LEGAL PRACTICE:
Admitted to State Bar of Texas, 1980
Admitted to State Bar of Colorado, 1992
Partner, Bayless & Stokes, 1983 to present
Board Certified in Civil Trial Law by Texas Board of Legal Specialization, 1986; Recertified in 1991, 1996, 2001, 2006, and 2011
Board Certified in Civil Trial Law by National Board of Trial Advocacy, 1993; Recertified in 1998, 2003, and 2008
Board Certified by National Board of Civil Pretrial Practice Advocacy, 2012
Admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court; U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Fifth, Ninth, and Tenth Circuits; and the Texas U.S. District Courts
PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS AND ACTIVITIES:
State Bar of Texas
Women in the Profession Committee, 1991-1993
Houston Bar Association
Director, 1988-1994; 1995-1999
President's Award for Outstanding Service, 1988-89
Houston Lawyer Referral Service, Inc.
Chair and President, 1995-1996
Alternate Dispute Resolution Committee
Chair and President, Dispute Resolution Center, 1992-1993
Judicial Liaison Committee
Chair, 1991-92
Tennis Tournament Committee, 1983-1985
Chair, 1985-1989
Houston Lawyer Editorial Board, 1994-1998
Guest Editor, Special Historical Issue: 125 years of Justice, Service, Professionalism (September/October 1995)
Pictoral Roster Committee, Chair, 1998-1999
Speakers Bureau Committee, Chair, 1997-1998
Long Range Planning Committee, 1994-1995
Finance Committee, 1993-1994, 1995-1996, 1997-1998
HBA-HYLA Harris County Bench Book Committee, 1991-1998
HBA Bench/Bar Conference Committee, 1993, 1995
CLE Committee, 1985-1992
Membership Services Committee, 1992-1993
Staff & Staffing Committee, 1992-1993
Buildings and Facilities Committee, 1988-1989
Master, American Inns of Court, Garland Walker Inn of Court, 1995-1999
Bar Association of the Fifth Federal Circuit
fellow, Texas Bar Foundation
fellow, Houston Bar Foundation
LEGAL TEACHING POSITIONS:
Adjunct Professor, Pre-Trial Litigation, University of Houston, Spring and Fall, 1996
SPEAKER:
“Receiverships and Bankruptcy in Divorce”, Family Law Practice Seminar, University of Houston, 2000
“Collecting Judgments”, Houston Bar Association, Spring Seminar, 2000
“Bankruptcy in Divorce”, 25th Annual State Bar of Texas Advanced Family Law Course 1999
“When Worlds Collide Divorce vs. Bankruptcy”, 14th Annual Farm, Ranch and Agri-Business Bankruptcy Institute, Texas Tech University School of Law, 1998
“Divorce and Bankruptcy”, 2nd Annual University of Texas Marital Property Institute, 1998
“Bankruptcy meets State Court”, 17th Annual University of Texas Bankruptcy Conference, 1998
“Divorce-Marital Obligations in Bankruptcy”, 23rd Annual Stetson University School of Law Bankruptcy Law & Practice Seminar, Florida, 1998
“Dynamics Between State Court Actions and Bankruptcy Proceedings; Abstention; Impact of Bankruptcies on State Court Receiverships; Section 544(b) Voiding Power”, 23rd Annual Stetson University School of Law Bankruptcy Law & Practice Seminar, Florida, 1998
“Bankruptcy and Divorce”, 16th Annual University of Texas Bankruptcy Conference, 1997
"Collecting Judgments"; Houston Bar Association, Spring Seminar, 1997
"Divorce & Bankruptcy"; Houston Bar Association, Spring Seminar, 1996
"Collecting Judgments"; Houston Bar Association, Spring Seminar, 1995
"Using the Turnover Statute to Collect Your Hard-Earned Money"; South Texas College of Law; Family Law for the General Practitioner and Legal Assistant, 1995
"Turnover Documents"; University of Houston, Collection: Drafting Documents for a Collections Practice, 1993
"Fraudulent Transfers: Elements, Pleadings, Proof and Remedies"; University of Houston, Collecting Debts and Judgments Institute, San Antonio and Houston, 1991; Dallas and Houston, 1992; Houston, 1993; Houston, 1994
"Fraudulent Transfers"; State Bar of Texas, Advanced Creditors' Rights Seminar, Dallas, 1991
"Counteracting the Abusive Debtor's `Estate Planning'"; Houston Bar Association, Spring Seminar, 1991
"Use of Receiverships in Judgment Collection"; Houston Bar Association, Spring Seminar, 1990
"Trustee Powers Under Bankruptcy"; Oklahoma Bar Association, 4th Annual Advanced Bankruptcy Seminar, 1989
"How to Find, Prove and Set Aside Fraudulent Transfers"; Houston Bar Association, Fall Seminar, 1987; American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, Houston, 1987; Houston Bar Association, Family Law Section, 1987
PUBLICATIONS:
Fraudulent Transfers in Texas, 39-OCTHous.Law.28
Arbitration: Texas Supreme Court Orders Enforcement of Arbitration Agreement, 33-FEBHous.Law8
FED. Civil Procedure: Fifth Circuit Examines Documentation Needed to Support Attorney’s Fees, 33-DECHous.Law9
Sexual Harassment: Fifth Circuit Confirms Reasonable Person Standard in Title VII Hostile Work Environment Cases, 33-AUGHous.Law21
Employment Law: Supreme Court Clarifies Impact of After-Acquired Evidence of Terminated Employee’s Wrongdoing in Discrimination Actions, 32-APRHous.Law14
Fraudulent Conveyances in Texas, The Houston Lawyer, January-February, 1988
Olivarez v. Broadway Hardware, Inc.: The Decline of Mutuality in Collateral Estoppel, 20 South Texas Law Journal, 193.
PERSONAL:
Born Overton, Texas on June 20, 1954
Resident, West University Place, Harris County, Texas, 1977 present
Director, Alumni Board of Rice University, 1986-1989
Founder/First President, Rice University Business & Professional Women, 1985-87