colonists had entered the court with assumptions about Preston and his troops, but John Adams cleared their names. As the trial came to a close and Lady Justice became closer to Sir Truth, the story was complete. The lawyer felt the force of gravity as he was thrust back to his own time. His hand still lay on the antique table. He felt refreshed and inspired. As he looked up, he found that only five minutes have passed. He left the sanctuary as he prepares for his next trial. The calm forests of Massachusetts transformed into a predominantly grey skyline of New York City. On his way to the courthouse, he drove past the Ground Zero. The sight of the rubble gave him chills, but he saw an American flag in the distance as the taxi continued to the courthouse. Even though he was defending a terrorist, the lawyer knew what he had to do. His client was involved in the September 11 attack, but should still be tried under the ideals of the Founding Fathers. He took a step many lawyers have taken before. At this point, many lawyers had to make a difficult decision. However, his choice was clear. He remembered what the colors on the flag stood for. The red stripes stood for hardiness, valor, strength, and bravery, while white represented peace and honesty. Blue stood for vigilance, perseverance, justice, truth, and loyalty. The lawyer was willing to protect what the flag stood for. Even though his client was unpopular in the eyes of Americans, he still had to promote justice and reveal the truth.
at the bar
Judicial Investiture
10 Ways the HBA serves you. • Meet your MCLE requirements through 80+ hours of FREE CLE and 120+ hours of discounted online CLE programming each year
The Hon. Joseph A. (Tad) Halbach, judge of the 333rd District Court and Administrative Judge for Harris County, administered the oath of office to the Hon. Ken Wise as judge of the 334th District Court on April 21. He was joined by his daughter, Sarah Jane, and his mother, Jane Wise.
Judicial Portraits
• Support your profession and community • Professional networking opportunities. • Get to know the local judiciary • Pro Bono opportunities • Stay current on legal issues, educational programs and events through HBA publications
A special ceremony on March 31 honored the unveiling of the portraits of six former judges of the 308th Family District Court. The judges honored were the Hon. J.W. Mills (1953-1970); the Hon. Wells Stewart (1969-1981); the Hon. Manuel Leal (1982); the Hon. Robert W. Robertson (1983-1994); the Hon. Robert A. Hinojosa (1994); and the Hon. Georgia Dempster (1995-2010).
• Learn to lead through committee participation • Gain the right tools for your practice through Section membership • Opportunities to participate in over 35 community programs • Partnership discounts at local venues and vendors
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Enhance your practice Try the HBA advantage. thehoustonlawyer.com
May/June 2011
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A Profile
in professionalism
A
Marie R. Yeates Partner and Appellate Practice Group Leader Vinson & Elkins LLP
The Houston Lawyer
lawyer’s relationship with his client should be characterized not only by honesty and loyalty, but also by the lawyer’s commitment to excellence in the work that the lawyer performs. As to his fellow members of the bar, the hallmarks of the lawyer’s relationships should be cooperation, courtesy, and respect, within the bounds of zealous representation of the lawyer’s client. But professionalism goes beyond the lawyer’s relationships with his clients and colleagues. We all practice law within a larger community whose view of the
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legal profession we can impact. When we as lawyers – individually, with our law firms, or with other organizations, like the HBA – give back to the community, we enhance the stature of our profession in the eyes of the public who count on the legal system to protect and serve them. At the end of the day, it is lawyers, in their roles as counselors, advocates, and judges that make our legal system work. In a lawyer’s relationship with the courts, professionalism demands his diligence, candor, and a recognition of the role that we as lawyers play in maintaining a society of law, not men.
COMMITTEE SPOTLIGHT
HBA Fee Dispute Committee Offers Positive Experience for Both Sides By Judy L. Ney
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he HBA Fee Dispute Committee utilizes panels of attorneys and lay persons to arbitrate any disagreement between a client or former client and an attorney concerning the fee paid for legal services. The committee also arbitrates any disagreement between two or more attorneys concerning division of fees. The Fee Dispute Committee can help in any situation where there is an expressed or implied contract establishing an attorney-client relationship. This bar year there are 31 attorney members and 15 lay members on the Committee. The Committee is always looking for additional members, especially public members. Ruth Piller of Hays, McConn, Rice & Pickering, P.C. and Dinesh Singhal of Floyd, Kirby & Singhal serve as co-chairs of the HBA Fee Dispute Committee for 2010-2011. “This committee is one of the ‘best kept secrets’ of the HBA,” Piller said, emphasizing that the committee hopes more people will take advantage of the services offered by the Fee Dispute Committee. As an aid to the public, this free process eliminates the need for the petitioner to hire another attorney to settle a fee dispute, of any amount. Both sides have to agree to use the process, out of which comes binding arbitration. The dispute is heard before a diverse panel of two attorneys and one lay person, from which an opinion is issued. Confidentiality of all matters is strictly adhered to, says Piller,
and both sides usually come away satisfied with the results. Here are types of fee disputes that can be submitted to the HBA committee: Client/Attorney Fee Disputes — The FDC arbitrates any disagreement between a client or former client and attorney concerning the fee paid, charged or claimed for legal services where there is an expressed or implied contract establishing an attorney-client relationship. Attorney/Attorney Fee Disputes — The FDC arbitrates any disagreement between two or more attorneys concerning division of fees. The FDC does not resolve: • Disputes where the client has a pending lawsuit or counterclaim for damages against the attorney based upon alleged malpractice or professional misconduct. • Disputes where the client has a pending grievance with any state or local Grievance Committee against the attorney based upon alleged professional misconduct. • Disputes where the request for arbitration is filed more than four years after the attorney-client relationship has been terminated or more than four years after the final billing has been received by the client, whichever is later. • Disputes where the attorney is also
admitted to practice in another jurisdiction, the lawyer maintains no office in Texas, and no portion of the legal services was rendered in Texas. • Disputes where entitlement to and the amount of the fees and/or costs charged or paid to a lawyer by the client or on the client’s behalf have been determined by court order, rule, or decision. How does someone submit a fee dispute for resolution by the Fee Dispute Committee? • A client or former client with a fee dispute involving an attorney may contact the HBA and request forms to initiate the fee dispute process. • Any attorney may request forms to initiate the fee dispute process. • Any judge may order participation of parties involved in a fee dispute with an attorney by forwarding a copy of the order to the HBA. For general questions about the Fee Dispute Committee, please call the HBA at 713-759-1133. Information and forms to initiate the fee dispute process may also be downloaded from the HBA’s web site at www. hba.org. Judy Ney is a member of the editorial board of The Houston Lawyer. She is an administrative law judge for the State of Texas with the Texas Department of Insurance, Division of Workers’ Compensation. thehoustonlawyer.com
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Media Reviews
Scorpions: The Battles and Triumphs of FDR’s Great Supreme Court Justices By Noah Feldman Twelve Publishing, 2010 528 pp., $30
The Houston Lawyer
S
Reviewed by Julie Barry corpions, recognized and feared for their grasping front claws and their venomous backend stingers, is hardly a flattering caricature to bestow upon four noteworthy Supreme Court Justices. Yet, by the end of Noah Feldman’s book so entitled, it is hard to envision a more appropriate metaphor for the author’s subjects. The Justices in Feldman’s book are, of course, Hugo Black, Felix Frankfurter, William O. Douglas and Robert Jackson, four of the nine justices Franklin Roosevelt would nominate to the Court during his twelve years as President. While each one of the Justices covered by Noah Feldman’s Scorpions merits a treatise unto his own, the author seems drawn to bringing the four together by the many paradoxes their intertwined lives present. At the outset of their tenures on the Supreme Court, no four men could have been more united in their common purpose of promoting Roosevelt’s New Deal legislation. By the time Brown v. Board of Education was unanimously decided by the Court in 1954, their views on the role of the Supreme Court could not have been more divergent. In contrast to the Ivy League, privileged-class President who appointed them, each man came from humble beginnings and struggled to achieve their successes. Despite this commonality, the four men came from very different backgrounds. Hugo Black came to the Court 42
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as a high-ranking senator from Alabama, who had not held any previous judiciary positions, and early in his political career joined the Ku Klux Klan to get elected. Felix Frankfurter, whose family emigrated to the U.S. from Austria when he was 12, was 5’ 5”, Jewish and spoke with an accent. He worked his way through Harvard Law School and became its first Jewish professor. William O. Douglas, who overcame an impoverished and tragic childhood, worked his way cross-country from Washington State to New York, eventually graduating from Columbia Law School. He was introduced to Roosevelt by Joseph Kennedy, Sr., for whom he worked at the time as a Commissioner on the newly formed SEC. For Douglas, the Supreme Court nomination was just another line on his resume in his pursuit of the Presidency. Robert Jackson, who was from Upstate New York, never went to law school, wound up in Washington D.C. working first for the Bureau of Internal Revenue, then as one of Roosevelt’s most important New Deal advisers, rose to the positions of solicitor general and attorney general before being appointed to the Supreme Court. Franklin Delano Roosevelt was the catalyst that brought these four men together, but once on the Court, their common ground began to erode. Noah Feldman depicts their relationships as often times petty and vindictive, each bent on showing up the other, capable of wielding their scorpion claws and stingers at each other. By the end of Scorpions, despite their historic contributions to U.S. jurisprudence, none of these four men appear particularly admirable or likeable. Nevertheless, Feldman finds redemption for his subjects through their unanimous decision in
Brown v. Board of Education. For Feldman, the Brown decision also crystallizes the philosophical differences among the Justices. Hugo Black, the former Klansman, firmly believed that the Court should overturn segregation. In making his argument, he relied upon his theories of originalism to establish that the authors of the Fourteenth Amendment intended to outlaw the racial caste system embodied by segregation. “In framing segregation as a violation of the original meaning of the Constitution, Black reached the pinnacle of his constitutional achievement,” explains Feldman. Bent on proving Black wrong, Frankfurter set out to challenge Black’s constitutional theory. Yet, he was loathe to support segregation and had to reconcile his then firmly established view of “judicial restraint” with the judicial activism that was required to overturn segregation. Jackson, for his part, had developed a theory of “pragmatism” which held that the Court’s role was to balance competing interests in society. He believed that “the role of the courts was to resolve social conflict — not to cause it,” and he foresaw any attempt on the Court’s part to overturn segregation as creating social conflict on a massive scale. He rejected the argument that the Constitution, whether by historical interpretation or textualism, demanded that segregation be overturned. Instead, Jackson found that the changes that had transpired in the African-American race required an end to segregation. Douglas, who would become one of the most liberal justices ever to serve on the Supreme Court, had little interest in Brown v. Board of Education, and segregation. Feldman explains Douglas’ lack of interest on his enormous ego, his involvement at the time with the Rosenberg case, and his desire to stand alone on an issue, not be a part of a consensus. Accordingly, he cast his vote in favor of overturning segregation in Brown v. Board of Education, with very little thought to the matter.
Media Reviews
While constitutional scholars may find Scorpions lacking in depth and juridical analysis, laypersons, especially those keen on the behind the scenes drama among the Justices, will find Feldman’s book interesting and informative. Noah Feldman’s Scorpions brings into historical context the constitutional philosophies that continue to play such an important role in today’s Supreme Court decisions. More importantly, Scorpions brings to light the notion that no matter what opinions a Justice first brings to the Supreme Court, the years of wrestling with intellectual arguments and the changes that transpire in social norms over those years often result in very different philosophical outcomes by the end of a Justice’s tenure. Julie Barry is an attorney with Theodore J. Lee, focusing on U.S. and international commercial transactional law. She is a member of The Houston Lawyer editorial board.
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LEGAL TRENDS
Snyder v. Phelps: The United States Supreme Court Rules that the First Amendment Protects Public Speech that Exploits Family’s Grief
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The Houston Lawyer
By Caroline C. Pace he picketing of Mathew Snyder’s funeral is the publicity pinnacle of Westboro Baptist Church’s (“Westboro”) 20-year mission to communicate its belief that America’s tolerance for sin, specifically, its acceptance of homosexuality in the U.S. military and Catholic churches, evokes God’s wrath and condemnation. To maximize publicity for their mission, Westboro issued a press release that they would be picketing the funeral of Matthew Snyder because “God Almighty killed Lance Cpl. Snyder.” Westboro provided notice to local officials and gained approval of the picket site. The approved picket site was located on public land that was approximately 1,000 feet from the church where Matthew Snyder’s funeral was held. Thirty minutes prior to the funeral, Westboro Protestors began demonstrating and displaying signs with statements such as “Thank God for Dead Soldiers,” “Semper Fi Fags,” “Fags Doom Nations,” “Priests Rape Boys,” and “You’re Going to Hell.” While Westboro Protestors were demonstrating, the funeral procession passed within 200 to 300 feet of the picket site. The innocent target of Westboro’s mission to share its beliefs was Albert Snyder, the soldier’s father. The Westboro Protestors did not disrupt the funeral, and Albert Snyder did not see the messages that they displayed. However, Albert Snyder later viewed images of the protest broadcasted by the evening news. Subsequently, he be44
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came so besieged by those images that he suffered severe emotional distress. Albert Snyder claimed he could not separate the memory of his son from visions of the signs that he saw on the news. He brought a lawsuit against Westboro, its pastor, Fred Phelps, Sr., and the Westboro Protestors (collectively hereinafter, “Phelps”) alleging five state tort law claims, including intentional infliction of emotional distress. In response, Phelps argued that the First Amendment fully protects the protestors’ speech. A jury found against Phelps on claims for intentional infliction of emotional distress, intrusion upon seclusion, and civil conspiracy and awarded Albert Snyder $2.9 million in compensatory damages and $8 million in punitive damages, which was reduced via remittitur to $2.1 million. The Fourth Circuit reversed the trial court and held that the First Amendment protected Phelps’ speech because the statements addressed matters of public concern, were not provably false, and were expressed through hyperbolic rhetoric. As the case was appealed to the United States Supreme Court, it incited much media attention, public outcry, and legal debate. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg captured the sentiment of many when she made the following statement during oral arguments: “This is a case about exploiting a private family’s grief. Why should the First Amendment tolerate that?” On March 2, 2011, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 8-1 that the First Amendment protects from tort liability those who stage a peaceful protest on a matter of public concern near the funeral of a military service member. Snyder v. Phelps, 131 S.Ct. 1207 (2011). The Majority’s Opinion In reaching the Court’s holding, the majority discussed its precedent as it applied to the facts. For the last 20 years, the members of the Westboro Baptist Church pick-
eted almost 600 funerals, many of which were military funerals. In connection with the protest at issue, the Westboro Protestors also picketed near the Maryland State House and the United States Naval Academy. In advance of the Snyder funeral, the church told authorities their plan to protest and obeyed every order the police gave them. The protest occurred on public land next to a public street and there were 1,000 feet and several buildings separating the site and the church. The Westboro Protestors displayed their signs, sang hymns, read from the Bible, were not raucous, and did not use violence. Based on the facts and the claims alleged, the Court determined that the resolution of the matter turned on whether the speech is of public or private concern; whether the speech is inappropriate or controversial is of no moment. The Court acknowledged that the boundaries of what constitutes speech of public concern are not well established and proceeded to make the public versus private determination by examining the content, context, and form of the speech. However, in conveying its analysis, the Court primarily focused on the content and context of the speech. As to content, the Court examined the messages displayed by the Westboro Protestors and concluded that they largely related to public issues. The Court explained that very few of the messages related directly to Snyder, but that they predominantly related to public matters, such as “the political and moral conduct of the United States and its citizens, the fate of our Nation, homosexuality in the military, and scandals involving the Catholic clergy.” The Court declined to frame the context as Snyder’s funeral, but instead framed it as the public place where the Westboro Protestors staged their demonstration. Emphasizing that the protest occurred on public land next to a public street, the Court explained the fact that the protest
LEGAL TRENDS
occurred in connection with a funeral cannot by itself transform the nature of Phelps’ speech. Focusing on the funeral improperly ignores the fact that the Westboro Protestors and Snyder did not have a pre-existing relationship and the fact that the messages regarding the Catholic Church and homosexuality were not related at all to Snyder. Summarily, the Court addressed the form of the speech—how it was said—and observed that the protest was not unruly or violent, but stopped short of explaining how the form of Phelps’ speech supports a determination that it is of public concern. The Court expressed sympathy for Albert Snyder, acknowledging that Phelps’ speech was especially hurtful to him, but it ultimately emphasized precedent that has repeatedly held that the First Amendment was designed to protect public speech that is offensive, contemptuous, or disagreeable to avoid stifling public debate. Lastly, while the Court cautioned that its holding is narrow, the exact scope of the holding is unclear. The decision seems to offer broad protection for speech on matters of public concern made peacefully in a public place, even if the speech causes significant psychological and emotional injury; however, without a definition of private concern, the boundaries of what will be considered matters of public concern are unclear. Justice Alito’s Dissent Justice Alito, in his dissent, finds fault with the majority’s characterization of the content and context of the Westboro Protestors’ speech, while advocating for a funeral exception to the protections of the First Amendment. Justice Alito weighed the Westboro Protestors’ right to free speech with Albert Snyder’s right to bury his son in peace. He suggested that funerals should constitute unique events worthy of special protection against emotional assaults where the Constitution’s guarantee of free speech does
not apply. Funerals are the utmost private setting where vulnerable loved ones share memories, honor the deceased’s life, and find peace with the loss. Justice Alito observed that there are limitless venues and forums for the Westboro Protestors to express their views. But to maximize publicity, the Westboro Protestors implemented outrageous and injurious conduct that had the effect of exploiting a family’s grief. According to Justice Alito, to claim that the choice of funerals and the messages displayed were not private concerns glosses over the fact that the attack was personal, as it was directed at Matthew Snyder because he was Catholic and because he was a member of the United States military. Furthermore, the signs stating “God Hates You,” “Not Blessed Just Cursed,” and “You’re Going to Hell” did not appear to be directed at the public but were more likely directed at the deceased. Under these facts, Justice Alito would permit recovery in tort for intentional infliction of emotional distress. Funeral Buffer Zones As emotionally unsatisfying as the majority’s decision may be, it does provide assurances that the Court will not expand the First Amendment to protect emotionally harmful speech that is predominantly directed at a non-public persons or emotionally harmful speech that is staged on private property. To ensure that putative protestors do not interpret the Court’s decision as a license to
become unruly or to engage in acts that are likely to interfere with the progression of a private event, the Court emphasized that protestors are not free to demonstrate their First Amendment right in all places, at all times, and in any manner. The Court favorably cited Madsen v. Women’s Health Center, 512 U.S. 753, 768 (1994), which upheld as constitutional a local law that was content neutral and which restricted the location of abortion picketing by creating a buffer zone between the picketers and the abortion clinic entrance. By analogy, the Court suggested that content-neutral state laws providing buffer zones for funerals may be constitutional as long as the restrictions are reasonable in terms of time, place, and manner and are not so broad that they have the effect of silencing free speech. Predictably, states have responded to the public’s outrage over the Westboro Baptist Church demonstrations and have enacted laws that create such funeral buffer zones. Caroline C. Pace is an attorney at Kane Russell Coleman & Logan. Her practice areas include commercial, insurance, and intellectual property litigation. She is also a member of The Houston Lawyer Editorial Board.
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LEGAL TRENDS
The U.S. Supreme Court Rules Corporations Do Not Have “Personal Privacy” Under the FOIA
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The Houston Lawyer
By Jill Yaziji he issue in FCC v. AT&T, Inc., 562 U.S. _____ (2011) is whether the term “personal privacy” in Exemption 7(C) of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) should be interpreted to cover the privacy of artificial persons, i.e. corporations and other entities. In FCC v. AT&T, Inc., the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously held that corporations are not protected under the FOIA’s personal privacy exemption. The FOIA generally requires federal agencies to make documents available to the public upon request, subject to certain exemptions. One such exemption is §552(7) (C), which prohibits the disclosure of information “compiled for law enforcement purposes” that “could reasonably be expected to constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy.” (Emphasis added). CompTel, a trade association representing AT&T’s competitors, requested documents generated in the course of an investigation conducted by the Enforcement Bureau of the FCC into AT&T’s pricing policies. In response, the Bureau decided to withhold certain information relating to AT&T’s employees. The Bureau, however, found that disclosure of information relating to AT&T itself would be appropriate, reasoning that “businesses do not possess personal ‘privacy interests’” under Exemption 7(C).
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than just “of a person”—much as the word AT&T disagreed with the Bureau’s position “golden” in “golden boy” reflects more than and an appeal to the Third Circuit Court of a boy made of gold. The Court also adopted Appeals followed. In its brief to the Court of a broader-context reading of “personal priAppeals, AT&T argued that the word “pervacy,” in light of other exemptions under sonal” in Exemption 7(C) incorporates the the Statute. Exemption 6, for instance, restatutory definition of the word “person.” ferred to “personal privacy” in connection Since Congress defined “person” to include with “personnel and medical files.” “an individual” as well as artificial persons, The Court acknowledged that corporasuch as “partnership” or “corporation,” tions may indeed have privacy interests unthen the term “personal” should also cover der the Fourth Amendment and in double those entities. This interpretation, AT&T jeopardy contexts, noting that its ruling argued, was dictated by “basic principles is specific to whether the term “personal of grammar” that “a statute which defines privacy” in exemption 7(C) applies to cora noun has thereby defined the adjectival porations. In light of this decision, corpoform of that noun.” rations responding to FOIA’s requests may The U.S. Supreme Court disagreed: find themselves obligated to disclose the When a statute does not define a term, “we same material to third parties. give that term its ordinary meaning,” the Court wrote. “Personal” is the key term here and the statute did not define it. “AdJill Yaziji is the principal of Yaziji Law jectives typically reflect the meaning of corFirm, specializing in business litigation, responding nouns,” noted the Court, “but and a member of the Editorial Board of not always”—the difference between “corn” The Houston Lawyer. and “corny” is a case in point. Hence, we do not speak of “personal effects” or a “personal tragedy” when it comes to corporations; in fact, we often use the REFERRALS ACCEPTED word “personal” to mean “precisely the Texas is the only state that does not require opposite of businessemployers to carry state worker’s compensation related...” Further, coverage for their employees. the Court stated that We have successfully handled these cases against “’when interpretH.E.B., Kroger, Richway Transportation, ing a statute … we Memorial Hermann and many other construe language... Texas employers that are non-subscribers in light of the terms to State Workers Compensation. surrounding it.’” If your client’s employer is a “non-subscriber” and AT&T’s argument there is a serious injury caused by the employer’s treats the expression negligence, call us - we can help! “personal privacy” as only the sum of the two words. However, Thomas N. Thurlow & Associates, P.C. “personal” in a conThe Lyric Centre text of “personal pri440 Lousiana, Suite 1200, Houston, TX 77002 vacy” conveys more 713-224-6774
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• We continued to expand our reach to provide pro bono legal services to low-income Houstonians through the HVLP, including legal clinics to support the legal needs of veterans. Our veterans’ initiative served as a model for the State Bar Veterans Program this year. • The HBA CLE program, sections and committees offered over 2,000 hours of continuing legal education this year, including 469 hours of free CLE credit for members. • This list goes on and on. This year I was blessed to have a very dedicated and talented staff at the HBA, led by our executive director Kay Sim. Their efforts to coordinate my schedule and provide guidance and assistance at every turn is deeply appreciated. I also had a very supportive and active Board. You should be proud of their efforts on behalf of the HBA’s programs, sections, and committees. I can say without equivocation that I believe this year, with your help, we accomplished a lot. I want to thank each of you for entrusting me with this role. It truly was an honor and a privilege to serve you.
From the editor...
from page 8
As this is the last issue of The Houston Lawyer for which I am editor, I am taking this opportunity to thank my amazing staff of editorial board members and the following associate editors: Tamara Stiner Toomer (to whom I am passing the traditional Red Pen of Office), Keri Brown, Catherine Le, Robert W. Painter, and Don Rogers. I would also like to thank 2010-2011 HBA President T. Mark Kelly, HBA Executive Director Kay Sim and Tara Shockley, managing editor of The Houston Lawyer, for providing me with the opportunity to serve our legal community as editor and providing me with the staff and support necessary to produce six informative and useful issues that I trust reflect the interests and activities of our readership. As much as I have enjoyed leading The Houston Lawyer, I look forward to reading what our new editor, Tamara Stiner Toomer, will publish during the upcoming bar year.
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The Houston Bar Association Lawyer Placement Service will assist members by coordinating placement between attorneys and law firms. The service is available to HBA members and provides a convenient process for locating or filling positions. 1. In order to place an ad, attorneys and law firms must complete a registration record. Once registration is complete, your position wanted or available will be registered with the placement service for six months. If at the end of the six-month period you have not found or filled your position, it will be your responsibility to re-register with the service in writing. 2. If you are registered, resumes will be sent out under their assigned code numbers. Once a firm has reviewed the resumes, they are to contact the placement office with the numbers they are interested in pursuing. The placement coordinator will then contact the attorney, give him/her some background information on the inquiring firm, and the attorney will then let the coordinator know if he/she wishes personal information to be released to the firm. This process will insure maximum confidentiality and get the information to the firms and attorneys in the most expedient manner. 3. In order to promote the efficiency of the Houston Lawyer Placement Service. PLEASE NOTIFY THE PLACEMENT COORDINATOR OF ANY POSITION FOUND OR FILLED. 4. To reply for a position available, send a letter to HBA, placement coordinator at the Houston Bar Association, 1300 First City Tower, 1001 Fannin Street, Houston, Texas 77002 or e-mail Brooke Eshleman at BrookeE@hba.org. Include the code number and a resume for each position. The resume will be forwarded to the firm or company. Your resume will not be sent to your previous or current employers.
sions, employment, administrative, institutional investing or local government law. Competitive benefit package. Background checks required. 5084 Full time associate position available. 5+ years experience required. Must have commercial and personal injury background. Competitive compensation package. 5094 PROBATE LAWYER. Sugar Land estate planning/ probate firm with HoustonGalleria office seeking attorney with extensive experience in TX probate and trust administration, Form 706 preparation, estate and gift tax planning. Positions Wanted
2062 Very Experienced Trial Attorney intimately familiar with the mechanics and operaPLACEMENT DEADLINES tion of the Commercial Mort Jan. 1 Jan./Feb. Issue gage Backed Securities (CMBS) Mar. 1 March/April Issue May 1 May/June Issue industry, including the securi July 1 July/August Issue Sept. 1 Sept./Oct. Issue tization process of commercial Nov. 1 Nov./Dec. Issue loans and the duties and reIf you need information about the Lawyer Placesponsibilities of Mortgage Loan ment Service, please contact HBA, placement coordinator, at the HBA office, 713-759-1133. Originators/Depositors, Underwriters of REMIC Trusts, Positions Available Rating Agencies, Trustees, Ser5074 Insurance coverage firm vicers and Special Servicers. seeking attorneys with at least Looking for in-house position. 3 years of experience with commercial property coverage. Strong writing/litigation If you need skills required. Louisiana liinformation cense, in addition to a Texas about the license, preferred. 5076 Boutique Civil Litigation law firm specializing in complex business litigation is looking for an associate attorney with 1-3 years litigation experience and excellent research and writing skills. 5080 Houston public pension fund seeking Associate Counsel reporting to CLO. Approx. 4 yrs. experience with pen-
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