TBJ July/August 2023
News From Around The Bar
Above: Houston Bar Association Past President Christopher V. Popov presents the gavel to 2023-2024 President Diana Gomez during the HBA’s annual dinner on May 11 in Houston. Photo by Deborah Wallace, Barfield Photography.
Diana Gomez
Sworn in as
First Latina
President of
Houston Bar
Association
Diana Gomez was sworn in as the 2023-2024 president of the Houston Bar
Association, or HBA, during the HBA’s annual dinner on May 11. She
is the sixth woman and the first Latina to hold this office in the
HBA’s 153-year history, according to a press release. Gomez
succeeds Past President Christopher V. Popov, of Vinson & Elkins. Gomez,
a shareholder in Chamberlain, Hrdlicka, White, Williams & Aughtry in
Houston, focuses on complex labor and employment disputes and is a trial
attorney with extensive experience in civil lawsuits in state and
federal courts. “I am honored to serve as HBA president,”
said Gomez in a press release. “As lawyers, we have the privilege
to serve our community, our profession, and talented young minds. This
year, we plan to focus on attorney engagement and increasing access to
justice with initiatives like the HBA’s first-ever multi-practice
bench bar conference and installing L.A.W. (Legal Access Workspace) pods
to bring our downtown law library services to our county
at-large.” Gomez has served as the HBA’s employment attorney
and has served on its board of directors since 2014. She has chaired
numerous HBA committees, including the Law and the Media Committee, the
HBA Dispute Resolution Committee, the Houston Lawyer Referral Service,
and the Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Committee. For more information on
the Houston Bar Association, go to hba.org.
ST. MARY’S LAW RECEIVES TEXAS BAR FOUNDATION GRANT FOR
PUBLIC SERVICE FELLOWSHIPS
St. Mary’s University School of Law’s pro bono efforts were
bolstered by aid from the Texas Bar Foundation. A $15,000 grant will
support six law students who work in unpaid positions with legal service
providers for low-income clients and government agencies. “Without
the fellowship, I would not have been able to complete my summer
placement,” St. Mary’s Law student Leslie Espiricueta said
in a press release. “As a first-generation student from a
low-income background, pursuing my passions is a luxury I am usually
unable to afford. The fellowship let me do something I loved during the
summer without having to worry about how I was going to pay my rent or
eat for the week.” In 2021, St. Mary’s Law students recorded
more than 13,300 pro bono and community service hours. Several of the
students spend their summers working with nonprofits or government
agencies. Funding from the Texas Bar Foundation will support students
and encourage and promote legal assistance to poor and disadvantaged
people while also enhancing the ethical and professional practice of
law.
SUPREME COURT OF TEXAS APPROVES FORMS THAT HELP TEXANS CREATE
THEIR OWN WILLS
The Supreme Court of Texas debuted new forms that allow individuals
representing themselves to create a will. The forms are the result of a
change in state law passed by the 84th Texas Legislature and signed by
the governor and assist a person who is single, married, widowed, or
divorced and those with or without children in creating a basic will.
The forms are available in English and bilingual English and Spanish
versions. The forms were given preliminary approval by the court in
September and disseminated for public comment. After receiving and
analyzing the comments, the court granted formal approval finalizing the
forms on May 5. The forms can be found at www.txcourts.gov/forms.
ADVOCATES FOR COMMUNITY TRANSFORMATION TO EXPAND IN FORT
WORTH WITH GRANT FROM TEXAS BAR FOUNDATION
The Texas Bar Foundation, or TBF, awarded a $34,485 grant to
Dallas-based Advocates for Community Transformation, or ACT, to increase
its casework capacity in Fort Worth, according to a press release. This
grant, the largest ACT has received from the TBF, will help ACT hire a
community advocate, essential for the development of casework. Community
advocates educate residents about their rights, explain ACT’s free
legal services, and build partnerships with community organizations and
leaders, police, and other local nonprofits. ACT and its clients partner
with volunteer attorneys from Dallas-Fort Worth law firms to bring peace
and safety to neighborhoods.
VOLUNTEER LEGAL SERVICES OF CENTRAL TEXAS RECEIVES GRANT FROM
TEXAS BAR FOUNDATION
Volunteer Legal Services of Central Texas, or VLS, received a $20,000
grant from the Texas Bar Foundation, one of the nation’s largest
charitably funded bar foundations, to continue its work of providing pro
bono legal services to low-income survivors of domestic violence. With
this grant, VLS will assist those affected by domestic violence, aiming
to empower them to end violent relationships, begin the process of
divorce, and establish custody and child-support orders to protect their
children.
AUSTIN BAR ASSOCIATION LAUNCHES PODCAST ON IMPORTANCE OF
DIVERSITY IN LEADERSHIP POSITIONS
The Austin Bar Association was awarded a $15,000 grant from the
Texas Bar Foundation to start a podcast dedicated to highlighting the
value of diversity in leadership positions in the Austin legal
community, according to a press release. The podcast, titled Council
of Firsts, is another step toward making the Austin Bar Association
a more inclusive and equitable organization. The podcast premiered on
April 18 and featured Velva Price, the Austin Bar Association’s
first African American female president, who currently serves as
district clerk for Travis County. The podcast is available on Apple
Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and wherever you get podcasts.
TBJ