Memorials
Submit a memorial at texasbar.com/memorials or call (512) 427-1830. For information on closing a deceased attorney’s practice, go to www.texasbarcle.com/materials/closingapractice.html.
James D. “Jim” Parish
Parish, 84, of Katy, died December 23,
2019. He served in the U.S. Marine Corps from 1953 to 1957. Parish
received his law degree from the University of Houston Law Center and
was admitted to the Texas Bar in 1971. He was admitted to practice
before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit in 1973 and the
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas in 1973. Parish
took depositions as far away as Taipei, Taiwan, and tried a child
custody case in the Central African Republic in 1975. He was a member of
Phi Alpha Delta Law Fraternity, the State Bar of Texas Family Law
Section, the State Bar of Texas Business Law Section, and the Houston
Bar Association. Parish organized billfishing tournaments for over 20
years as the Hocker Parish Carroll Billfishing Tournament. He enjoyed
scuba diving and traveling in the U.S. and abroad. Parish is survived by
his wife of 38 years, Barbara Parish; sons, James D. “Jimmy” Parish Jr.
and Gene Lambert; brother, Larry Parish; and sister, Claudie Palmer.
Robert Owen “Buck” Harris III
Harris, 76, of Killeen, died September
26, 2019. He served in the U.S. Army from January 1968 to May 1973.
Harris received his law degree from Baylor Law School and was admitted
to the Texas Bar in 1976. He was a partner in Harris, Holbrook &
Peebles in Killeen from 1975 to 1979 and in private practice at the Law
Office of Robert O. Harris in Killeen from 1979 to 2011 and at the Law
Office of Robert O. Harris in Belton from 2012 to 2019. Harris was
president of the Bell County Bar Association. He is survived by his wife
of 28 years, Suzanne Harris; son, Baine Brock; daughters, Lee Harris,
Courtney Harris, and Amity Coose; and four grandchildren.
Greg Copeland
Copeland, 71, of Houston, died October
27, 2019. He received his law degree from the University of Texas School
of Law and was admitted to the Texas Bar in 1973. Copeland was a trial
lawyer at Baker & Botts in Houston from 1972 to 2013. He was the
head of the Baker & Botts Energy Litigation Practice Group and a
member of the Executive Committee. Copeland enjoyed hiking, snow skiing,
and swimming. He is survived by his wife, Rebecca Copeland; son, Todd
Copeland; daughter, Rebecca Copeland Bajgier; and two grandchildren.
Lindley Garrison Beckworth Jr.
Beckworth, 76, of Longview, died
July 7, 2019. He received his law degree from the University of Texas
School of Law and was admitted to the Texas Bar in 1968. Beckworth was
an assistant district attorney in the Gregg County District Attorney’s
Office, a partner in Whitehead and Beckworth in Longview, and later in
private practice in Longview. He served as vice president of the Gregg
County Bar Association, on the Texas Bar Journal Board of Editors for 13
years, and as district director of the UT Austin Law Alumni Association.
Beckworth served on the Longview Chamber of Commerce and was vice
president of the Longview Economic Development Corporation, chairman of
the Longview Long Range Water Planning Commission, member of the Special
Health Resources for Texas board and the Amtrak Visiting Committee
board. He had special interests in science, technology, economic
development, and the music industry where he made various important
contributions over his lifetime. In 2015, the Martha and Gary Beckworth
Endowment for Excellence Scholarship in Law was established at the
University of Texas School of Law. Beckworth is survived by his wife of
53 years, Martha Brindley Beckworth; daughters, Melissa Beckworth
Rabalais and Allison Beckworth Readinger; mother, Eloise Carter
Davidson; brother, John Barney Beckworth; sister, Linda Louise
Beckworth; and four grandchildren.
Timoteo F. “Tim”
González
González, 68, of Dallas, died
October 25, 2019. He received his law degree from Southern Methodist
University School of Law and was admitted to the Texas Bar in 1977.
González was a corporate attorney for Southwestern Bell/AT&T in
Dallas and Austin in the 1970s and 1980s, a corporate attorney for the
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation in Dallas during the 1990s, an
attorney with Gonzalez Law Office in Dallas during the 1990s, and a
municipal judge in Dallas during the 2000s. He was a member of the
Dallas Bar Association, Texas Municipal Courts Association, and founder
and president of the Mexican American Bar Association of Texas. González
was a certified mediator in family, civil, and child-protective services
cases. He was a member of Leadership?Dallas. González enjoyed golfing
and traveling. He is survived by his wife of 39 years, Zaida F.
González; sons, Timoteo Jose González and Shane González; brothers, Omar
González and Enrico González; sisters, Priscilla Garland and Lisa
Livingston; four grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren.
Sean Cody
Cody, 52, of Houston, died November 22,
2019. He served in the U.S. Army. Cody received his law degree from the
University of Kentucky College of Law and was admitted to the Texas Bar
in 1998. He practiced at the Law Firm of Sean Cody. Cody was a gun
enthusiast and promoted Second Amendment rights. He loved his family,
guns, watches, and cigars—in that order. Cody is survived by his wife,
Jennifer Cody, and sons, Nathan Cody and Jonathan Cody.
Rick Haan
Haan, 41, of Dallas, died September 14,
2019. He received his law degree from Texas Tech University School of
Law and was admitted to the Texas Bar in 2006. Haan was an associate of
Thompson & Knight in Dallas from 2006 to 2015 and a partner in the
firm from 2015 to 2019. He was the top scorer on the July 2006 Texas Bar
Exam. Haan was devoted to his children and dedicated and loyal to his
clients and family. He was an avid fan of the Michigan State University
Spartans. Haan is survived by his wife of 15 years, Adrienne Haan; son,
Luke Haan; daughters, Emily Haan and Julia Haan; father, Richard Haan;
mother, Mary Haan; brothers, Eric Haan and Lonnie Haan; and sisters,
Lisa Davis, Renee Tilley, Rachel Neff, and Mariah Haan.
J.
Leon Lebowitz
Lebowitz, 98, of Austin, died
January 11, 2020. He received his law degree from Baylor Law School, his
LL.M. from New York University School of Law, and was admitted to the
Texas Bar in 1943. Lebowitz served in the U.S. Army from 1943 to 1945.
He was a professor at Baylor Law School in Waco from 1946 to 1955 and at
the University of Texas School of Law in Austin from 1956 to 2000,
retiring as the Joseph C. Hutcheson Professor Emeritus in Law. Lebowitz
was a founding and active member of what is now the State Bar of Texas
Business Law Section. He was known for his scholarship, kindness, and
commitment to social justice. Lebowitz was a leader in the Austin Jewish
community and was involved in numerous civic organizations. He is
survived by his wife of 71 years, Elaine Lebowitz; son, attorney Brian
E. Lebowitz; daughter, attorney Amy Lebowitz Greenspan; sisters, Bernice
Beckerman and Shirley Warshaw; three grandchildren; and two
great-grandchildren.
Robert J. Hearon Jr.
Hearon, 89, of Austin, died December
26, 2019. He received his law degree from the University of Texas School
of Law and was admitted to the Texas Bar in 1954. Hearon served in the
U.S. Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps from 1955 to 1957. He was an
attorney with Graves Dougherty Hearon & Moody in Austin from 1954 to
2011. Hearon received the Austin Bar Association Distinguished Lawyer
Award in 2009. He is remembered for his witty sense of humor and
dedication to excellence. Hearon was a natural leader. He is survived by
his wife, Genevieve Tarlton Hearon; sons, Reed Hearon, and Paul Reddam;
daughters, Tarlton Gaun and Anne Rambo; and five grandchildren.
Bobby D. Burnett Jr.
Burnett, 74, of Munday, died November
14, 2019. He received his law degree from Texas Tech University School
of Law and was admitted to the Texas Bar in 1971. Burnett served in the
U.S. Army Reserve with the Transportation Corps from 1971 to 1975 and
was honorably discharged as a captain. He was in private practice in
Knox City from 1971 to 1973 and in Munday from 1973 to 2014; was elected
county attorney of Knox County from 1972 to 1989 and again from 1992 to
2010; and was appointed district attorney for the 50th Judicial District
in October 1989, was elected in 1990, and declined to seek reelection.
Burnett served as county attorney pro tem for King County from 1989 to
2000 and as district judge for the 50th Judicial District from 2015 to
2019. He was a director of First National Bank in Munday and the
president and sole stockholder of Knox County Abstract Company in
Benjamin. Burnett was an avid reader of history, especially of Texas and
the Civil War. He was a fifth-generation landowner and rancher with a
focus on wildlife conservation. Burnett enjoyed golfing. He is survived
by his wife of 51 years, Judy Burnett; daughters, Christine Jost and
Laura Burnett; sister, Belle Grill; and a granddaughter.
R.
Scott Summerfield
Summerfield, 75, of Santa Fe, New
Mexico, died November 20, 2019. He received his law degree from the
University of Illinois College of Law and was admitted to the Texas Bar
in 1971. Summerfield served in the U.S. Air Force Judge Advocate
General’s Corps from 1968 to 1996 and achieved the rank of colonel. He
was admitted to practice in Illinois in 1969. Summerfield was an
administrative law judge at the New Mexico State Personnel Office in
Santa Fe from 2000 to 2013. He was a member of the Boy Scouts of America
and the Sons of the American Revolution. Summerfield is survived by his
wife of 51 years, Jane Summerfield, and daughter, Shelley
Summerfield.
Oscar Cavazos
Cavazos, 98, of Raymondville, died
January 14, 2020. He served in the U.S. Army Air Corps from 1941 to
1945. Cavazos received his law degree from the University of Texas
School of Law and was admitted to the Texas Bar in 1951. He was in
private practice from 1951 to 2016 and served as Raymondville city
attorney from 1976 to 1986. Cavazos served on a State Bar of Texas
Grievance Committee from 1978 to 1981. He received the State Bar of
Texas Hispanic Issues Section Reynaldo G. Garza Lifetime Achievement
Award in 1998. Cavazos enjoyed Texas Longhorns football and weekends at
South Padre Island. He is survived by his wife of 63 years, Estela
Cavazos; son, Michael Cavazos; daughters, Terri Cavazos, Gloria Hooley,
and Cathy Cavazos Verduzco; sister, Minerva Jones; four grandchildren;
and one great-grandchild.TBJ
