2023 Champions of Justice Gala

CHAMPIONS of

JUSTICE GALA

BENEFITING VETERANS

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T H E T E X A S A C C E S S TO J U S T I C E C O M M I S S I O N For over two decades, the Texas Access to Justice Commission has worked to ensure that as many low-income Texans as possible have access to adequate civil legal representation. Working with the Supreme Court of Texas, the Texas Legislature, the State Bar of Texas, legal aid organizations, and volunteer attorneys, the Commission has expanded the ways in which low-income Texans are able to access the justice system and helped fund legal aid organizations across the state. Since 2010, the Commission, with the generous support of the State Bar of Texas, has hosted the annual Champions of Justice Gala, and proceeds go directly to support civil legal services for low-income Texas veterans.

Each year, approximately 200,000 individuals leave military service and transition to civilian life, with over 25,000 of those making Texas their new home. A veteran population that large demands more civil legal resources to meet its needs. Roughly 36% of veteran households require legal assistance for consumer and finance matters upon discharge.

When nearly 40,000 of them nationwide are without shelter on a given night, veterans need help overcoming legal barriers to employment, housing, family, and public health issues. Many veterans live with mental or behavioral health challenges, including traumatic brain injuries, PTSD, anxiety, and other similar conditions, which, when left undiagnosed or untreated, lead to greater risk of death by suicide. Providing veterans with access to competent legal support and advocacy to ensure access to housing, employment, and health resources plays a critical role in saving veterans’ lives.

In a 2017 Legal Services Corporation study of the Justice Gap, 88% of veteran households reported that they had received inadequate or no legal assistance to resolve their challenges. This is where the Texas Access to Justice Commission and the Champions of Justice Gala play a vital role for Texas veterans--it works to coordinate, fund, and train legal aid organizations and helps reduce barriers and burdens veterans face when seeking assistance. In conjunction with legal aid organizations, organizations with poverty expertise, social services, and other veteran support organizations, the Commission seeks to ensure low-income veterans have access to a full array of services when they need them most.

CHAMPIONS of JUSTICE GAL A 2023

CO-CHAIRS Jerry K. Clements, Locke Lord LLP Elizabeth Gibson, Toyota Monica Karuturi, CenterPoint Energy, Inc. David R. McAtee II, AT&T Richard Warren Mithoff, Mithoff Law Ross R. Moody, The Moody Foundation Stephen C. Mount, H-E-B Marie R. Yeates, Vinson & Elkins LLP Carlos M. Zaffirini, Jr., Audrey & Carlos Zaffirini, Jr. Family Foundation

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

Laura Gibson President State Bar of Texas

HOST COMMITTEE (As of April 6, 2023)

Mike Absmeier

Andrew Gould

Sandra Rodriguez

Dean Robert B. Ahdieh

Darrell Guy

Sandra Phillips Rogers

Kurt Arnold

Kendyl T. Hanks

William Ryan

Dean Michael F. Barry

Luz E. Herrera

Paul Samuel

Bev Baughman

Jason Itkin

Esteban Sandoval

Dean Leonard M. Baynes Benedict James

Allison Shue

Alex Bistline

Humma Siddiqi

David James

Hon. Jane & Doug Bland Hon. Wallace B. Jefferson Christopher D. Sileo Elizabeth "Heidi" G. Bloch Roland K. Johnson

Mike Singley

Frank L. Branson

John R. Jones

Lisa Snead

Emma Cano

Anna Kuhn

Macey Reasoner Stokes

Ricardo G. Cedillo

David Lawson

Neal & Beth Sutton

Jeffery Chapman

Lora J. Livingston &

Maria Thomas-Jones

Eric Kennedy

Dean Brad Toben

Kelly Chen Dawn Pittman Collins

Michael D. Marin

Joseph Tocco

Todd Croftchik

Stacey Maris

Hon. Dale Wainwright

Braden Darville

Stephen E. McConnico

Charles Skip Watson

Sherri Eastley

Richard K. McGee

Jane Webre

Randall M. Ebner

Dean Jason P. Nance

Lysha Weston

Jeff Edwards

Dean Jack Nowlin

Diane Williamson

Amy C. Farish

Laura O'Rourke

Travis Wimberly

Ellen Farrell

Chris Price

Kennon Wooten

John Gersch

Barrett Reasoner

Paul Yetter

Robin C. Gibbs

Dean Patricia E. Roberts

THE EVENING Welcome Remarks Harry M. Reasoner, Gala Chair Color Guard Presentation – National Anthem – Pledge of Allegiance Presentation of Colors by the Marines of Inspector Instructor Staff, Weapons Company, 1st Battalion 23rd Marine Regiment, Austin National Anthem performed by Talin Nalbandian, Doctorate of Musical Arts Student, University of Texas at Austin Recognition of Special Guests Justice Brett Busby, Supreme Court of Texas Harry M. Reasoner, Gala Chair Introduction of Keynote Speaker Harry M. Reasoner, Gala Chair Keynote Presentation Chief Justice Nathan L. Hecht, Supreme Court of Texas Award Presentations Justice Brett Busby, Supreme Court of Texas James B. Sales Boots on the Ground Award Victor L. Hunt Maureen O’Connell Harry M. Reasoner Justice for All Award Thomas S. Leatherbury Emily C. Jones Lifetime Achievement Award Betty Balli Torres Closing Remarks Harriet E. Miers, Texas Access to Justice Commission Chair

CHIEF JUSTICE N KEYNOTE

Chief Justice Nathan L. Hecht, the 27th Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Texas, has served as a member since 1988, first as a Justice, then as Chief Justice in 2014. He won reelection in 2020 to a term that ends December 31, 2026. He is the longestserving member of that court and the longest-tenured Texas judge in active service. Throughout his service on the Court, he has overseen revisions to the rules of administration, practice, and procedure in Texas courts. He was appointed by the Chief Justice of the United States to the Federal Advisory Committee on Civil Rules.

Before taking the bench, he was a partner in the Locke firm in Dallas.

He holds a B.A. degree with honors in philosophy from Yale University and a J.D. degree cum laude from the SMU School of Law. While a student there, he was a Hatton W. Sumners Scholar. The Chief Justice also clerked for Judge Roger Robb on the U. S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. He served as a Lieutenant in the U.S.

AT H A N L . H E C H T SPEAKER

Navy Reserve Judge Advocate General Corps. In 1982, he was appointed to the district court and then, in 1986, he was elected to the court of appeals.

Chief Justice Hecht is also very active on the Supreme Court of Texas’s efforts to assure that Texans living below the poverty level or with limited means have access to basic civil legal services.

As a nationally recognized expert on access to justice issues, Chief Justice Hecht speaks on the subject with authority attained from experience, knowledge honed from study, and compassion cultivated by understanding.

J A M E S B. S A L E S B O O T S 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.

Past Award Recipients

2022 Veronica F. Jacobs

2016 Bronwyn Blake

2021 Beth Mitchell Allison Eichenfeld Neal

2015 Peter Hofer 2014 Christine Larson

2020 Brandon Crisp Keri Ward 2019 Garth Corbett William Eugene Rollins

2013 Jim Harrington 2012 Bruce P. Bower Charles Kimbrough Terry O. Tottenham

2018 Israel M. Reyna 2017 Efrén C. Olivares

2011 Sharon Reynerson Col. Bryan Spencer

ON THE GROUND AWARD Victor L. Hunt Victor Hunt is the epitome of a “boots on the ground” legal warrior. A dedicated public servant for four decades, Mr. Hunt’s impressive career has always involved providing direct legal representation to low-income clients. His work in Oklahoma helped the mentally disabled integrate into society instead of being institutionalized, and his work with homeless communities helped individuals overcome barriers that historically reinforce homelessness. As head of LANWT’s Bankruptcy Practice, he developed and provided training that ensured LANWT’s ability to provide bankruptcy representation to clients in all 114 counties it serves. His boots on the ground have worn an impressive path for those he trained to follow, and he is recognized for his leadership.

Maureen O’Connell Throughout her 45-year career, Maureen O'Connell has tirelessly represented the rights of disabled persons. She helped found, and later served as director of, the Southern Disability Law Center, an organization whose work benefited individuals in Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi. She won ground-breaking cases, helping to set legal precedents that will benefit the community of differently-abled individuals well into the future. With tact and nuance, she has materially altered the perspectives of those she encounters while preserving relationships, enlightening opposing parties, and ensuring fundamental changes that benefit the wider community. Her successes have made it possible for many individuals to access services even without having to involve the legal system.

H A R R Y M. R E A S O N E R J U The Harry M. Reasoner Justice for All award is named after Texas legal icon and Texas Access to Justice Commission Chair Emeritus, Harry M. 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. Past Award Recipients

2022

Priya Aiyar

2021

Paul Yetter

USTICE FOR ALL AWARD Thomas S. Leatherbury Thomas S. Leatherbury, while attending Yale Law School, spent four semesters representing clients from Connecticut Valley Hospital. In those four semesters, he assisted individuals with civil commitment hearings, families that sought appropriate educational placement for their children, and argued his first appeal on behalf of a young boy whose mental health had suffered when his desperate need for orthodontia treatment had been denied. This work would set the precedent for a forty-plus year career securing the constitutional rights of his fellow Texans and dedicated to educating and developing future lawyers.

Mr. Leatherbury would eventually rise to be senior partner in Vinson & Elkins's Appellate Practice Group. This work, frequently performed pro bono, has impacted immigration, voting rights, defamation, and First Amendment issues, to name a few. Much of his work helped expand access to justice in Texas by setting valuable precedents that helped increase pro se litigants' access to courts, eliminate some of the fees that low-income Texans would face in accessing the courts, and expanding the ways in which legal services organizations can garner donations.

Having served for years as Vinson & Elkins's Chair of talent management, Mr. Leatherbury oversaw their DEI, pro bono, training, and evaluations programs, which allowed him to help guide the careers of many of the younger lawyers at the firm. Because of this, it was not surprising when SMU Dedman School of Law asked him to serve as their First Amendment Clinic's founding director. With full enrollment every semester and a waiting list each year, the clinic is allowing him to combine everything that was a hallmark of his career: working to secure the Constitutional rights of his fellow Texans while shaping the next generation of Texas lawyers to carry on that tradition.

E M I LY C. J O N E S L I F E T I M 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 first 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.

Past Award Recipients

2022 Bruce P. Bower

2013 Stewart Gagnon

2021 Fred Fuchs

2011 Randall Chapman

2018 David Hall

2010 Charles W. Matthews

2015 Hon. Wallace B. Jefferson

2010 Hon. Harriet O'Neill

2015 James B. Sales

2009 Emily C. Jones

ME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD Betty Balli Torres A dedication to improving the delivery of legal services to vulnerable Texans has been the foundation of Betty Balli Torres’s career. She has served as an advocate for civil legal services for the poor in her various public interest law positions, including as Executive Director of Laredo Legal Aide Society, Inc.; Legal Director of Volunteer Legal Services of Central Texas; Managing Attorney of Legal Aid of Central Texas; and as a staff attorney at Advocacy, Inc. She is also the longstanding director of the Texas Access to Justice Foundation (TAJF).

Ms. Torres has worked tirelessly to expand access to justice both within Texas and on the national level. In particular, she has been extraordinarily effective in addressing the perpetual funding shortfall legal aid faces, and much of the funding currently available is the result of her advocacy. As an example, under Ms. Torres’s leadership, TAJF created the Prime Partner program in which financial institutions pay higher levels of interest on lawyer trust accounts – this brings millions of dollars of increased funding to legal aid each year.

Her ability to source funding was showcased during the pandemic – under her guidance, TAJF and the Supreme Court of Texas established an eviction defense program and, through a partnership with the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs, secured over $40 million in grants to prevent unnecessary evictions of people affected by the crisis. This is on top of the over $50 million the Foundation grants annually to legal aid organizations statewide.

Ms. Torres's commitment to providing access to justice is as undeniable as the impact she has had on Texas, and legal aid and access to justice in the state would be greatly diminished were it not for her passionate efforts advocating for both.

CHAMPIONS OF J G U A R D I A N S , 2022 - 2 023 David J. Bertoch

Alexander Knapp

David Anthony Bloomer

Dwaine M. Massey

Travis Allan Bryan I

Peggy Montgomery

Despo Dorsaneo

Harry M. Reasoner

Sara E. Dysart

Corrie Thomas Reese

John C. Fleming

Terry H. Sears

Michael W. Hilliard

J. Michael Solar

Christopher Hollins

Terry O. Tottenham

James Holmes

Hon. Evan Young

Roland K. Johnson

Carlos M. Zaffirini, Jr.

JUSTICE SOCIETY H E R O E S , 2022 - 2023 John Bennett Abramowitz Samuel Elkins

Robert T. Mowrey

Paul E. Anderson, Jr.

Robert Gage

Wendy Marie Parker

Timothy Azevedo

Pete Gallego

Alexander Piala

Charles Lynde Babcock IV

Roland Garcia

Robert D. Probasco

Carol M. Barger

Peter Hansen

Paul E. Pryzant

Sharon Beausoleil

Fatima Hassan

Ann Kaylene Ray

David Beck

Dee Dee D. Hoxie

S. Theodore Reiner

Ron Dale Betz

Thomas Craig Kildebeck

Hon. Jan Soifer

Hugh T. Blevins, Jr.

Ronald Kirk

Matthew R. Stammel

Eric Boettcher

Carol Chapman Kondos

Joel Jay Steed

T. David Bond

Melissa Leigh Markey

William Sutton

Ronnie Earl Bounds, Jr.

Hon. Michael C. Massengale David Richard Tippetts

Marian Lyia Brancaccio

David R. McAtee II

Cynthia Hoff Trochu

Wendy Castellana

Harriet E. Miers

William Louis Wallander

Sabrina DiMichele

Meredith Morrill

Allen Eugene White

CHAMPIONS OF J DEFENDE Theodora McShan Anastaplo Katrina Crenshaw

Kevin Bernard Gerrity

Elizabeth Anne Apperley

Tom Alan Cunningham

Michael Louis Goldstone

Kevin Todd Barnes

Thomas Joseph Daniel

Damian F. Gomez

Leo L. Barnes

Riddhi Dasgupta

P. Rowland Greenwade

Rebecca D. Bishop

Mario Davila

Stanley N. Griffith

Ronnie Bounds

Carol E. Dinkins

Jose R. Guerrero

Eugene A. Brooker, Jr.

James A. Drummond

Holly Ryan Haseloff

Brian G. Broussard

James Robert Evans, Jr.

Mark Edward Heidenheimer

Hon. Brett Busby

Quinton Alan Farley

Daniel K. Hennessy

Bruce Molloy Cameron, Jr.

Hon. Roy B. Ferguson

Hon. Federico G. Hinojosa, Jr.

Christie L. Cardon

Matthew L. Florez

Jeanine C. Hudson

Michael Caywood

John Thomas Floyd III

Carmen Irene Huerta-Perez

Kevin Michael Clark

Julia Patterson Forrester

William Zachary Hughes

Nancy M. Conaway

Neill Fuquay

Megan Alyce Johnson

Richard Alfred Cort

Hon. William R. Furgeson

Georgia Arrie Jolink

Karen Sue Crawford

Cintia Galvan

William M. Katz, Jr.

The Commission established the Champion of Justice Society in 2012 for individuals who wanted to show their strong support of access to justice in Texas.

JUSTICE SOCIETY R S , 2022 - 2023 Eileen M. Keiffer

Michele Morrison

Stacy Rogers Sharp

Robert D. Klausner

Stephen S. Mosher

Daniel J. Sheehan, Jr.

Stephanie Lynn Koury

Kelly M. Murray

James Skipton IV

Robert Bruce Laboon

Toni Melinda Murray

Brenda K. Smith

Nathaniel Lounsbury

Karen Sue Neeley

Stuart Charles Smith

Michael Jude Lowenberg

Frank H. Newton

Charles E. Sykes

Thomas C. Lowry

Dean W. Frank Newton

Paul R. Tobias

Keith Lutsch

Retha Elizabeth Niedecken

Gregory S. Torrance

Elizabeth E. Mack

Wayne K. Olson

Ben Vaughan III

Luke Madole

Joseph Stuart Pevsner

Luke Abraham Weedon

Nick Maram

Howard K. Prol

T. B. Wright

E. Pierce Marshall, Jr.

Aleed Janet Rivera

Lori Wrotenbery

David George Matthews

Penny R. Robe

Trish McAllister

Richard Christopher Rosalez

Susham M. Modi

Edward B. Rust, Jr.

Kate Sullivan Morgan

Stacey Beth Saunders

Contributions received from Society members are part of the annual Justice for All Campaign which raised over $1.5 million last year to support civil legal aid for low-income Texans.

We are pleased to have the very g (As of Apr

CO -SP ONSOR

CHAMP IONS OF JUST IC E

ADVOC AT E S OF JUST IC E

generous support of our sponsors.

il 6, 2023)

BENE FAC TORS OF JUST ICE Arnold & Itkin LLP Baker Botts L.L.P. Perkins Coie LLP Patricia Villareal, Thomas Leatherbury, & The Dorothea L. Leonhardt Foundation

PAT RONS OF JUST IC E

Alexander Dubose & Jefferson LLP Baylor Law School Beck Redden LLP Hon. Jane & Doug Bland Blank Rome LLP The Law Offices of Frank L. Branson Davis, Cedillo & Mendoza, Inc. Edwards Law Gibbs & Bruns LLP Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP Johnston Tobey Baruch, PC Kelly Hart & Hallman LLP King & Spalding LLP The Krist Foundation in honor & memory of James B. Sales

David R. McAtee II Harriet E. Miers Norton Rose Fulbright Phillips 66 Sandoval & James, PLLC SBOT Corporate Counsel Section Scott Douglass & McConnico LLP SMU Dedman School of Law Richard L. "Dick" Tate Texas Law School Deans Honorable Lee Yeakel Intellectual Property American Inn of Court Yetter Coleman LLP

OT H E R C O N T R I B U TO R S ( $ 1,000 O R M O R E ) Randall M. Ebner Roland K. Johnson Lora J. Livingston & Eric Kennedy Pirkey Barber PLLC

Plains All American Pipeline, L.P. Porter Hedges Neal & Beth Sutton Maria Thomas-Jones

We also extend our appreciation to the Marines of Inspector Instructor Staff, Weapons Company, 1st Battalion 23rd Marine Regiment for the Presentation of the Colors and to Talin Nalbandian, Doctorate of Musical Arts student, University of Texas at Austin, for the performance of the National Anthem.

CHAIR

Harriet E. Miers Dallas

CO M M I SSI O N E R S Chad Baruch Dallas

Hon. Nicholas Chu Austin Alistair B. Dawson Houston Joe Escobedo, Jr. Edinburg Hon. Roy B. Ferguson Alpine Katie Fillmore Austin Gabby Garcia Austin Luz E. Herrera Fort Worth Lisa Hobbs Austin Roland K. Johnson Fort Worth Thomas S. Leatherbury Dallas William Marple Dallas Hon. Michael Massengale Houston

David R. McAtee II Dallas Karen Nicholson Midland Hon. Latosha Lewis Payne Houston Terry O. Tottenham Austin Maj. Gen. Alfred Valenzuela San Antonio Kennon L. Wooten Austin

SUPREME COURT LIAISON Hon. Brett Busby Austin

E X- O FFI C I O MEMBERS For the Governor James P. Sullivan Austin

For the Lieutenant Governor Hon. Judith Zaffirini Laredo For the Speaker of the House Hon. Gene Wu Houston

CH A I R E M E RITUS Harry M. Reasoner Houston

I N T E R I M D I R E C TO R

Lora J. Livingston

The State Bar of Texas, our co-sponsor, generously helps underwrite the 2023 Champions of Justice Gala Benefiting Veterans so that the proceeds directly support civil legal aid to low-income Texas Veterans.