2021 Champions of Justice Gala Benefiting Veterans Program

CHAMPIONS of

JUSTICE GALA BENEFITING VETERANS

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The Texas Access to Justice Commission has been entrusted with advancing initiatives designed to expand and enhance the quality of access to justice in civil legal matters for the past twenty years. The Commission partners with the Supreme Court of Texas, the Texas Legislature, the State Bar of Texas, legal aid organizations, volunteer attorneys, and other stakeholders to create a more accessible and fair civil justice system for all.

Approximately 5.2 million Texans qualify for legal aid. Sadly, only about 10 percent of the civil legal needs of low-income Texans are being met.

This justice deficit leaves millions of our most vulnerable without the legal assistance they need to navigate complex problems involving basic human needs, like housing, safety, and employment.

Joe, a Veteran, lost his construction job in 2016. Unable to find steady income, he was unable to pay his property taxes, resulting in a foreclosure that included four years worth of unpaid property taxes. Joe’s legal aid attorney reviewed the foreclosure pleadings and helped him prepare a response. His attorney also advised Joe of benefits that specifically address property taxes and assisted him in obtaining the Veterans Disability Tax Exemption as well as a deferral of the property taxes. Joe’s legal aid attorney represented him at the foreclosure hearing and negotiated an agreed dismissal of the case, preventing foreclosure. Joe’s deferral application was also approved, relieving him of property tax liability, and Joe was able to stay in his home.

The generosity bestowed through sponsorships, donations, and contributions of time and talents make it possible for legal aid organizations to help thousands of Veterans confront and overcome their legal problems. We are grateful for your sustained and unfaltering support! You make it possible to honor and serve the brave people who have made unfathomable sacrifices for our country.

CHAMPIONS of JUSTICE GAL A 2021 CO-CHAIRS Jerry K. Clements Locke Lord LLP Monica Karuturi CenterPoint Energy David R. McAtee II AT&T Inc. Richard W. Mithoff Mithoff Law Firm Stephen C. Mount H-E-B Sandra Phillips Rogers Toyota Marie Yeates Vinson & Elkins LLP Wayne Watts Carlos M. Zaffirini, Jr. Audrey and Carlos Zaffirini Jr. Family Foundation

Harry M. Reasoner Vinson & Elkins LLP Chair, Texas Access to Justice Commission

Larry P. McDougal, Sr. Law Office of Larry P. McDougal President, State Bar of Texas

HOST COMMITTEE Robert B. Ahdieh

Luz E. Herrera

Robert G. Reedy

Brian Antweil

Hillary Holmes

Sandra Rodriguez

Chad Baruch

Hon. Wallace B. Jefferson

Sean Royall

Bev Baughman

Anne M. Johnson

William Ryan

Sherie Beckman

Janie Jordan

Allison Shue

Van Beckwith

David Lawson

Humma Siddiqi

Hon. Jane and Doug Bland Timothy Leahy

Chris Sileo

Jerry D. Bullard

Thomas Leatherbury

Kay Sim

Kelly Chen

Elizabeth E. Mack

Jason Smith

Jerry and Mark Clements

Michael Marin

Craig Stanfield

Todd Croftchik

Stacey Maris

Neal and Beth Sutton

Timothy S. Durst

Stephen McConnico

Brad Toben

Ellen Farrell

James Meza III

Joseph Tocco

Timothy Fenn

Harriet E. Miers

Luke Torres

Lori Fink

Gina Bryne Miller

Patricia Villareal

John Gersch

Hon. Harriet O’Neill

Hon. Dale Wainwright

Robin C. Gibbs

Laura O’Rourke

Robert C. Walters

Elizabeth Gibson

Yvette Ostolaza

Lysha Weston

Darrell Guy

Dawn Pittman

Diane Williamson

Michael Hartman

Hon. Thomas R. Phillips

Patti and Paul Yetter

Dean Harvey

Chris Price

Angela Zambrano

G. Troy Hatch

Barrett H. Reasoner

THE EVENING Welcome Remarks Justice Eva Guzman, Supreme Court of Texas The 20th Anniversary of the Texas Access to Justice Commission Chief Justice Nathan Hecht, Justice Deborah Hankinson, and Justice Harriet O’Neill Award Presentation Justice Eva Guzman, Justice Brett Busby, and Justice Rebecca Huddle

James B. Sales Boots on the Ground Award Beth Mitchell Allison Eichenfeld Neal Harry M. Reasoner Justice for All Award R. Paul Yetter Emily C. Jones Lifetime Achievement Award Fred Fuchs Introduction of Keynote Speaker Harry M. Reasoner, Chair, Texas Access to Justice Commission Keynote Address General Larry O. Spencer, United States Air Force (Retired) Closing Remarks Justice Brett Busby, Supreme Court of Texas

GUEST SPEAKER

General Spencer began his career in the enlisted ranks and retired as a four-star general, serving over 40 years in the Air Force. His last assignment was as the Vice Chief of Staff of the US Air Force, the second highest-ranking military member in the Air Force.

General Spencer has a Bachelor of Science degree in industrial engineering technology, and two Master of Science degrees in business management and industrial resource strategy from the National Defense University. He completed post-graduate courses at Harvard University and the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, and was awarded an Honorary Doctorate Degree from Southern Illinois University. General Spencer is also a Distinguished Senior Fellow of Fels Institute of Government of the University of Pennsylvania. General Spencer has the distinction of having two awards named in his honor and is the author of The Green Eyeshades of War. General Spencer serves as president for the Armed Forces Benefit Association (AFBA) and 5Star Life Insurance Company (5Star Life). He currently sits on the boards of Whirlpool Corporation, the Triumph Group, and Haynes International. He and his wife, Ora, reside in Lorton, Virginia.

We are pleased to have the very generous support of our sponsors. (as of March 30, 2021)

CHAMPION S O F J U S T I C E

A D V O C AT E S O F J U S T I C E

BEN EFAC TO RS OF JUST ICE Baker Botts L.L.P. Kirkland & Ellis LLP King & Spalding LLP

Perkins Coie LLP Sidley Austin LLP

PATRON S OF JUST ICE Alexander Dubose & Jefferson LLP Appellate Section, SBOT Law Offices of Frank L. Branson, P.C. Baylor Law School Beck Redden LLP Hon. Jane and Doug Bland Corporate Counsel Section, SBOT Gibbs & Bruns LLP Gibson Dunn Halliburton

Haynes and Boone, LLP Johnson Tobey Baruch PC Thomas Leatherbury and Patricia Villareal David R. McAtee II Harriet E. Miers National Western Life Insurance Company Rapp & Krock, PC Scott Douglass & McConnico Yetter Coleman LLP

OT H E R C O N T R I B U TO R S ( $ 1,0 0 0 O R M O R E ) Jerry & Mark Clements Consumer & Commercial Law Section, SBOT Beverly Godbey Latham & Watkin LLP

Hon. Harriet O'Neill Porter Hedges LLP Kay Sim Neal & Beth Sutton Texas A&M University School of Law

CHAIR Harry M. Reasoner Houston

COMM ISSIO NE RS Chad Baruch Dallas Alistair Dawson Houston Smaranda Draghia San Antonio Lourdes Flores Austin Luz Herrera Fort Worth Lisa Hobbs Austin Roland K. Johnson Fort Worth Monica Karuturi Houston Richard LaVallo Austin Hon. Joe Lopez Laredo Bill Marple Fort Worth Hon. Michael C. Massengale Houston David R. McAtee II Dallas

Harriet E. Miers Dallas MariBen Ramsey Austin Jeannie Rollo Goldthwaite Hon. Ken P. Wise Houston

SUPREME COURT LIAISONS Hon. Eva Guzman Houston Hon. Brett Busby Austin

EX OFFICIO MEMBERS For the Governor Jeffrey L. Oldham Austin For the Lieutenant Governor Hon. Judith Zaffirini Laredo For the Speaker of the House Hon. Gene Wu Houston

CHAIR EMERITUS James B. Sales Houston

EXECU TIVE DIREC TOR Trish E. McAllister

The State Bar of Texas, our co-sponsor, generously helps underwrite the 2021 Champions of Justice Gala Benefiting Veterans so that the proceeds directly support civil legal aid to low-income Texas Veterans.

PA S T AWA R D R E C I P I E N T S James B. Sales Boots on the Ground Award The James B. Sales Boots on the Ground Award recognizes a legal services program attorney or a pro bono attorney who is an exemplary advocate and who gives selflessly of their time and talent to provide legal help to those who have no voice.

2020

Brandon Crisp

2020

Keri Ward

2019

Garth Corbett

2019

William Eugene Rollins

2018

Israel M. Reyna

2017

Efrén C. Olivares

2016

Bronwyn Blake

2015

Peter Hofer

2014

Christine Larson

2013

Jim Harrington

2012

Terry O. Tottenham

2012

Charles Kimbrough

2012

Bruce Bower

2011

Col. Bryan Spencer

2011

Sharon Reynerson

J A M E S B. S A L E S B O OT S O N T H E G R O U N D AWA R D Beth Mitchell Beth Mitchell is a 1991 graduate of the University of Miami School of Law. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) became law one year after she graduated.

For the past thirty years, she has become a leading ADA advocate in Texas and a zealous advocate for individuals with mental illness and intellectual disabilities.

At Disability Rights Texas (DRTx), Beth is consulted regularly as an expert on people’s rights under the Mental Health Code and litigates cases on behalf of those with intellectual and mental impairments.

Beth has helped address vital legal issues for people living in state supported facilities and hospitals who have been diagnosed with serious mental illness or intellectual and developmental disabilities. These cases require a great deal of care, and immediate and extensive legal attention. It is not an exaggeration to say their lives, the stability of their families, and society’s capacity to live up to its ideals, all depend on her expertise.

Beth was chosen to lead a new team at DRTx, the Residential Child Care Monitoring team. This team will be assisting court monitors under M.D. v.

Abbott by observing conditions at residential treatment centers in Texas that serve children with mental illness and other emotional disorders.

According to her colleague, Jadd Masso, “Beth has no patience for systems and people who harm those who are vulnerable. She has dedicated her career to seeking justice and dignity for people who are too often overlooked and forgotten. She demands humanity and integrity from systems that have forgotten that their primary purpose was supposed to be to make life better for people.”

Beth’s individual casework, leadership, and expertise has shaped the legal landscape of the rights of persons with mental illness and intellectual disabilities in Texas, and positively impacted thousands of lives.

J A M E S B. S A L E S B O OT S O N T H E G R O U N D AWA R D Allison Eichenfeld Neal Allison, a graduate of Emory University’s School of Law, has spent her legal career addressing all types of complicated legal issues and helping those who need a strong ally in their fight for justice. Allison started her legal career at the ACLU of Alabama and was eventually named Legal Director of that office. She was involved in a number of high-profile lawsuits, including Henderson v.

Thomas, a successful challenge to Alabama’s policy of segregating prisoners with HIV and denying them equal access to rehabilitative programs. She also worked to protect immigrant children’s access to public schools, and end gender discrimination in schools.

In 2013, Public Justice, a national impact litigation and advocacy nonprofit in Washington D.C., named Allison as a finalist for their Trial Lawyer of the Year Award for her contribution to the public interest with her precedent-setting, socially significant casework. In Virginia, she worked in private practice, representing indigent juveniles, adults facing misdemeanor and serious felony charges, and children as a guardian ad litem.

As an attorney at Texas Advocacy Project, she currently works to protect survivors of interpersonal violence. When a Domestic Violence Victim Advocate in the military approached the Texas Advocacy Project for help on a high-profile case, Allison jumped on board. The local prosecutor had refused to assist the servicewoman in obtaining a protective order, but Allison handled the case with compassion and expertise, and was able to obtain the protective order.

Allison demonstrates a passion for justice and is a consummate professional. She inspires law students and her colleagues to continue to improve their own work and finds ways to help victims of abuse who have fallen through the gaps find access to justice. She embodies the virtues for whom this award was named.

H A R R Y M . R E A S O N E R J U S T I C E F O R A L L AWA R D The Harry M. Reasoner Justice for All award is named after Texas legal icon and current Commission Chair, Harry Reasoner. This award recognizes an outstanding attorney who demonstrates dedication and commitment to providing pro bono legal services and promoting a culture of pro bono within the Bar. R. Paul Yetter Paul’s practice covers a range of commercial disputes and is focused on antitrust/securities, intellectual property, and contract/business torts.

Representing plaintiffs as often as defendants, he has clients in the energy, technology, finance, and aviation industries, among others. He has prosecuted and defended lawsuits and arbitrations as lead counsel around the country. In recent years, he has tried three class actions. He is fortunate to work with respected litigators from large corporate firms and trial boutiques alike.

Paul most enjoys building case strategy and leading trials. Whether involved early or brought in late, as clients often ask his firm to do, he works to find winning approaches to tough cases. His firm’s trademark approach is to simplify complex disputes into powerful trial stories and tailor presentations to most effectively educate the decision-maker, whether a jury, judge, or arbitrator.

In M.D. v. Abbott, Paul won finding that Texas violated the civil rights of 12,000 foster children. Reforms included the appointment of monitors to approve the state-conducted studies on how to reduce the workload of caseworkers and the requirement of 24-hour “awake-night” adult supervision in group homes.

Outside of the courtroom, Paul serves as chair of statewide groups that promote the funding, education, and resources of the Texas state judiciary. He is a member of the International Academy of Trial Lawyers, the International Society of Barristers, and the American Board of Trial Advocates. He and his wife, Patti, have seven grown sons.

PA S T AWA R D R E C I P I E N T S Emily C. Jones Lifetime Achievement Award The Emily C. Jones Lifetime Achievement Award reflects the highest honor given for a career dedicated to supporting legal aid for low-income Texans.

This award, named for the former Executive Director of the Commission, recognizes an outstanding individual whose extraordinary spirit and demonstrated commitment to legal aid has improved our society and inspired others.

2018

David Hall

2015

James B. Sales

2015

Hon. Wallace B. Jefferson

2013

Stewart Gagnon

2011

Randall Chapman

2010

Charles W. Matthews

2010

Hon. Harriet O'Neill

2009

Emily C. Jones

E M I LY C . J O N E S L I F E T I M E AC H I E V E M E N T AWA R D Fred Fuchs Fred Fuchs is an attorney with Texas RioGrande Legal Aid (TRLA) where he oversees various housing teams. Fred is a Vietnam-era veteran, who has focused extensively on federal housing programs and tenant rights on the state and national levels for over forty years.

Fred is a nationally-known housing lawyer, who has litigated US Supreme Court cases, won, and changed case law. He has served on a Texas Supreme Court Task Force charged with writing the rules of procedure for home equity loan foreclosures and another Texas Supreme Court Task Force that wrote Rule 737 on justice court repair orders. He has successfully litigated numerous cases about tenant rights and tenant federal housing programs.

Fred also taught the landlord-tenant clinic at UT Law for several years, educating law students about the housing difficulties many low-income people face and encouraging them to become legal aid lawyers or handle pro bono cases in private practice. His reputation as an incredible lawyer and a truly kind and humble person has led people from all over the nation to come work at legal aid so he could be their mentor.

Fred has won a number of national awards for his housing advocacy on behalf of his clients. He has assisted thousands of clients over the years and successfully resolved eviction lawsuits that has allowed his clients to remain housed. His compassion for his clients is evident as he tirelessly fights for those at risk of being illegally evicted. He describes his clients as extraordinarily nice individuals who experience bad circumstances. Despite over forty years of advocacy, he continues to handle a full caseload. A true leader, Fred says he is most proud of “mentoring new lawyers and students and watching them grow into principled, ethical, highly competent lawyers with a special interest in serving the underrepresented in our nation.”

2021 C H A M P I O N O F GUARDIANS $1000 per year for 5 years

David J. Bertoch Travis Bryan Sara Dysart Michael W. Hilliard Christopher Hollins James Holmes Roland Johnson Dwaine Morris Massey Peggy Montgomery Harry M. Reasoner Susan Lea Smith J. Michael Solar Leah L. Stolar Terry O. Tottenham Evan Young Carlos M. Zaffirini, Jr.

F JUSTICE SOCIETY HEROES $1000 and above Barry Abrams

Hon. Nathan Hecht

Ann Kaylene Ray

Alexandra W. Albright

George B. Hernandez

Scott E. Rozzell

Paul E. Anderson

Jennifer Bruch Hogan

Henry Segelke

Yvonne Bailes

Staci Holtzman

Philip Sellers

Jack Baldwin

Benedict V. James

Lewis R. Sifford

Sharon Beausoleil

Megan Johnson

Diane Marie St. Yves

Rondal Terry Bell

Lawrence Kelly

Matthew R. Stammel

Hon. Jane Bland

Kortney M. Kloppe-Orton

Joel Jay Steed

Hugh T. Blevins

Elizabeth E. Mack

Macey Reasoner Stokes

David Bond

and David E. Allen

Bill Stutts

M. Scott Bresk

E. Pierce Marshall

Neal Sutton

Nora Byrne

Hon. Michael C. Massengale

Will Sutton

Wendy Castellana

David R. McAtee II

Lynette Tatum

Victor Navasca Corpuz

Joseph Patrick Moan

Raymond L. Thomas

Deanna Leigh Draper

Jason Mueller

Pat J. Villareal

John Fleming

Milam Newby

Bill Wallander

Pablo Franco

Alexander Piala

Allen Eugene White

Lynda Harbove

MariBen Ramsey

2021 C H A M P I O N O F DEFENDERS $500 - $999 Joseph Abraham

Jeff Civins

Kevin Bernard Gerrity

Purvi Patel Albers

Kevin Clark

Robert T. Givens

Beth Apperley

Vivian M. Cline

P. Rowland Greenwade

Timothy Azevedo

Richard Alfred Cort

Jose Guerrero

Carol M. Barger

Blas Jimenez Coy

Mark Edward Heidenheimer

Chad Baruch

Parker Cragg

Dee Dee D. Hoxie

Hon. Arnold S. Battise

Terrell W. Dahlman

Zach Hughes

Ron Dale Betz

Mario Davila

Thomas Craig Kildebeck

Rebecca Bishop

Sabrina Dimichele

Ronald Kirk

Hugh T. Blevins

Carol E. Dinkins

Gavin Klein

Robert Nicholas Brailas

Quinton Alan Farley

Kathleen A. Knight

Marian Lyia Brancaccio

Matthew Florez

Joseph Everett Leblanc

Hon. Brett Busby

Murray J. Fogler

J. K. Leonard

Lawrence Victor Bush

Hon. Thomas C. Fuller

Nathaniel Lounsbury

Christie Lynne Cardon

Neill Fuquay

Keith Lutsch

Stephen C. Caspers

Robert Gage

Nick Maram

Michael Caywood

Joshua Gelman

Bill Marple

Wm. Kevin Cherry

Toby L. Gerber

Lori Mason

F JUSTICE SOCIETY David George Matthews

Victoria Ozimek

Andrew Trimble

Trish McAllister

Bailey Pham

Christine Warren

Bryan Lyn McClellan

Hon. Barbara Powell

Lora Warren

Travis Cole McCullough

Michael V. Powell

Mary Riley Wechtenhiser

Susham Modi

Carroll Robertson Ray

Luke Abraham Weedon

Meredith Morrill

Alfred Richter

Robert K. Williams

Michele Morrison

Aleed Janet Rivera

Barbara C. Wingo

Stephen S. Mosher

Stacey Beth Saunders

John Douglas Wittenberg

Hon. Mary L. Murphy

Hon. Jan Soifer

Richard Zansitis

Evan Olson

Fangzhong Tian

(listing as of March 30, 2021)

Members of the Champion of Justice Society show their strong support for access to justice in Texas through their annual contributions. Visit texasatj.org to learn more.

Thank you to all our champions for Making a Difference in thousands of lives acrosss Texas.

1414 Colorado Street, 4th Floor Austin, Texas 78701 texasatj.org/gala