Rocket Docket | March 2017

Rocket Docket Newsletter

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March 2017
Past Issues

Baylor Law Ranks #3 in Trial Advocacy, #51 Overall in National U.S. News Rankings

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U.S. News & World Report ranked Baylor Law’s highly respected trial advocacy program #3 in the nation. Baylor Law also ranked #51—a four spot jump from last year—among fully accredited law schools in the "Best Law Schools" category of the magazine's 2018 edition of "Best Graduate Schools."
Full Story

John and Marie Chiles Federalist Papers Lecture Series Brings Yale Law Professor Akhil Reed Amar to Baylor Law

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Through the continued generosity of John and Marie Chiles, Baylor Law School hosts an annual lecture series on the Federalist Papers, to our knowledge the only lecture series of its kind in the nation. The lectures are free and open to Baylor Law students, Baylor undergraduates, the local bar, and the public. On Feb. 17, Yale Law School Professor Akhil Reed Amar, one of America's leading Constitutional scholars, spoke on "Probing the Minds of Hamilton, Madison & Jay: The Guidance of the Federalist Papers." Full Story

Baylor Law Faculty Speak at 179th Annual Meeting of The Philosophical Society of Texas

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On Feb. 17-19, The Philosophical Society of Texas held its 179th annual meeting in Waco, Texas. Seven members of the Baylor Law School faculty led sessions on various topics including trial by jury, the status and future of legal education, capital punishment, and the judicial system administration.
Full Story

LEAD Counsel Inspires at Baylor Law's Inaugural Making a Difference Conference

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On February 17th, Baylor Law's LEAD (Leadership Engagement and Development) Counsel hosted the inaugural Making a Difference Conference at the Sheila & Walter Umphrey Law Center. The purpose of the conference was to inspire students and young lawyers to use their legal training to make meaningful contributions to their communities. Congratulations to 1L Jenny Forgey for establishing LEAD Counsel and the inaugural conference and for all of the students who helped orchestrate a successful event! Full Story

Speakers for the Inaugural Conference Included:

Senator Kirk Watson
State of Texas Senator, Senate District 14

Congressman Chet Edwards
Former U.S. Congressman, House of Representatives District 17

Mayor Ken Shetter
Mayor, City of Burleson, Texas

Councilman Dillon Meek
Council Member, Waco City Council

Joe B. Allen
Attorney and Lobbyist (retired)

Bill Miller
Lobbyist, HillCo Partners

Brad Toben
Dean, Baylor Law School

Leah Teague
Associate Dean, Baylor Law School

Ashley Allison
Director, Waco Foundation

Berkley Knas
Baylor Law Alumni Relations and Waco Community Leader

Abby Griffith
Baylor Law student and Founder, Golden Door Foundation

Baylor Law School Hosts 12th Annual People's Law School

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On Feb. 11, Baylor Law School hosted the 12th annual People's Law School, which offered a half-day curriculum of courses designed to educate laypersons about their legal rights and to give "user friendly" overviews of several areas of the law. Full Story

New courses this year included:

  • A Behind the Scenes Look at Jury Selection
  • Taxation for the Self-Employed
  • The Legislative Process: Statutes, Rules, and Executive Orders

A special thank you to Professor Pat Wilson for leading the People's Law School for the past 12 years!

Baylor Law Students Go Undefeated to Advance to the National Trial Competition

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Under the leadership of Coach Robert Little, JD '05, Baylor Law student teams BB Sanford & Keshav Nair and Chris Arnell & Marcus Fifer competed in the National Trial Competition Regional in Dallas, TX, Feb. 3-5. Sanford and Nair remained undefeated over the weekend and advanced to the National Trial Competition. Arnell and Fifer, who were competing in their first law school mock trial competition, advanced to the quarter finals. Full Story

Kathryn Boatman, JD '08, Named ABA Outstanding Young Lawyer

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Kathryn Boatman, JD '08, of Andrews Kurth Kenyon's Houston office, has received the American Bar Association Young Lawyers Division's Wm. Reece Smith Jr. National Outstanding Young Lawyer Award. Full Story

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Details to come. Questions? Contact Berkley_Knas@baylor.edu

SUBMISSIONS WANTED!
Are you a Baylor Lawyer married to a Baylor Lawyer?
If so send us your story for consideration in a future issue of Docket Call or Rocket Docket.

Please send a short paragraph and include fun details such as when you met; how you met; when you got married; what it was like going through law school together (if applicable); if you were PC partners; what it's like having two Baylor Lawyers under the same roof; funny law school/PC stories, etc. Please include if you have children (and if they graduated from Baylor Law) as well as brief details about your careers. Please include any pictures from your law school days, wedding, family photos, etc. that you would like considered for publication.

For submissions and questions, please contact Berkley_Knas@baylor.edu.
Submissions must be received by May 1, 2017.

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Blizzard & Nabers LLP (Houston, TX )

Burdett, Morgan, Williamson & Boykin, L.L.P. (Amarillo, TX)

Byrd Davis Furman & Alden, LLP (Austin, TX)

Chamberlain, Hrdlicka, White, Williams and Aughtry (Houston, TX)

Collin County Criminal District Attorney (McKinney, TX)

Cotton Bledsoe Tighe & Dawson, PC (Midland, TX)

Dallas County Public Defender's Office (Dallas, Texas)

Davis, Gerald & Cremer, P.C. (Midland, TX)

Engvall & Lopez, L.L.P. (Houston, TX)

Federal Aviation Administration (Fort Worth, TX)

Fizer Beck Webster Bentley & Scroggins, A Professional Corporation (Houston, TX)
Foster, LLP (Austin, TX)

Glenn Rogers, PLLC (Austin, Texas)

Hedrick Kring, PLLC (Dallas TX)

Law Office of M. Bryon Barnhill, PLLC (Harker Heights, TX)

Lugenbuhl, Wheaton, Peck, Rankin & Hubbard (Houston, TX)

Milam County & District Attorney's Office (Cameron, TX)

Padfield & Stout LLP (Fort Worth, TX)

Patterson & Sheridan LLP (Houston, TX )

Pirkey Barber PLLC (Austin)

Rainey & Rainey, Attorneys at Law, LP (Waco, TX)

Reed Claymon Meeker & Hargett (Austin, TX)

Sharon M. Ramage PC (Frisco, Texas)


Sico, Hoelscher, Harris & Braugh, LLP

Slater & Matsil, L.L.P. (Dallas, TX)

State Counsel for Offenders (TDCJ) (Huntsville, TX)

Steele Law Group, PLLC (Houston, TX)

Texas Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners (Austin, TX)

The Stafford Davis Firm, PC (Tyler, TX)

United States Marine Corps (Fort Worth, TX)

Vidaurri Lyde Rodriguez and Haynes, L.L.P. (Edinburg, TX)

Weisbart Springer Hayes (Austin, TX)

Winstead PC (Austin, TX)

XTO Energy Inc. (Fort Worth, TX)

Zinda Law Group, PLLC (Austin, TX)

The Baylor Law Career Development Office appreciates the employers who participated in Spring On-Campus Interviews. If you are interested in participating in Fall On-Campus Interviews, please register online or contact Daniel Hare at Daniel_Hare@baylor.edu.


Alumni NOTES
Alumni Notes are published based on the information we receive from our alumni.
If you have been recognized or have other professional news to share, please e-mail Berkley_Knas@baylor.edu, for inclusion in the next issue of Rocket Docket.

Hon. Steve Ables, JD '73, was reappointed by Gov. Abbott as the regional presiding judge of the 6th Judicial Region of Texas. The 6th Region is comprised of 27 counties stretching from Kendall County to El Paso County.
David C. Kent, JD '78, of Drinker Biddle in Dallas, co-chaired the Dallas Bar Association's (DBA) Equal Access to Justice Campaign, the DBA's largest fundraiser. The campaign raised a record $1.1 million. . . Read More
Keith Calcote, JD '81, was named associate general counsel and head of litigation for Motiva Enterprises LLC, a downstream joint venture between Shell and Saudi Aramco with an annual gross revenue of $50 billion in sales of refined products.
Greg White, JD '82, legal writing lecturer at Baylor Law, was selected as a 2017 Texas Super Lawyer for appellate law.
Thomas Klein, JD '84, was re-elected as managing partner of Bowman and Brooke's Phoenix office. Klein has more than 25 years of experience defending product manufacturers in complex product liability litigation, dealer and distributor termination litigation, and toxic tort litigation.
Debbi Goertz, JD '93, was appointed to the Bluebonnet Electric Cooperative's Board of Directors, where she will fill the vacant District 3 seat representing Bastrop County.
Laura Hilton Hallmon, JD '99, of Cantey Hanger LLP, in Fort Worth, was elected to the firm's equity partnership. Laura's practice focuses upon litigation of a variety. . . Read More
John LeJeune, JD '02, of the Zimmerman Law Firm in Waco, was presented with the 2016 Baylor Law School Veterans Clinic Advocate of the Year award. . . Read More
Mitchell Murphy, JD '02 rejoined Winstead PC as of counsel in the firm's Fort Worth office. He returns as a member of the Energy Law and Environmental Law Practice Groups.
Joshua C. Zive, JD '02, was elected senior principal of the Washington D.C. office of Bracewell LLP.
Shannon Rickett, JD '05, was named interim assistant vice president for government relations at the University of Louisville.
Katy Boatman, JD '08, of Andrews Kurth in Houston won the ABA National Outstanding Young Lawyer Award. . . Read More
Josh Borderud, JD '09, director of the Veteran's Clinic at Baylor Law and past president of the McLennan County Young Lawyers Association, was awarded the Lone Star Legal Aid Community Partner Award.
Stephen Rispoli, JD '12, assistant dean of student affairs and pro bono programs at Baylor Law School, was awarded the Lone Star Legal Aid Helping Hands Award.
Emily Cottingham, JD '13, joined the Office of the Inspector General as Litigation Associate Counsel.
Andrew Schrader, JD '07, of Beard Kultgen Brophy Bostwick & Dickson, LLP in Waco was promoted to partner.
Travis Gamble, JD '97, Jude Hickland, JD '08, Brittney Johnson, JD '12, David Kent, JD '78, George McCall, JD '77, Kristen Broyles Perry, JD '14, Neil Rambin, JD '79, Alan Vickery, JD '86, and Vance Wittie, JD '85, joined the Dallas office of Drinker, Biddle & Reath.
In Memoriam
William H. "Bill" Yowell, JD '51 Full Obituary
Billy Gordon Alexander, JD '62 Full Obituary
Keith Eugene Farr, JD '68 Full Obituary
Hon. James Allen Blackstock, JD '73 Full Obituary
Events
March 2017

FORT WORTH BAYLOR LAWYER NETWORK RECEPTION
March 30, 2017
Hosted by Stephens Anderson & Cummings at Kona Grill
RSVP

April 2017

AUSTIN BAYLOR LAWYER NETWORK RECEPTION
Hosted by Tom Forbes of Kemp Smith
Date TBD

BELL COUNTY BAYLOR LAWYER NETWORK RECEPTION
April 20, 2017
Hosted by Anne Potts Jackson

DALLAS BAYLOR LAWYER NETWORK RECEPTION
April 25, 2017
Hosted by Orsinger, Nelson, Downing & Anderson, LLP
RSVP

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254.710.8375 | baylor.edu/law/alumni

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