2023-2024 TYLA President-elect Candidates
The Texas Young Lawyers Association Board of Directors approved the
nominations of Cali Franks, of Dallas, and
Hisham Masri, of Dallas, as 2023-2024 president-elect
candidates. This year, nominees for president-elect are from
metropolitan counties. Biographies of the candidates are featured here.
Interviews with the two candidates will be included in the April issue.
Votes for TYLA president-elect and district directors can be cast via
paper ballot or by voting online from April 3 to May 2. On April 3,
attorneys eligible to vote will be mailed an election packet, including
a paper ballot and campaign brochures. Attorneys may either submit their
paper ballot via mail or vote online using the information provided. The
deadline to cast ballots is 5 p.m. CDT on May 2.
Cali Franks
Dallas
Cali Franks has served on the TYLA Board
of Directors since 2019 and is currently the treasurer. She has led
several TYLA projects, including Iconic Women in Legal History
and the podcast Practice Areas 101. In recognition of her
service to Texas young lawyers, Franks was honored with the TYLA
President’s Award of Merit in 2021 and 2022.
In addition to TYLA, she is also serving her third term as an elected director for the Dallas Association of Young Lawyers and is the managing director of programming for the American Bar Association Young Lawyers Division. Franks is a fellow of the Texas Bar Foundation and Dallas Association of Young Lawyers Foundation. For her dedication to the profession, she was recognized in the American Bar Association’s On the Rise, Top 40 Young Lawyers Under 40 program in 2022.
Franks attended the University of Texas, then St. Mary’s University School of Law. She began her career practicing civil litigation in Dallas and is currently a program attorney at Lawline. Franks is active in her community, serving on the Dallas Firefighters Museum Board of Directors. When not volunteering, she enjoys traveling with her fiance, Jesse, and coming home to her rescue dogs.
Hisham Masri
Dallas
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.
2023-2024 TYLA Executive Committee Election
At the January meeting of the Texas Young Lawyers Association Board of Directors, the following members were approved to run for the specified offices. A ballot was provided to all TYLA directors, and the winner of each race is listed first below for each office.
CHAIR-ELECT
Courtney M. White
Courtney M. White is an
assistant city attorney in Amarillo, where she handles everything from
“airport” to “zoo.” She attended Wake Forest University and SMU Dedman
School of Law. In her three years as a TYLA director, White led How
Texas Courts Work, TYLA’s inaugural Wellness Retreat, and several
virtual “Roadshow” CLEs. In 2022, she was honored with a TYLA Civility
Award and a nomination for president-elect. For five years running,
Legal Aid of NorthWest Texas has recognized White with the Special
Service Award for her monthly volunteerism. White loves needlepointing
with her rescue dog, William, her rescue bunny, Harry “Harey” Styles,
and a glass of red wine nearby.
David R. Hagan
David R. Hagan has been the
elected director from District 1 for the past four years. As a director,
he has served on multiple committees and headed up several projects,
including work on a pro se guide to expunctions and non-disclosures and,
most recently, co-chairing the National Mock Trial Competition Committee
and the State Moot Court Competition Committee. Hagan is a solo
practitioner based in Longview, where he also serves on the board of
directors of the local teen court. He and his fiancee, Mallory, are the
proud pet parents of two dogs and five cats.
VICE PRESIDENT
Michael Hanson
Michael Hanson is a Fort Bend County
prosecutor and judge advocate for the Texas Army National Guard. He
serves TYLA as a director for District 21 and is president of the Fort
Bend Young Lawyers Association. In 2022, Hanson deployed to Kuwait,
supporting CENTCOM legal operations. Having practiced criminal law for
eight years, he has experience in misdemeanor, felonies, domestic
violence, and juvenile cases. Hanson has over 60 jury trials and a
passion for advocacy. In 2019, Hanson went to Africa, joining Lawyers
Without Borders to support its wildlife crime trial advocacy training.
As a side hobby, Hanson plans to raise money for water well repairs in
Malawi by trekking to Mount Everest’s Base Camp in 2023.
Ryan R. Bauerle
Ryan R. Bauerle is a partner in
Goransan Bain Ausley in Plano, where he practices family law. He serves
as the TYLA director for District 4. Bauerle is certified in family law
by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization and is a fellow in the
American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers. He is a graduate of the
LeadershipSBOT Class of 2019, serves on the State Bar of Texas Public
Affairs Committee, the Collin County Board of Directors, and is a fellow
with the Texas Bar Foundation. Bauerle lives in McKinney with his wife,
Laura, and 4-year-old twins, Blake and Kate (with baby number three
arriving this summer).
SECRETARY
Aamir Siddik
Aamir Siddik is a litigator at Vinson
& Elkins, where he helps clients in the energy industry navigate
complex contractual disputes in courts and domestic arbitrations around
the country. Siddik serves as the large city at-large director for TYLA,
where he co-chaired the Diversity, Development, and Wellness Committee
and has served on the National Trial Competition Committee for three
years. He lives in Houston with his wife, Falah, and their two adoring
cats. You can follow Siddik on LinkedIn:
linkedin.com/in/Aamir-Siddik.
Steven M. Traeger
Steven M. Traeger is a
partner in Traeger & Ricks in New Braunfels. He serves TYLA as an
at-large director and is chair of the Programming Committee. Traeger
began volunteering for the State Bar of Texas in law school as chair of
the Law Student Division and was selected to be in the LeadershipSBOT
program. He serves on the Law Practice Management Committee and as a
liaison to the Texas Center for Legal Ethics. Traeger primarily
practices real estate and criminal law, serving as a magistrate judge
for Comal County. He lives in New Braunfels with his wife, Kaitlyn, and
daughter, Adeline. Traeger is a proud Eagle Scout and a National
Association of Underwater Instructors master scuba diver.
TREASURER
Tiffany Sheppard
Tiffany Sheppard is a
trial attorney at the Mathis Law Firm in San Angelo, where she helps
injured individuals recover their damages. In addition to serving on the
State Bar of Texas Court Rules Committee, she serves as the TYLA
District 15 director and as co-chair of the TYLA Member Services
Committee. In 2022, Sheppard was co-chair of TYLA’s Civility for
All, a project funded through the Texas Bar Foundation. She was the
recipient of the TYLA President’s Award of Merit in 2021 and the TYLA
President’s Award in 2022. Sheppard also serves on the Junior League of
San Angelo Board of Directors as treasurer-elect. She and her husband,
Jairus, have two daughters, Elaina and Hannah.
Russell Shrauner
Russell Shrauner is a personal
injury attorney at the Carlson Law Firm. An at-large director for small
cities, he has served as co-chair of the TYLA Access to Justice
Committee and the Diversity, Development, and Wellness Committee.
Serving on the board, Shrauner has worked on projects that connect
indigent and unrepresented Texans with resources to help them navigate
the legal system. He has also worked—independently and with the TYLA
board—to help reduce the rates of suicide, substance use, and
unaddressed mental health issues among attorneys. Shrauner is an Aggie
(B.A. in philosophy, 2013) and Red Raider (J.D., 2017). When he’s not
working, he enjoys time with family and his great dane, Ares
(affectionately known as House Cow).
