News From Around the Bar • July/August 2026

Texas Young Lawyers Association Receives $43,440 Grant From the Texas Bar Foundation

The Texas Young Lawyers Association (TYLA) received a $43,440 grant from the Texas Bar Foundation (TBF) to create the Texas Future Lawyers Alliance (TFLA). This group will be made up of 20 undergraduate aspiring lawyers attending Texas colleges and universities who will receive a year of legal training, legal networking, career guidance, and law school admissions support. “As it stands today, financial and institutional barriers leave so many talented aspiring lawyers behind before they even have a chance to step into a law school classroom,” TYLA President Armin Salek said in a press release. “Many of these aspiring lawyers come from economically disadvantaged backgrounds and rural backgrounds. These communities also represent the individuals who are the most likely to be impacted by the access to justice gap. TYLA can fight to ensure that the legal profession is equipped with the lived experiences to represent and serve all communities by investing earlier in the pathway to the legal profession.” Salek, who took office as TYLA president in June, will lead the implementation of the project during his tenure. In addition to remote programming, TFLA members will travel to an in-person legal education experience selected from options like the State Moot Court Competition, the State Bar of Texas Annual Meeting, and the National Trial Competition, which will allow them to network and to connect with other top law students and trial advocacy competitors. All costs of their travel, lodging, meals, and activities will be covered, according to a press release. For more information about TYLA, go to tyla.org. For more information about the TBF, go to txbf.org.

LEGAL SERVICES TO THE POOR IN CIVIL MATTERS COMMITTEE ANNOUNCES PRO BONO EXCELLENCE AWARD WINNERS
The State Bar of Texas Legal Services to the Poor in Civil Matters Committee announced its 2026 Pro Bono Excellence Award winners. Judge Gloria E. Lopez, of Houston, received the Judge Merrill Hartman Pro Bono Judge Award; Penny Robe, of Richardson, received the Frank J. Scurlock Award; Garth Corbett, of Austin, received the J. Chrys Dougherty Award; and the Dallas office of O’Melveny & Myers received the W. Frank Newton Award.

LEGAL SERVICES TO THE POOR IN CRIMINAL MATTERS COMMITTEE ANNOUNCES INDIGENT DEFENSE AWARD WINNERS
The State Bar of Texas Legal Services to the Poor in Criminal Matters Committee announced that the Austin-based Capital Area Private Defender Service (CAPDS) Post-Conviction Division is the 2026 recipient of the Jeff Blackburn Award. The Bexar County Public Defender’s Office, based in San Antonio, is the 2026 recipient of the Warren Burnett Award.

UNDERSTANDING HARRIS COUNTY’S LAWPODS SYSTEM
In a recent episode of the State Bar of Texas Podcast, host Rocky Dhir welcomes Harris County Law Library Director Andre Davison to discuss Legal Access Workspace Pods (LAWPods), a project aimed to provide accessible legal help for people in Harris County. Users can access free legal support within LAWPods, which includes state-of-the-art legal databases, the ability to book free appointments with law librarians, and connections to legal aid and lawyer referral services. Dhir and Davison discuss the development of this project and stories of positive impacts since the first pod opened in May 2024. Later, they also dig into future opportunities for LAWPods, including location and staff expansion and sharing knowledge to help other areas replicate the LAWPod model to provide greater access to justice in more Texas communities. Listen to this episode at texasbar.com/podcast.

TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF LAW LEGAL CLINICS, DHR HEALTH ESTABLISH MEDICAL-LEGAL PARTNERSHIP
Texas A&M University School of Law Legal Clinics has partnered with Edinburg-based DHR Health to establish a unique medical-legal partnership (MLP) designed to assist indigent patients within its hospital system who face legal issues outside the medical setting, according to a press release. The program, called Community and Legal-Medical Alliance (CALMA), will focus on helping patients who meet certain income guidelines to overcome legal barriers that impact their health. The goal is not only to help patients, but also to strengthen DHR Health’s ability to deliver comprehensive care. To ensure support reaches those in greatest need, a patient must meet income criteria established by the Texas Access to Justice Foundation (TAJF). Once enrolled, a patient may receive legal services in the areas of estate and health planning, housing and tenant rights, and public benefit appeals. Services will be administered on-site at DHR Health’s main hospital by a team of legal access fellows and a staff attorney who will manage client intake, provide resources, and facilitate casework. CALMA is supported by a grant from the TAJF and is managed by both the Economic Justice Initiative (EJI) and Texas A&M University School of Law Legal Clinics. For more information about CALMA, email CALMA-DHR@tamu.edu.

LEGISLATIVE POLICY SUBCOMMITTEE SCHEDULED TO MEET IN AUGUST
The State Bar Legislative Policy Subcommittee is tentatively scheduled to meet during the week of August 17-21, 2026, to discuss all legislative proposals that have been properly submitted for consideration by the committee. To read the proposals, for details on the meeting date and location, or for instructions on how to provide comments to the committee, go to texasbar.com/legislativeprogram or contact the State Bar Governmental Relations Department at govt.relations@texasbar.com or 1-800-204-2222, ext. 6826.