85S12230 JGH-D
By: Anderson of McLennan H.R. No. 273
R E S O L U T I O N
WHEREAS, The law firm of Naman, Howell, Smith and Lee is
celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2017, and this milestone is
indeed deserving of special recognition; and
WHEREAS, One of the oldest law practices in Texas, the firm
was founded in 1917 in Waco, and it has since expanded to encompass
offices in Austin, Fort Worth, and San Antonio, allowing it to
engage in a broad statewide practice extending all the way from the
Red River to the Rio Grande Valley; and
WHEREAS, Today, Naman, Howell, Smith and Lee represents a
wide variety of clients in many areas of law, including litigation,
business, estate planning, telecommunications, tax, real estate,
oil and gas, banking, tax exempt financing, intellectual property,
practice before state agencies, labor and employment, and
agriculture, as well as the representation of cities and other
local governmental entities; and
WHEREAS, Many attorneys from this storied firm have been
active in the State Bar of Texas and other professional
associations; Cullen Smith and Jim Bowmer have served as presidents
of the state bar, Wilford Naman was the chair of the state bar's
board of directors, and Mr. Smith and Roy Barrett were each former
presidents of the Texas Young Lawyers Association; Hilton H. Howell
and Hayes Fuller served as presidents of the Texas Association of
Defense Counsel, and a number of the firm's attorneys have held
membership on the boards of the state bar and the TYLA; moreover,
many have held the office of president of their local bar
associations; and
WHEREAS, Several members of the firm have established
distinguished records in public service; before joining Naman,
Howell, Smith and Lee, George Cowden served as a Texas state
representative, chair of the State Board of Insurance, and chair of
the Public Utility Commission; Jerry "Nub" Donaldson also served in
the Texas House of Representatives, and David Sibley served in the
Texas Senate; after retiring from the firm, George Chase became an
associate justice of the 10th Court of Appeals in Waco; and
WHEREAS, Seven members of Naman, Howell, Smith and Lee have
been elected to fellowship in the American College of Trial
Lawyers, an invitation-only honor for exceptional attorneys who
have demonstrated the very highest standards of trial advocacy,
ethical conduct, integrity, professionalism, and collegiality; the
firm's lawyers who have received this prestigious recognition are
Wilford Naman, Jim Bowmer, Bob Burleson, Louis Muldrow, Roy
Barrett, Larry Brady, and Larry Warren; and
WHEREAS, The 44th largest law practice in Texas, Naman,
Howell, Smith and Lee was selected in 2015 by American Lawyer Media
and Martindale-Hubbell as one of the nation's Top Ranked Law Firms,
a distinction achieved by only about one percent of the nearly
254,000 firms evaluated; and
WHEREAS, The practice's current president, Hayes Fuller,
follows in the footsteps of past presidents Cullen Smith, J. Rodney
Lee, Albert Witcher, Wesley Filer, and Roy Barrett; Mr. Barrett
serves as chairman of the board and is ably assisted by a
member-elected executive committee composed of Keith Gamel and
Clark Aspy from the Austin office, Charles Mitchell from Fort
Worth, Ben Selman and Jordan Mayfield from Waco, and Larry Warren
from San Antonio; and
WHEREAS, The lawyers in the firm's Austin office include
Clark Aspy, Cliff Blount, Clifton Bowling, Whitney Broadwater,
George Cowden, Dennis Donley, Bradley Douglas, Michael Duncan,
Keith Gamel, James Howard, Rachel Heckelman, Curt Kurhajec, Jay
Lea, David LeBas, Steve Morris, Stephanie Potter, Chris Sayers,
J. Baird Smith, and Frank Tuttle; and
WHEREAS, Representing the firm in Fort Worth are Jennifer
Andrews, Lindsay Daniel, Grant Liser, Sandra Liser, Charles
Mitchell, Shane O'Dell, Ray Palmer, and Jackie Robinson; and
WHEREAS, The legal staff in the San Antonio office includes
Georgina Buckley, Mark Cooper, J. Mark Craun, Erik Krudop,
J. K. Leonard, Averie Maldonado, Mike Myers, Steve Navarro, David
Ortega, James Parker, Karl T. Rivas, Andrew Stamper, and Larry
Warren; and
WHEREAS, The practice's original office in Waco is
represented by Jeff Armstrong, Roy Barrett, Charles Barrow, Nick
Bray, Jerry Campbell, Cara Chase, Andrew Clark, Wesley Filer, Hayes
Fuller, Kerry Haliburton, John Hawkins, Trenton Hood, Paul Hubbard,
Kyle Knas, Robert Little, Jordan Mayfield, Nancy Morrison, Kristen
Mynar, John Palmer, Lindsey Philpott, Neal Pirkle, Dan Pleitz, Andy
Powell, Jeanine Rispoli, Joe Rivera, Stephanie Schwab, Ben Selman,
Laura Swann, Cullen Smith, Tod Swann, Vicky Trompler, and Albert
Witcher; and
WHEREAS, Since its inception, Naman, Howell, Smith and Lee
has rendered vital service to its clients throughout the Lone Star
State, and its current partners and associates may indeed take
pride in the legacy of legal excellence that has been built by the
firm over the course of the past century; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 85th Texas
Legislature, 1st Called Session, hereby congratulate Naman,
Howell, Smith and Lee on its centennial and extend to all those
associated with the firm sincere best wishes for continued success;
and, be it further
RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
prepared for the firm as an expression of high regard by the Texas
House of Representatives.