Posted inAbout The BarSpecial EventState Bar

State Bar of Texas board to meet September 29 in Fort Worth

By Lowell Brown on

The State Bar of Texas Board of Directors will hold its quarterly meeting September 29 in Fort Worth.

The meeting begins at 9 a.m. at the Omni Fort Worth Hotel (Fort Worth Ballroom 5-8) at 1300 Houston St. The meeting is open to the public and will be broadcast live on the State Bar of Texas YouTube channel.

The agenda and meeting materials are available here. Among the agenda items, the board will consider and discuss approval of candidates for 2024-2025 State Bar of Texas president-elect: Denise Scofield, of Houston, and Santos Vargas, of San Antonio.

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Posted inState Bar

State Bar accepting expressions of interest for 2024-2025 standing committees

By Will Korn on

The State Bar of Texas is accepting expressions of interest to serve on committees for the upcoming bar year, which begins June 1, 2024. The survey form to express interest is available at texasbar.com/committeeform and is due December 1. Information provided will be submitted to the president-elect for consideration. Standing committees are established by the board of directors, and members are appointed by the president-elect to consider matters of interest to the bar membership, update professional materials, recommend changes to policies and procedures, and study legal issues affecting the legal profession and the public. For the list of committees and their roles, go to texasbar.com/committees.

Posted inSponsored Content

Sponsored Content: 3 Truths About the Cloud’s Impact on Law Firm Efficiency

By Morgan Martinez, Content Manager, LawPay and MyCase on

Cloud Technology Myth-Busting

Times are a-changin’

Gmail and Google Drive. Dropbox. Amazon Web Services. Some of our most ubiquitous technology tools are cloud computing services. So it is no surprise that most lawyers are transitioning data storage and essential workflows to the cloud.

That’s music to our ears, yet some attorneys still hesitate to take the plunge. This reluctance often stems from misinformation or a lack of clarity around cloud technologies’ benefits, cost, and ease of use. Below, we’ll correct the three most common myths about cloud technologies.
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Posted inNews

Texas Latinx Judges swears in Maria Salas-Mendoza as president

By Will Korn and Eric Quitugua on

El Paso Judge Maria Salas-Mendoza has been sworn in as president and chair of the board of directors of Texas Latinx Judges, or TLJ, the organization announced in a press release. The nonpartisan, nonprofit professional association focuses on “the advancement of current and future Latinx judges” through networking opportunities, recognition of contributions to the judiciary, encouraging judicial service in the community, according to a press release.

Salas-Mendoza succeeds TLJ Past President Judge Victor Villarreal, of Laredo.

Salas-Mendoza, an El Paso native, has more than 16 years of judicial experience and has served as judge of the 120th Judicial District Court in El Paso since 2007. After graduating from Harvard, she earned her law degree from UCLA School of Law. Most recently, Salas-Mendoza served as TLJ’s president-elect last year, and as secretary the year prior. She will work together with President-elect Chief Justice Dori Contreras, of the 13th Court of Appeals, to promote TLJ’s mission and provide programs for judges and students.

“Judge Salas-Mendoza will excel in her role as president,” TLJ Immediate Past President Judge Victor Villarreal said in a press release. “Her extensive knowledge of judicial, state bar, and legal issues uniquely qualify her to strengthen TLJ’s mission and goals.”

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Posted inUncategorized

Congratulations to Chris and Jorden Spendlove, who welcome Scarlett

By Eric Quitugua on

Photo by Nimsi Williams

August 29. The Spendlove family just got bigger by exactly 7 pounds and 14 ounces. Last week a little after midnight, Geoffrey Hinkson and I received an excited text message from Chris:

“Scarlett Lin Spendlove!

Born at 7:43 pm!” Continue Reading

Posted inSponsored Content

Sponsored Content: Soaring Above the Clouds: How Flying Your Own Airplane Can Elevate Attorneys’ Productivity and Quality of Life

By Guest Blogger on

For attorneys in the bustling state of Texas, time is of the essence, and productivity is paramount. As the Lone Star State continues to thrive as a hub for various industries, legal professionals often find themselves navigating a demanding and fast-paced environment. In such a scenario, unconventional solutions are worth exploring, and one that holds promise is flying one’s own airplane. This article delves into the advantages that Texas attorneys can gain by taking to the skies and owning their aviation destiny. Continue Reading

Posted inNews

Hispanic Issues Section and Texas Access to Justice Foundation to host LAWtería virtual game night

By Will Korn on

The State Bar of Texas Hispanic Issues Section and the Texas Access to Justice Foundation, or TAJF, will host LAWtería 2023, benefiting TAJF legal aid efforts throughout Texas. The virtual game night will take place at 5:30 p.m. on September 14 via Zoom.

To participate in the event, attendees are encouraged to donate to enter the game and will receive a game card via email. The event will also feature door prizes and intermission entertainment. Donations can be made at teajf.org/donate/LawTeria.aspx.

Special guests include State Bar of Texas Past President Sylvia Borunda Firth, Chief U.S. District Judge Alia Moses, U.S. District Judge David S. Morales, 5th District Court of Appeals Justice Dennise Garcia, and Texas 1st Court of Appeals Justice Amparo Guerra.

For more information about the Texas Hispanic Issues Section, go to texashispanicissuessection.com. For more information about the TAJF, go to teajf.org.

Posted inState Bar

State Bar of Texas Executive Committee to meet September 7

By Lowell Brown on

The State Bar of Texas Executive Committee will meet at 10 a.m. CDT on September 7 at the Texas Law Center in Austin. The meeting is open to the public and will be streamed live on the State Bar of Texas YouTube page.

The agenda can be viewed here.

To sign up to speak remotely during the meeting, please email lowell.brown@texasbar.com or call 512-427-1713 or 800-204-2222 (toll free) before 5 p.m. CDT on September 6. Please provide the agenda item number you wish to speak on.

Written comments regarding agenda items must be received by 5 p.m. CDT on September 1 for timely distribution to the committee members before the meeting. Please submit written comments by email to boardofdirectors@texasbar.com and indicate the agenda item you are referring to.

Posted inAbout The BarState Bar

Denise Scofield, Santos Vargas recommended as State Bar president-elect nominees

By Lowell Brown on

The State Bar of Texas Board of Directors’ Nominations and Elections Subcommittee voted Monday to recommend the nomination of Denise Scofield, of Houston, and Santos Vargas, of San Antonio, as candidates for 2024-2025 State Bar president-elect. If the board approves their nominations, Scofield and Vargas would appear on the ballot in April 2024 along with any certified petition candidates.

Potential petition candidates can begin collecting signatures on September 1, 2023, and have until March 1, 2024, to submit their nominating petitions to the State Bar for certification. For information on how to run for president-elect, go  here.

This year, the subcommittee considered candidates from any county in the state, in compliance with State Bar rules. Click the names below to read the potential nominees’ interest letters as submitted to the Nominations and Elections Subcommittee.

Denise Scofield

Santos Vargas

Nominations and Elections is a subcommittee of the State Bar board co-chaired by Immediate Past President Laura Gibson and Immediate Past Board Chair Chad Baruch.

Posted inLaw Practice Management

State Bar of Texas offers attorneys free toolkit for succession planning

By Rebecca Johnson on

What happens when an attorney stops practicing without warning? Health issues, unexpected deaths, and other emergencies can cause attorneys to cease practicing abruptly. Recent studies undertaken by the State Bar of Texas show such instances are on the rise and can leave attorneys’ law partners, or even family members, scrambling to access client documents and close practices. Now the bar is offering a free Succession Planning Toolkit to help.

“The new Succession Planning Toolkit is a one-stop shop for attorneys to find everything they need to plan ahead and prevent their partners or loved ones from being left to handle everything if the unexpected happens,” said bar president Cindy V. Tisdale.

Succession planning was one of the top initiatives of immediate past president Laura Gibson.

“We started studying this issue back in 2018 with a succession workgroup,” she said. “By 2021, those efforts led to a new rule authorizing attorneys to voluntarily designate a custodian attorney to assist with the cessation of practice.”

Now the toolkit provides even more help with shutting down a law practice. It takes attorneys through a series of steps, beginning with designating a custodian and including managing files, closing IOLTA accounts, and more.

The toolkit was created by the State Bar of Texas’ Law Practice Management Committee and Law Practice Management Program.

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