FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 6, 2022
Contact: Bambi Hall
Public Affairs Director, State Bar of Texas
(800) 204-2222, ext. 1706, or (512) 427-1706
bhall@texasbar.com
The State Bar of Texas and TMCP celebrate 30 years with annual conference and awards
AUSTIN—The State Bar of Texas recently celebrated the Texas Minority Counsel Program’s 30th anniversary at its annual conference, a three-day event, hosted at the Four Seasons Resort & Club in Irving, Texas, where TMCP honored outstanding attorneys for their impact in the areas of diversity and inclusion in the legal profession.
Considered the premier client development, networking, and CLE event for attorneys in Texas, TMCP is noted as one of the best legal diversity conferences in the country. The program, which is open to all attorneys, aims to bolster the amount and significance of legal work obtained by minority, women, and LGBTQ+ attorneys, and attorneys of other historically underrepresented groups. Featured keynote speakers were CNN’s Laura Coates (Thursday, Nov. 3), who serves as a host/senior legal analyst and is a New York Times best-selling author; and Dr. Eric Cervini (Friday, Nov. 4), an award-winning author, producer and historian of LGBTQ+ politics.
Recipients of the 2022 TMCP awards appear below along with a
description of each award. Past award recipients and more information
on the program can be found at texasbar.com/tmcp/awards.
Rising Star Award – recognizes an attorney licensed
for seven years or less who has made strides early in their practice to
promote diversity, equity, and inclusion within the legal
profession.
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Winner: KoiEles Lomas, Senior Counsel for Government Contracting,McKesson Corporation
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Finalist: Nadeen Abou-Hossa, Associate Attorney, Gonzalez Chiscano Angulo & Kasson, PC
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Finalist: Jessica Rodriguez-Wahlquist, Associate, Sorrels Law
Corporate Counsel of the Year Award – recognizes an in-house attorney who has opened doors for Texas minority, women, and LGBTQ+ attorneys by promoting diversity within their legal department or company, by consistently hiring diverse attorneys in private practice to perform legal work on behalf of their company, and by engaging in mentorship and volunteerism with the bar or community to foster diversity in the legal profession.
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Winner: Travis Torrence, Global Litigation Bankruptcy & Credit Team Lead, Shell USA, Inc.
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Finalist: Olesja Cormney, Managing Counsel, Labor & Employment, Toyota Motor North America, Inc.
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Finalist: Eunice Nakamura, General Counsel & Corporate Secretary, Susan G. Komen
Trailblazer of the Year Award – honors an outside counsel who has effectuated the promotion of diversity within the legal profession through hiring, retention, and mentoring of minority, women, and LGBTQ+ attorneys, partnering with minority, women, and LGBTQ+ owned law firms, and involvement with bar or community activities designed to promote diversity within the legal profession.
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Winner: Jamila Mensah, Partner, Norton Rose Fulbright LLP
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Finalist: Hon. Ada Brown, Judge, United States District Court, Northern District of Texas
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Finalist: Christa Brown-Sanford, Partner & Firmwide Co-Chair of the Intellectual Property Department, Baker Botts LLP
TMCP Lifetime Achievement Award – honors an attorney who has demonstrated extraordinary support and advocacy for the advancement of minorities, women, and LGBTQ+ people in the legal profession over the course of their legal career.
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Winner: Kim Askew, Partner, DLA Piper
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Finalist: Chris Mugica, Partner, Jackson Walker LLP
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Finalist: Michelle Peak, Vice President, Labor Relations & Labor Counsel, Sunbelt Rentals
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The State Bar of Texas is an administrative agency of the Supreme Court of Texas that provides educational programs for the legal profession and the public, administers the minimum continuing legal education program for attorneys, and manages the attorney discipline system. For more information, follow us on Twitter and Instagram @statebaroftexas, like us on Facebook at facebook.com/statebaroftexas, or visit texasbar.com.
