State Bar of Texas

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 2, 2023
Contact: Rebecca Johnson
Public Affairs Director, State Bar of Texas
512-427-1714, rebecca.johnson@texasbar.com 

AUSTIN—Texas attorneys elected Steve Benesh of Austin to be president-elect of the State Bar of Texas.

Benesh received 52.41%—12,081—of the 23,051 votes cast during the monthlong voting period that ended May 2. His opponent, Jerry Alexander of Dallas, received 47.59%, or 10,970 votes.

Benesh will be sworn in as president-elect during a State Bar of Texas Board of Directors meeting on June 22, 2023, and will serve as president of the State Bar of Texas from June 2024 to June 2025.

Steve Benesh
Steve Benesh, who earned his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Texas at Austin, is a 35-year lawyer and has spent his entire legal career at Bracewell, becoming a partner in 1995. A frequent author and lecturer on legal topics, his practice is focused on business litigation and commercial disputes.

Benesh began his service to the profession over 20 years ago as a member of the Austin Bar Association, culminating in his service as Austin Bar president in 2006-2007. Thereafter, he served on the State Bar of Texas Board of Directors from 2008 to 2011 and chaired the State Bar of Texas Annual Meeting in 2014, for which he received a Presidential Citation. Since 2017, Benesh has served on the Texas Bar Foundation Board of Directors, currently serving as its chair-elect.

Benesh has twice received the Austin Bar Association President’s Award for Outstanding Service.

In other results, the following individuals were elected to the State Bar of Texas Board of Directors:

Christopher V. Popov, Houston, District 4, Place 2; Michael J. Wynne, Houston, District 4, Place 4; Shannon Quadros, Houston, District 4, Place 6; Britney E. Harrison, Dallas, District 6, Place 3; Krisi Kastl, Dallas, District 6, Place 4; Rudolph “Rudy” K. Metayer, Austin, District 9, Place 1; Rosalind V.O. Perez, Victoria, District 11; Carlo Taboada, Brownsville, District 12; Cade Browning, Abilene, District 14; and Stephen J. Venzor, El Paso, District 17.

Texas Young Lawyers Association election In the Texas Young Lawyers Association election, Hisham Masri of Dallas was elected president-elect and will serve as TYLA president from June 2024 to June 2025. Masri received 54.27% of the 4,890 votes cast, while his opponent, Cali Franks of Dallas, received 45.73%.

Hisham Masri
Hisham Masri was born and raised in the Dallas area and is the son of Middle Eastern immigrants. He is married to Victoria Mourtada and father to their two children, Celine (2 years) and Jude (4 months). After attending Southern Methodist University and Texas A&M School of Law, Masri worked for solo, small, and national firms. He serves as the North American employment counsel at Flowserve Corporation, where he contributes to the organization’s success as a legal adviser in litigation, labor and employment law, and immigration.

For the Texas Young Lawyers Association, he has served as vice president and secretary. Masri has served as the American Bar Association Young Lawyers Division district representative of North Texas and as a Dallas director and has received TYLA’s Outstanding Director and Outstanding First-Year Director awards.

He serves his community and the Texas bar and is a Texas Bar Foundation fellow, an associate in Higginbotham Inn of Court, and a volunteer judge for Plano Teen Court. Masri participates in the Lawyers Promoting Diversity Committee of the Dallas Association of Young Lawyers, from which he received the Outstanding Chair Award. His wellness activities include running, spending time with family, and playing video and board games.

The following individuals were elected to the TYLA Board of Directors:

Micah Satterwhite, Longview, District 1; Garrett Couts, Lubbock, District 3; Cali Franks, Dallas, District 5, Place 1; William Biggers, Dallas, District 5, Place 3; Katya E. Nikitina, Houston, District 6, Place 3; Nadine Ona, Beaumont, District 7; Rachael K. Jones, Round Rock, District 8, Place 1; Claire Harbert, Waco, District 9; Christy Mazurek, Fort Worth, District 10, Place 1; William E. Johnson, Flower Mound, District 11; Austin W. Stevenson, McAllen, District 13; Tiffany Sheppard, San Angelo, District 15; Jenna Castleman, San Antonio, District 18, Place 1; Alyson A. Martinez, Laredo, District 19; and Michael Hanson, Sugar Land, District 21.

There will be a runoff for the District 17 seat. Kyle McCardle and Jackson Willingham, both of Midland, were the top two vote-getters in that race. Voting will take place May 12-26.

Detailed election results are available at texasbar.com/elections.