Executive Director's Page • June 2026

Getting Revved Up for Annual Meeting in Houston

Our Annual Meeting is coming up June 11 and 12, and I can’t wait to see everyone at the Marriott Marquis in Houston. If you haven’t registered yet, make your way to texasbar.com/annualmeeting to reserve your spot by June 4. You will also be able to register on-site.

This year’s meeting will be a jam-packed two days where you can earn all the CLE you need for the year from sessions in nearly every practice area. We’ve also got great featured speakers lined up for you. We start off hearing from some judicial luminaries. Justice Evan A. Young, of the Supreme Court of Texas, and Chief Judge Jeffrey S. Sutton, of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit, will headline Thursday’s Bar Leaders Recognition Luncheon, where we’ll also honor local bars for their outstanding work with the Stars of Texas Bars Awards. Friday morning’s Bench Bar Breakfast will feature remarks from Chief Justice Jimmy Blacklock, of the Supreme Court of Texas, and other members of the judiciary.

You won’t want to miss Friday’s General Session Luncheon. Our keynote speaker is Damien Riehl, a Minneapolis attorney and technologist who will discuss how AI is reshaping legal practice, access to justice, and the judiciary. His experience in complex litigation, digital forensics, and software development has made Damien a popular speaker whose TED Talks you can find online. Also at this luncheon, we’ll thank this year’s State Bar president, Santos Vargas, for his great service and swear in G. David Smith as president for 2026-2027.

In the evenings, catch up with friends and colleagues from around the state at the various networking events our sections and alumni groups will be hosting. And finally, in between your CLEs and other events, don’t forget to stroll through the exhibits to chat with representatives from bar-related organizations as well as with representatives from legal vendors who can help your practice run more efficiently.

Want to get a jump start on planning your Annual Meeting experience? There are a couple of easy ways to do that. You can download a PDF of the digital programming guide at texasbar.com/annualmeeting. Also, after June 1, you can get our free Annual Meeting App—your mobile guide to all of the topics, speakers, exhibitors, and social events. Plan your unique itinerary by
bookmarking your favorites and always have it at your fingertips. Visit the Apple and Google Play app stores and search “State Bar of Texas Events.”

I want to thank all of our volunteers and staff who have put so much work into planning this meeting, especially Annual Meeting Committee Co-Chairs Justice Eva Guzman (ret.) and Warren W. Harris. We appreciate your efforts.

We hope to see you in Houston!

Sincerely,

TREY APFFEL
Executive Director, State Bar of Texas
Editor in Chief, Texas Bar Journal