Haynes and Boone Names 13 New Partners for 3rd Consecutive Year

Haynes and Boone, LLP is proud to announce promotion to partnership of 13 lawyers, tying the record for the largest new class in the history of the firm for the third year in a row. The new class represents the firm’s Austin, Dallas, Houston, New York, Orange County, Palo Alto, Richardson and Washington, D.C. offices.

“I am excited to welcome this outstanding group of lawyers to our partnership,” said Managing Partner Tim Powers. “To promote a class of this size for a third year demonstrates not only the depth of talent at the firm but also our commitment to the development of our lawyers. These new partners are some of the best and brightest in the industry and I am confident that they will be of immense benefit to the firm and our clients for years to come.”

The new class is comprised of Emily Westridge Black, Kimberly Chase, Paul Dietze, Ph.D., Adam Feimer, Polly Fohn, Sakina Rasheed Foster, Kraig Grahmann, Alex Grishman, Kyle Howard, Rebecca Landau, Lauren Margiano, Suzie Trigg and Henry Welch, Ph.D. 

Emily Westridge Black is a member of the White Collar Defense Practice Group in the Austin and Dallas offices. She counsels clients on complex litigation and investigation matters and has successfully represented prominent businesses and individuals on a range of issues, including data breach and cybersecurity, anti-corruption and Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, securities regulation, antitrust, and class actions. Clients benefit from Black’s experience working in-house at an international pharmaceutical company developing and implementing organization-wide anti-corruption initiatives that balanced legal requirements with business objectives. She has designed practical and effective anti-corruption compliance programs for numerous public and private companies in diverse sectors, including clients in the oil and gas, energy, pharmaceutical, freight forwarding, and hospitality industries. Black has also investigated issues ranging from cybersecurity incidents to suspected violations of anti-corruption laws to alleged employment violations and liaised with regulators on behalf of her clients. She has been named by Chambers & Partners as a top lawyer for commercial litigation in Texas. In addition to her practice, Black proudly serves on the Steering Committee of the American Bar Association's Death Penalty Representation Project. She received her bachelor’s degree cum laude from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2003 and her juris doctor cum laude from the University of Texas at Austin School of Law in 2007.

Kimberly Chase is a member of the Labor and Employment Section in the Orange County office. She maintains a diversified practice that includes employment litigation and advice, copyright and trademark litigation, and commercial litigation. She has obtained favorable results for a number of Fortune 500 companies in wage and hour class actions, discrimination and harassment cases, and wrongful termination cases. In addition to her employment practice, Chase has prosecuted and defended copyright and trademark claims throughout the country and recently defeated a motion for a preliminary injunction regarding the use of a trademark. She has also handled a wide variety of commercial litigation matters, including contract disputes, insurance coverage and bad faith claims, section 17200 litigation, and fraud claims. When not serving her clients, Chase is dedicated to her pro bono work and is a member and former co-chair of Public Law Center Advocates, a group that aims to increase pro bono volunteerism throughout Orange County. Chase received her bachelor’s degree cum laude from the University of California Los Angeles in 2003 and her juris doctor from the University of California, Davis School of Law in 2007.

Paul Dietze, Ph.D. is a member of the Intellectual Property and Patent Prosecution and Counseling Practice Groups in the Washington, D.C. office. With more than 18 years of experience practicing intellectual property law, Dr. Dietze combines his experience as a chemist with his experience as a lawyer to counsel clients in all aspects of intellectual property in the pharmaceutical, chemical, and biotechnology arts. He has considerable experience in the pharmaceutical industry, in particular, preparing opinions clearing generic versions of pharmaceutical products. His clients include some of the world’s largest generic pharmaceutical companies. Dr. Dietze has substantial experience in obtaining patent protection for his clients. He has prosecuted and obtained patents for clients on new chemical entities, pharmaceutical delivery systems, cosmetics, flavors, foods and food additives, petroleum products, fragrances, polymers and polymer additives, glass coatings and catalysts. His experience in patent prosecution involves both domestic and foreign prosecution and includes drafting applications, responding to office actions, interviewing examiners, obtaining patent term extensions, reissue proceedings, reexamination proceedings, preparing appeal briefs and arguing appeals at the Patent Trial & Appeals Board. Dr. Dietze received his Ph.D. from New York University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences and his juris doctor from the University of Maryland School of Law.

Adam Feimer is a member of the Real Estate Practice Group in the New York office. He concentrates his practice in all areas of commercial real estate, including mortgage and mezzanine loan originations, acquisitions and dispositions, preferred equity investments, joint ventures and leasing, as well as loan workouts, restructurings and syndications. Feimer received his bachelor’s from Binghamton University, State University of New York and his juris doctorate cum laude from Brooklyn Law School.

Polly Fohn is a member of the Appellate Practice Group in the Houston office. She has argued to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and Texas appellate courts and has been involved in appeals of some of the largest jury verdicts in Texas. Fohn served as a clerk for Judge R. Lanier Anderson on the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit and has spoken on preservation of error at the State Bar of Texas Advanced Personal Injury Course and on summary judgment practice at the State Bar of Texas Advanced Civil Trial Course. Named a "Rising Star" by Texas Super Lawyers magazine by Thomson Reuters from 2013-2016, Fohn has collaborated with trials teams to obtain summary judgments, helped negotiate settlements, and independently argued jury charges in high stakes litigation. She received her bachelor’s from Brown University in 2004, magna cum laude with honors, and her juris doctor cum laude from Harvard Law in 2008.

Sakina Rasheed Foster is a member of the Finance Practice Group in the Dallas office. Her practice is focused on the representation of financial institutions and borrowers in complex commercial loan transactions as well as airlines and aviation matters. Foster has experience in advising banks, private equity firms, corporations and individuals in connection with senior and subordinated financing, including drafting documentation and negotiating deal points for syndicated and single bank loan facilities, asset-based lending, acquisition financings, real estate construction loans, mortgage warehouse lending and loans secured by unique collateral, such as aircraft, railcars and mortgage servicing rights. In addition, Foster represents borrowers in intercreditor relationships and in subordinated financing transactions. She earned her juris doctor from the University of Texas in 2003 and her bachelor’s from Southern Methodist University in 2000.

Kraig Grahmann is a member of the Energy Practice Group in the Houston office. His practice is focused on the representation of banks, private capital providers and upstream energy companies in financing transactions and equity investments and the representation of oil and gas companies in acquisition, divestiture and joint development transactions. He also has significant experience working with ISDA agreements and has been involved in a number of E&P bankruptcies. Grahmann has been named a Rising Star by Texas Super Lawyers magazine consecutively since 2014. He received his bachelor’s from Rice University magna cum laude in 2005 and his juris doctor from the University of Houston Law Center cum laude in 2008.

Alex Grishman is a member of the Finance Practice Group in New York. His practice focuses on commercial and corporate finance transactions, including the representation of banks, financial institutions and private investment funds in connection with margin lending, asset-based financing, acquisition financing and restructuring credit facilities. In addition, Grishman provides regulatory advice to prime brokers and advises start-ups in a variety of industries, including clothing and apparel, consumer goods and mobile apps. He has been named a Rising Star by New York Super Lawyers magazine since 2013. He earned his bachelor’s in history from Dartmouth College in 2001 and his juris doctor from Benjamin Cardozo Law School cum laude in 2006.

Kyle Howard is a member of the Intellectual Property Practice Group in Richardson. He helps clients both protect their innovations and defend their intellectual property rights. Howard has successfully represented clients in post-grant proceedings before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, including inter partes review (IPR) proceedings. He has served as lead counsel in numerous IPR proceedings, and has hands-on experience with every stage of the proceedings. Howard represents clients in a variety of technical fields, including telecommunications, semiconductor processing, and medical devices. He received his bachelor’s degree in biomedical science from Texas A&M University, his master’s in business administration from Texas Tech University, and his juris doctor from Southern Methodist University.

Becky Landau is a member of the Real Estate Practice Group in the New York office.  She represents institutional and private equity lenders and owners and operators in the financing, acquisition and disposition of commercial real estate properties. She earned her bachelor’s degree in finance and international business with honors from Washington University Olin School of Business in 2002 and her juris doctor from Brooklyn Law School in 2005, where she was a Lisle Scholar and the associate managing editor of the Brooklyn Journal of International Law.

Lauren Margiano is a member of the Real Estate Practice Group in New York. She focuses her practice on commercial real estate leasing, specifically concentrating on the representation of both landlords and tenants in all aspects of their retail, office and restaurant lease negotiations. Margiano regularly counsels prestigious landlords and developers in the New York City and national markets from the term sheet stage through lease execution, and continues to advise such clients on an ongoing basis throughout their lease terms. She represents tenants engaged in a wide variety of industries, including national banking associations, restaurants and office-sharing companies, with respect to their leasing and other diverse real estate matters. Margiano received her bachelor’s from New York University cum laude in 2004 and her juris doctor from Fordham University School of Law in 2007. 

Suzie Trigg is a member of the FDA, Supply Chain, and Franchise and Distribution Practice Groups in the Dallas office.  Trigg represents consumer product companies and restaurant chains in strategic transactions and provides guidance on complex regulatory issues to reduce risk and guide informed choices.   Combining her industry focus and sharp negotiating skills to help her clients market safe, high quality products, she is a go-to lawyer for companies tackling supply chain changes. Trigg received her bachelor’s from Texas A&M University and her juris doctor with honors from the University of Texas at Austin School of Law.

Henry Welch, Ph.D. is a member of the Intellectual Property Practice Group in the Palo Alto office. With more than 18 years of experience as an engineering educator, researcher, and consultant, Welch uses his legal knowledge and extensive technical expertise to tailor legal advice to his technology clients that includes a thorough understanding of the technologies important to the client. Whether preparing patent applications, responding to office actions, providing pre-litigation advice, providing due diligence advice, or representing clients in trials before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board and Federal courts, Welch uses his comprehensive knowledge of the technology involved and his skills as an educator to effectively communicate both the nuances of the legal issues as well as the technical issues to clients, judges, and patent examiners. He has managed patent portfolios for Fortune 500 companies as well as small start-ups, and has coordinated the technical aspects of litigation teams addressing multiple patents in district court litigations. In addition to his practice, Welch is also a frequent volunteer for the Legal Aid Society of San Mateo County where he provides legal advice to tenants in landlord-tenant disputes and other matters. He received his doctorate in computer and systems engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 1990 and his juris doctor magna cum laude from Marquette University Law School, where he was the technology editor of the Marquette Law Review and the managing editor of the Marquette Intellectual Property Law Review.