Texas Super Lawyers has recognized 13 Beck Redden LLP attorneys in its 2015 annual award listing.  This list of top Texas attorneys, a Thomson Reuters publication, is based on peer recognition and professional achievements. Of those nominated, only five percent of the total lawyers in the state are selected for inclusion.

The following Beck Redden attorneys recognized as 2015 Texas Super Lawyers:

Austin

Eric J.R. Nichols – Business Litigation

Houston

Fields Alexander – General Litigation

David J. Beck – Business Litigation

Alistair B. Dawson – Business Litigation

Kathleen A. Gallagher – Civil Litigation: Defense

Geoffrey A. Gannaway – Business Litigation

Thomas E. Ganucheau:  Civil Litigation: Defense

David M. Gunn – Appellate

David W. Jones – Insurance Coverage

Connie Pfeiffer – Appellate

Russell S. Post – Appellate

Joe W. Redden, Jr. – Civil Litigation: Defense

Curt Webb – General Litigation

Oil prices, which held below $50/bbl in August 2015, are projected to remain below $60/bbl through 2016, writes Michael P. Lennon Jr., a partner in Mayer Brown. “As a result, the conventional belief is that oil and gas disputes will rise in the latter part of 2015 and into 2016, triggered in some measure by the banks’ next round of reserve-based redeterminations for oil and gas companies. Whether it is for this reason or some other, financial strain in the industry is likely to spin off disputes between producers and service companies and/or among working interest partners. Infrastructure and construction disputes also will be in the mix.”

His article outline three steps that could maximize opportunities for dispute avoidance. “If a dispute is not avoided, a party taking these steps should also be in a better position to manage and, hopefully, prevail in an eventual dispute,” he writes.

Read the article.

Failure to follow contractor licensing laws can have draconian consequences, writes Kraftson Caudle of Virginia on its blog.

“In California, for example, if a contractor is not licensed at all times while performing work, which includes bid submittal, then
the contractor is not entitled to any future payment and forfeits all prior payment,” the firm writes.

“In some states, like Virginia, a contractor’s good faith effort to comply with the licensing law is a factor
in determining whether that contractor may recover in equity,” the article continues.

Read the article.

Non-disclosure agreements or “NDAs” are often the first contract entered into by parties desiring to do business together, but it is important not to rush to sign a form NDA just to get the conversation started, write Emily R. Lowe and Glen Rectenwald on a Morgan Lewis blog.

They describe key provisions and potential pitfalls that should be considered when negotiating NDAs, including mutuality, requirements to label confidential information, restrictions on use and disclosure, definition and standard exclusions, residuals clause, disclaimer of consequential damages, and term.

Read the article.

When entering into outsourcing agreements, what provisions of the governing contract (such as a master services agreement) should both parties pay particular attention to? Seth A. Northrop of Robins Kaplan addresses that question in an article published on the firm’s website.

“Whether it is how each parties’ responsibilities are outlined or measured, how pricing operates, how disputes are resolved, data security and privacy issues, or what happens if the agreement terminates, spending time to understand these critical components at the front end of the agreement may be critical to building a relationship based on mutual benefit as opposed to animosity,” he writes.

The nine provisions include service definitions, pricing model and incentives, data security, IP ownership, service levels, governance and audit provisions, dispute resolutions, bankruptcy contigencies, and exit. He discusses each in detail.

Read the article.

Failure to pay proper attention to indemnification provisions in contracts can lead to painful surprises down the road, writes Michael Didriksen on the Baker Botts website.  On the other hand, a modest amount of forethought can address some of the more common defects seen in indemnification provisions.

His article focuses on commercial contracts, as opposed to M&A transactions.

He presents a sample indemnification clause that seems comprehensive and coherent, but which contains some subtle infirmities, and then analyzes potential problems with the agreement. He then presents a revised version that’s designed to avoid the problems in the first.

Read the article.

The Fourth Court of Appeals in Texas recently held that surface owners control the matrix of the underlying earth; thus, a surface owner can give permission to drill through the subsurface to an adjacent lease, reports Lauren N. Randle in The Energy Law blog published by Liskow & Lewis.

The case is Lightning Oil Co. v. Anadarko E&P Onshore, No. 04-14-00903-CV, 2014 Tex. App. Lexis 8673 (Aug. 19, 2015).

“According to the court of appeals’ decision, there was also no evidence that Anadarko would conduct a seismographic survey which could constitute a trespass under Texas law,” the article says. “Moreover, Lightning offered no evidence that Anadarko has bottomed or opened a well within Lightning’s lease. Absent proof of these actions and without the right to exclude Anadarko from drilling through Lightning’s mineral estate, Lightning’s claim of trespass failed.”

Read the article.

Five lawyers with the Austin-based business litigation firm George Brothers Kincaid & Horton LLP have earned selection to the 2016 edition of The Best Lawyers in America, the nation’s oldest and one of the most prestigious guides to the legal industry.

Name partners R. James George Jr., D. Douglas Brothers, Mark L. Kincaid and B. Russell Horton and Of Counsel Julie A. Ford are being honored based on nominations from other lawyers, votes from their peers in the same practice areas and a review by the publication’s editors.

Brothers earned individual distinction as Austin Lawyer of the Year for bet-the-company litigation. A Best Lawyers honoree since 2008, Brothers also was recognized for his work on behalf of plaintiffs in commercial litigation and legal malpractice cases. During more than 30 years as a practicing attorney, Brothers has compiled a track record of wins for both plaintiffs and defendants in trials, appeals and arbitration proceedings covering a variety of business disputes.

This is the 30th consecutive year that George, an acclaimed First Amendment lawyer, has been recognized among the country’s leading attorneys. During more than 40 years of legal work, he has argued cases before the U.S. Supreme Court and represented celebrities that include rap artist Tupac Shakur and TV personality Phil Donahue. He is recognized in Best Lawyers for his work in First Amendment cases, bet-the-company litigation and commercial litigation.

Kincaid is being honored in Best Lawyers for the second year for his extensive work in commercial and insurance litigation. The former head of a Texas state agency that advocated for insurance consumers, Kincaid has won landmark rulings before the Texas Supreme Court.

Horton is listed in the 2016 edition of Best Lawyers for his work in securities litigation, marking his third consecutive selection to the exclusive listing. He represents plaintiffs and defendants in complex commercial disputes and patent, trade secret, antitrust and securities litigation.

This is Ford’s 10th year to earn a spot in Best Lawyers based on her work in First Amendment law and litigation. She has successfully represented TV networks, publishers, record producers and newspapers for nearly three decades.

George Brothers Kincaid & Horton LLP is nationally recognized for exceptional representation in high-stakes commercial litigation including intellectual property, securities, insurance, professional liability, media and First Amendment disputes. The firm’s partners are seasoned trial lawyers who have earned the respect of clients, adversaries, and colleagues, the firm said in a release.

Four attorneys from Dallas’ Sayles Werbner are being honored among the state’s top attorneys in the 2015 Texas Super Lawyers listing, which recognizes legal leaders in various areas of the law.

Firm co-founder Richard A. “Dick” Sayles once again earned a spot on the Top 10 list based on the number of nominations he received from other Texas attorneys. This is the seventh time Sayles has been selected to the Top 10, and the sixth year in a row. He also was named among the Top 100 lawyers in Texas and the Dallas/Fort Worth area. He was chosen for his work in business litigation.

Fellow firm co-founder Mark S. Werbner also earned selection to the 2015 list of Texas’ best attorneys based on his business litigation expertise. Like Sayles, Werbner was named to the Top 100 lists for Texas and Dallas/Fort Worth, marking his 13^th consecutive appearance on each. In addition, attorney William S. Snyder marks the eighth consecutive year he’s been recognized in the prestigious annual listing for his representation of clients in business litigation matters.

Also honored is firm attorney Mark D. Strachan, earning a place on the Texas Super Lawyers listing for the fifth year. He was chosen for his work in intellectual property law. Earlier this year, Strachan worked with Sayles, Werbner and fellow firm attorney Darren P. Nicholson on behalf of client Commil USA to win a favorable ruling at the U.S. Supreme Court in one of the most closely watched patent cases to reach the nation’s highest court in years.

In August, the firm, led by Mark Werbner, helped a group of victims of overseas terrorism attacks secure a confidential settlement with Jordan-based Arab Bank in the first lawsuit in U.S. history where a foreign bank was held liable for providing material financial support to terrorists.

In a release, the firm said Sayles Werbner maintains an international reputation as a proven trial law firm in complex business litigation, intellectual property matters, life-altering personal injury cases, product safety claims and practically every type of case that requires courtroom expertise.

UBIC will unveil its new Managed Review facility located in the heart of Washington, DC’s Legal/Business District with cocktails & hors d’oeuvres on Tuesday, Sept. 29, 5-8 p.m.

The new facility is on the third floor of 1990 K Street NW in Washington.

UBIC, Inc. is a leading provider of global e-Discovery and digital forensic services. UBIC has extensive experience working with electronically stored information, and offers advanced specialization with Chinese, Japanese and Korean (CJK) languages.

“Our expertise is utilized for clients involved in cross-border litigation, corporate investigations, intellectual property disputes, and much more,” the company said in a release. “At the forefront of e-discovery innovation, UBIC’s proprietary Lit i View® platform is moving the industry from ‘fact discovery’ to ‘future discovery’ by allowing clients to analyze e-mail messages and digital communications found in big data to reveal patterns in human thought and behavior.”

Anyone wanting to attend the grand opening may contact Lindsay Kilgore online or at lindsay_kilgore@ubicna.com by Sept. 24.

RSVP for the grand opening.

Scott & Scott, LLP will present a CLE luncheon event on how participants can minimize the risk of software audits and reduce settlement dollars when facing a software audit.

The complimentary event, carrying one hour of Texas CLE credit, will be Monday, Sept. 28, beginning at noon Central time. It will be in the Belo Mansion, 2101 Ross Avenue, Dallas, TX 75201. The host will be Dallas Bar Association’s Computer Law Section.

The presenter will be Robert Scott, managing partner of Scott & Scott.

Topics will include:

• Importance of selecting releases of liability when negotiating software agreements or support renewals
• Best practices for software asset management
• How to successfully defend software audits

Register for the event.

When an organization is contemplating a large commercial agreement or outsourcing arrangement covering global operations across multiple service locations, subsidiaries, or affiliates, it should consider the advantages and potential pitfalls of using a single global agreement versus local (or “site-specific”) agreements to govern the transaction, writes Emily R. Lowe in an article published in a Morgan Lewis blog.

She outlines the benefits of global agreements and of site-specific agreements and discusses some potential pitfalls.

Lowe also describes effective general approach that can benefit from the advantages of using a global agreement while avoiding its potential pitfalls: entering into a single global agreement applicable to all services from a single service provider that either requires or permits (as appropriate) the divisions, subsidiaries, or affiliates of the parties to enter into separate local agreements.

Read the article.

The Texas-based Orsinger, Nelson, Downing & Anderson, LLP, announces that T. Hunter Lewis has rejoined the family law boutique as an associate in the Dallas office.

A family law litigator and appellate attorney, Lewis began his legal career at the firm in 2010, before moving to Kinser & Bates LLP in 2012. His practice is focused on divorce; child custody, possession and support matters; complex marital property division; pre- and post-marital agreements; questions of paternity; and LGBT-related issues.

“We were very happy to be able to bring Hunter back to our firm,” says firm co-founder Keith Nelson. “Having worked with him previously, we already know he is an exceptionally talented attorney who understands the excellent client service we’ve established at this firm and his experience will further complement our existing expertise in family law appellate cases.”

Lewis has been selected three times to the Texas Super Lawyers listing of the leading attorneys in the state based on his work in Family Law, a unique accomplishment for an attorney of his age. He also was selected to the 2016 The Best Lawyers in America listing and is a member of The National Advocates: Top 40 Under 40.

He is a frequent author and lecturer on Family Law topics and is active in local and statewide Family Law organizations, holding multiple leadership positions in the Family Law Section of the Dallas Bar Association and serving on the Legislative Bill Review and Auction committees of the Texas Family Law Foundation. He also serves on the Mock Trial Committee of the Dallas Association of Young Lawyers.

Lewis is a 2010 graduate of Baylor University School of Law. He earned his bachelor’s degree from Baylor University in 2007.

With 13 lawyers and offices in Dallas, San Antonio and Frisco, Texas, Orsinger, Nelson, Downing & Anderson, LLP, is one of the largest firms in Texas focused solely on trials and appeals in family law cases, the firm said in a release. Five partners are Fellows in the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers. Every firm partner is a member of the Texas Academy of Family Law Specialists and all are Board Certified in Family Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. Orsinger holds additional board certification in Civil Appellate Law.

Diodes Inc. (Nasdaq: DIOD) and Pericom Semiconductor Corp. (Nasdaq: PSEM) have entered into an Agreement and Plan of Merger that provides for the acquisition of Pericom by Diodes in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $400 million.

The boards of both companies have approved the transaction, which is still subject to approval by Pericom’s shareholders, as well as other customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals. It is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2015.

Latham & Watkins represents Pericom Semiconductor in the transaction with a corporate team led from the firm’s Silicon Valley office by partner Tad Freese, with associates Chad Rolston, Benjamin Liss and Jeremy Gibb. Advice has also been provided on intellectual property matter by partner Anthony Klein and associates Isabel Chon and Nicole Fritz; on tax matters by partner Grace Chen and associate Jessica Chen; on employee benefits matters by partner Jay Metz and associate Lilly Fang; and on antitrust matters by partner Joshua Holian. All of the attorneys are based in Silicon Valley, except for Grace Chen and Joshua Holian who are based in San Francisco.

Contracts with tech vendors increasingly include requirements of cyber-risk insurance coverage, but where the value and risks associated with the data to be shared with or created by the vendor warrant such a requirement, you should probably take a look at the coverage – and not just a certificate of coverage – to see what you’re getting, writes Jon Neiditz in Kilpatrick Townsend’s Big Data Tech Law blog.

First of all, he advises, always make sure you know what if any critical digital assets other than personally-identifiable information (PII) are covered.

He categorizes the questions as general, amount and scope of coverage, insurance claims process and dispute resolution, and provisions regarding the defense of an underlying claim or lawsuit.

Read the article.

The Employment Law Alliance will present a complimentary webinar titled Webinar: Navigating New Legal Developments on Same-Sex Marriage, Transgender Rights and Pregnancy Discrimination: What Employers Need to Know.” The intended audience is in-house counsel, human resource professionals, and corporate executives and business owners.

The 90-minute webinar will be Thursday, Sept. 17, beginning at 3 p.m. Eastern time.

Topics will include:

• The transitioning legal landscape of transgender rights in the workplace
• Practical tips for accommodating transgender employees
• Key issues facing employers regarding same-sex marriage and employment
• The most recent developments in the law regarding pregnancy discrimination  and best practices for the treatment of pregnant workers

Register for the webinar.

Farrell Fritz’s Director of Finance, Michael (Mike) L. Fallarino, will be a recipient of Long Island Business News’ “CFO of the Year” award. He will be honored at a reception on Thursday, September 24, 2015 at 6 p.m. at Crest Hollow Country Club in Woodbury, NY.

Fallarino, a Levittown, NY, resident, joined Farrell Fritz in 1996. He has in-depth experience in all financial matters, including financial statements and analyses, budgeting, billing, accounts receivable, accounts payable, payroll, benefit administration, insurance and accounting systems, the firm said in a release.

The release continues:

Outside of work, Mike supports the Ronald McDonald House of Long Island. As current vice chairman, he sits on several committees, including the executive, finance and audit committees. Prior to joining the board of directors in 2012, he was a member of the business advisory board. Mike has also been an active member in his community, serving on many boards and organizations.

The CFO of the Year program will recognize Long Island’s top financial officers for their outstanding fiscal leadership and asset management, contributions to their company’s performance, their contribution and commitment to their profession and organizations, as well as their involvement in the community.

Minimum license quantities can become critical in an audit by Oracle, writes Julie Machal-Fulks in an article published in Scott & Scott’s Oracle Audit Blog.

For many Oracle products, like Database, the license agreement or ordering documents contain minimum license requirements. Often, quantities of licenses necessary to satisfy the minimum licensing terms varies based on the edition of the license in question. For instance, she writes, customers are required to purchase additional Oracle Database Standard One Edition and Standard Edition Named User licenses in increments of 5. Database Enterprise Edition requires customers to purchase 25 Named User licenses in increments of 25 per processor.

Read the article.

Hogan Lovells announcse that Peter H. Walsh will join the firm as a partner in the Litigation & Arbitration practice group, co-located in the firm’s Minneapolis and Denver offices.

Walsh joins Hogan Lovells from UnitedHealth Group (UHG), where he was Senior Deputy General Counsel and Chief of Litigation and Government Investigations. Before that he served as an Assistant United States Attorney in Denver.

“Peter’s significant experience as a public-company executive and government official and his proven ability to provide practical solutions to clients will be an invaluable asset to the firm,” said Dennis Tracey, head of Hogan Lovells’ Litigation practice for the Americas. “He is a strong and versatile litigator with true leadership skills and an extraordinary track record.”

During his eight-year tenure as a senior executive at UHG, a Fortune 14 international healthcare company, Walsh gained extensive crisis management and healthcare experience, the firm said in a release. He handled the most significant legal matters, including the largest stock-option backdating investigation in U.S. history, numerous congressional and government investigations and hundreds of cases ranging from regulatory enforcement proceedings to complex securities and healthcare class actions.

“Peter has earned tremendous respect in the Minnesota business community and beyond. He will be a valuable asset to our Minneapolis office and to our clients. I’m thrilled he’s part of the Hogan Lovells team,” said Norm Coleman, former Minnesota U.S. Senator and Of Counsel with Hogan Lovells.

As a prosecutor in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado in Denver, Walsh obtained convictions in a variety of high-profile securities, tax, accounting, and other economic-crimes investigations and jury trials. Throughout his career, Walsh has worked closely with numerous federal and state regulators and law enforcement agencies, from the SEC, FBI and IRS to state Attorney’s General and local police.

“As a Minneapolis resident who spent nine years practicing law in Denver, Peter is well-equipped to collaborate with teams in both offices seamlessly,” said Cole Finegan, Hogan Lovells’ regional managing partner for the Americas as well as managing partner for the Denver Office. “His familiarity with the companies, challenges, and opportunities in both regions is truly unique.”

Walsh earned his B.A. in History from Middlebury College and his J.D. from Harvard Law School. He began his legal career in 1997 at Hogan & Hartson, which later became Hogan Lovells.

About Hogan Lovells

Hogan Lovells is a leading global legal practice providing business-oriented legal advice and high-quality service across its exceptional breadth of practices to clients around the world.

“Hogan Lovells” or the “firm” is an international legal practice that includes Hogan Lovells US LLP and Hogan Lovells International LLP. For more information, see www.hoganlovells.com.

D4, LLC has posted an on-demand webinar that explores ethical duties of counsel to understand clients’ use of technology, to find the right ESI, and to negotiate scope effectively.

The webinar’s panelists discuss attorneys’ ethical obligation to understand their client’s use of technology, as it relates to investigation, preservation, and analysis of data during discovery.

Viewers will learn ethical considerations of:

• Competence to identify and filter the right information
• Negotiating a proportionate scope of discovery
• Supervision of lawyers, vendors, and staff
• Using technology to manage costs
• Balancing fairness with “zealous advocacy”

Watch the on-demand webinar.