DOJ’s Plans to Revoke Naturalizations Could Undo Hundreds of Convictions
The DOJ's accelerated plans to revoke the citizenship of hundreds of naturalized citizens who “committed fraud” in the naturalization process will rely, in part, on a provision allowing revocation when the citizen is convicted after naturalization of a crime that started or occurred before naturalization. Ironically, such a move could provide the legal predicate to invalidate the very convictions the government will use to seek denaturalization. Citizens who pled guilty to pre-naturalization crimes likely had no idea that doing so could lead to denaturalization. Unless they were warned of this risk — and in our experience they were not — their guilty pleas may now be subject to challenge as uninformed and involuntary, even after the fact.
Immigration Habeas Filings Jump 250% in North Texas After Policy Shift, Judge Says
Facing a “tsunami of litigation” driven by the Trump administration’s expansive classification of noncitizens as “applicants for admission” — making them ineligible for bond — lawyers and judges in the Northern District of Texas have “answered the call,” with attorneys stepping forward to represent immigrants on a pro bono basis and with judges working around the clock to issue timely, thoughtful orders, U.S. District Judge James Wesley Hendrix said Friday during closing remarks at the district’s annual Bench Bar Conference, held this year in Arlington.
‘People Are Definitely Going to Get Sick’: Trial Over Texas Prison Heat Awaits Ruling
Brandon Duke gazed out a glass wall overlooking downtown Austin and the Colorado River from the 33rd floor of O’Melveny & Myers’ office.
It was April 9, and he had just concluded a nine-day federal trial over a lack of air conditioning in Texas prisons. Outside, the sky hung gray from afternoon rain.
Duke was already worried about the heat inside prison walls that will only intensify in the months ahead.
P.S. — DBA Civics Camp Leaves Students Feeling ‘Presidential’
An inaugural program created to address the civics gap connected more than 130 students from five schools with judges, legislators, and a former U.S. Trade Ambassador for a real life Schoolhouse Rock experience.
“It is one thing to read about [civics], but it is important for students to learn directly from the leaders who are doing it,” Dallas Bar Association President Jonathan Childers said.
Navy Veteran-Turned Lawyer Takes on VA Policy That Denies Education Benefits
Luke Schamel became an officer in the U.S. Navy to serve his country. Now a Houston associate at Yetter Coleman, Schamel is continuing his public service in a different uniform. He is representing the Veterans of Foreign Wars on a pro bono basis in a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs that challenges a rule that petitioners say denies veterans the full education benefits that they have earned.
At the center of the case is the VA’s “break-in-service” rule, which petitioners argue improperly requires veterans to have a gap in military service before they can access the full 48 months of education benefits available under the Montgomery GI Bill and the Post-9/11 GI Bill.
Navy Veteran-Turned Lawyer Takes on VA Policy That Denies Education Benefits
Luke Schamel became an officer in the U.S. Navy to serve his country. Now a Houston associate at Yetter Coleman, he is continuing his public service in a different uniform.
Schamel is representing the Veterans of Foreign Wars on a pro bono basis in a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs that challenges a rule that petitioners say denies veterans the full education benefits that they have earned
P.S. — Barnes & Thornburg Foundation Awards $50K Grant to Dallas-Area Nonprofit
In this packed edition of P.S., we highlight the charitable giving of the Barnes & Thornburg Foundation, collectively funded by firm lawyers and staff. Each year, five firm offices are selected to direct grants to charities in their local communities. The Dallas office was chosen this year, and it awarded a $50,000 grant to Project XVI, a Dallas-area nonprofit helping children identified as belonging to at-risk communities. Their work addresses problems that most people would drive by, said Barnes & Thornburg Dallas managing partner Thomas Haskins. Read on for more about what drew the firm to Project XVI.
Also in P.S., we report on fundraising efforts to endow a scholarship in memory of the 8-year-old twin daughters of attorneys John and Lacy Lawrence who were lost in last summer’s Hill Country floods.
Plus, Dallas was the site of the 47th Annual Texas High School Mock Trial Competition, Houston prepares to host Law Rocks and more.
P.S. — AZA Draws Record Turnout for Seventh Annual Iftar, Beck Redden Sponsors Women’s History Month Event
In this edition of P.S., women across Houston’s legal community shared their career insights and celebrated each other’s growth in a Women’s History Month event sponsored by Beck Redden.
In observance of Ramadan, hundreds of guests attended an annual Iftar hosted by Ahmad, Zavitsanos & Mensing.
We also highlight a general counsel program sponsored by Dorsey & Whitney’s Dallas office that featured an all-Hispanic panel of legal professionals.
P.S. — Law Rocks Dallas Sets $94K Fundraising Record, Houston Volunteer Lawyers Honors Pro Bono Partners
In this edition of P.S., see which of your favorite attorney-led bands earned bragging rights and helped set a fundraising record with Law Rocks Dallas, a “battle of the bands” style fundraiser for local charities. In Houston, the Houston Volunteer Lawyers honored firms and attorneys making significant pro bono contributions. We also spotlight Susman Godfrey partner Krisina Zuñiga’s graduation from a national Latina leadership program and a $30,000 donation from attorney Jim Mueller honoring Michael Hurst to support pro bono legal services through the Dallas Volunteer Attorney Program.
P.S. — From the Courtroom to the Ballroom and Awards Celebrate Excellence in Public Service
In this edition of P.S., several attorneys are among the competitors in this year’s Dancing with the Ellis County Stars benefitting TBHC Foster Care and Adoption, which places children who are removed from their homes due to abuse or neglect.
Readers may remember The Texas Lawbook’s feature last year on Matt Maupin, an associate in Dykema’s San Antonio office, who rushed to join the frontline recovery efforts in the Texas Hill Country following the deadly July Fourth weekend flooding. This month, The Baylor Line is honoring Maupin with the Outstanding Young Alumni Award at its 61st Annual Hall of Fame Awards Ceremony.
And the Houston Bar Foundation recognized law firms, legal departments and individual attorneys for their pro bono and community service during the organization’s annual luncheon, where a new chair stepped into the helm.