Editor’s Note: The State Bar of Texas is providing this collection of important links, blog posts, and media stories to keep its members and the public informed of the latest news and resources related to the novel coronavirus outbreak and its impact on the legal community. Important links Frequently Asked Questions — Coronavirus safety measures at … Continue Reading
The State Bar of Texas reminds the public that in many cases it is a crime in Texas for a lawyer or someone representing a lawyer to contact a person for purposes of legal representation if the person has not first requested the call or personal visit. The contact is not illegal if the attorney … Continue Reading
The Texas Supreme Court, Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, and the State Bar of Texas welcomed the state’s newest attorneys at the New Lawyer Induction Ceremony on November 18 at the Frank Erwin Center in Austin.… Continue Reading
The State Bar of Texas reminds residents that free civil legal resources are available to low-income individuals and families struggling to recover from the tornadoes and severe storms that affected 16 Texas counties on October 20. The State Bar of Texas toll-free legal hotline — 800-504-7030 — connects callers with legal aid providers in their area who … Continue Reading
The State Bar of Texas Board of Directors voted unanimously September 20 to approve Pablo Almaguer of Edinburg and Sylvia Borunda Firth of El Paso as candidates for 2020-2021 president-elect. Almaguer and Borunda Firth will appear on the ballot in April 2020 along with any certified petition candidates. There are currently no additional president-elect candidates, … Continue Reading
Kelsey Erickson, general counsel to Sen. Kirk Watson, and Katy Aldredge, capitol director for Rep. Giovanni Capriglione, are this year’s recipients of the James Madison Award presented by the Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas. Erickson and Aldredge were chosen for their efforts to create and pass legislation that makes important repairs to Texas’ open … Continue Reading
Texas RioGrande Legal Aid, the State Bar of Texas, the American Bar Association Young Lawyers Division (ABA YLD), the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and other organizations are partnering to provide legal and recovery assistance to people affected by severe storms and flooding that occurred in Cameron, Hidalgo, and Willacy counties on June 24 and … Continue Reading
Jerry C. Alexander was selected chair-elect of the State Bar of Texas Board of Directors during the board’s meeting in Georgetown on Friday. Alexander will take office during the State Bar of Texas Annual Meeting to be held June 13-14 in Austin. He will serve as chair until June 2020. Alexander is president of Passman … Continue Reading
The State Bar of Texas Board of Directors voted unanimously Friday to consent to the Commission for Lawyer Discipline’s selection of Seana Willing as the new chief disciplinary counsel. Willing served the State Commission on Judicial Conduct for 18 years —14 of those as executive director of the commission. For the past two years, Willing … Continue Reading
The State Bar of Texas Public Affairs Committee announced it is seeking submissions for the 2019 Texas Gavel Awards, which honor outstanding journalism that fosters public understanding of the legal system. Entries published or broadcast during the 2018 calendar year will be accepted for print, broadcast, and online categories until 5 p.m. March 29. There is … Continue Reading
To keep up on the latest State Bar of Texas news as well as top Texas legal news, sign up for the State Bar of Texas’ Daily News Briefing. The Daily News Briefing is a compilation of State Bar of Texas news and legal news stories culled from media across the state. The briefing is … Continue Reading
The Texas Supreme Court and State Bar of Texas welcomed newly licensed attorneys at the New Lawyer Induction ceremony November 19 at the Frank Irwin Center in Austin. Members of the Texas’ highest courts, deans from the state’s law schools, State Bar and Texas Board of Law Examiners officials, and friends and family watched as … Continue Reading
The State Bar of Texas was presented a prestigious 2018 Harrison Tweed Award on August 3 at the American Bar Association Annual Meeting in Chicago. The Harrison Tweed Award recognizes bar associations that have made extraordinary efforts to improve the availability of civil legal services or indigent defense services to people living in poverty. Named … Continue Reading
The State Bar of Texas and Texas RioGrande Legal Aid (TRLA) remind residents that free legal resources are available to low-income individuals struggling to recover from a disaster such as recent flooding that has affected Aransas, Cameron, Hidalgo, Nueces, San Patricio and Willacy counties. TRLA operates a toll-free disaster legal hotline — (866) 757-1570 — that … Continue Reading
The State Bar of Texas Board of Directors voted unanimously Wednesday to elect Ross Fischer of Austin as general counsel to the board. Fischer is an attorney with the Gober Group who specializes in legislative and campaign law, professional ethics, and government integrity matters. His clients include elected officials, candidates, trade associations, political committees, local … Continue Reading
Texas Center for Legal Ethics announced its plans for State Bar of Texas 2018 Annual Meeting where attendees can earn CLE and preview the center’s newest ethics CLE subscription-based program launching later this Fall. The subscription program aims to provide new and current TCLE members with an intuitive online resource to access continuing education courses on-demand, as … Continue Reading
Houston lawyers have elected Carmen Roe to represent them on the State Bar of Texas Board of Directors. Roe faced Courtney T. Carlson in a runoff election for the District 4, Place 5 seat on the board after none of three candidates received a majority of the vote in a general election that ended May … Continue Reading
The University of Houston Law Alumni Association honored State Bar of Texas Board of Directors Chair Rehan Alimohammad with its annual Diversity and Inclusion Award on February 17 at the association’s 42nd Annual Law Gala and Auction. Alimohammad received the award in recognition of significant achievement toward developing a more diverse and inclusive legal community. … Continue Reading
Texas attorneys will choose between Lisa Blue of Dallas and Randy Sorrels of Houston in the race for the next president-elect of the State Bar of Texas. The State Bar Board of Directors today approved their nominations as president-elect candidates during its quarterly meeting in San Antonio. Also, the Texas Young Lawyers Association recently nominated … Continue Reading
The State Bar of Texas Board of Directors voted on Friday to hire E.A. “Trey” Apffel III of League City as the next State Bar executive director. Apffel was elected with 42 votes. Another applicant received one vote. One voting member abstained. “Our search committee overwhelmingly believed Trey was the right choice for the position … Continue Reading
Editor’s Note: The State Bar of Texas is providing a daily collection of important links, blog posts, and media stories to keep its members and the public informed of the latest news and resources related to Hurricane Harvey relief and recovery efforts. Important Harvey Links If you are an attorney who has been adversely affected or … Continue Reading
The 10 members of the first cohort of the Texas Opportunity & Justice Incubator received words of support and encouragement from the Texas Supreme Court on June 13, 2017. Justice Phil Johnson spoke to the group gathered in the courtroom and reminded them of their important role in helping those who need access to justice. … Continue Reading
State Bar of Texas Executive Director Michelle Hunter announced she will retire January 26, 2018, after nearly 20 years of dedicated service to the 100,000-member organization. “Serving as executive director of the State Bar and leading our dedicated staff is a tremendous honor,” Hunter said. “I am proud of the work we have accomplished in … Continue Reading
The 35th Annual Texas Forum: Today’s Legal Practice for Attorneys and Paralegals – Faster, Better, Stronger will focus on fine-tuning the attorney/paralegal partnership. The event runs from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. March 8 at the Texas Law Center, 1414 Colorado Ave., Austin. Registration for both the live event and the webcast is underway. The … Continue Reading
