Houston and San Antonio offices of Chamberlain Hrdlicka expand with recent new hires
Marcus Burnside, Arlin Dawson, David Dorris, Ross Holley, J. Otto Timm, Brittney Williams, and Pearson Wolk recently joined Chamberlain Hrdlicka in Houston, adding to the Commercial Litigation; Construction; Corporate, Securities & Finance; Estate Planning; Intellectual Property; Labor & Employment Litigation; Tax and Tax Planning & Business Transactions practices. Scott McCarty joined the Commercial Litigation team in the firm’s growing San Antonio office.
With the new arrivals, Chamberlain Hrdlicka’s Houston office now has more than 80 attorneys. Recognizing Chamberlain Hrdlicka’s growth in Houston, the Houston Business Journal (HBJ) named the firm to its 2021 and 2022 Middle Market List. HBJ also included the firm on its 2021 and 2022 Best Places to Work list, thanks to prioritizing collaboration, health, well-being, and quality of life for the firm’s employees.
The San Antonio office now has 20 attorneys, a 22 percent growth year-over-year. Most recently, the office added a team of three international tax and tax controversy attorneys, including shareholder Patrick Martin and associates, Anuar Estefan and Luz Villegas-Banuelos.
“In the competitive legal job market, we are gratified to continue adding exceptional attorneys to our team,” said Larry Campagna, managing shareholder for Chamberlain Hrdlicka. “Thanks to our midsize, entrepreneurial structure, we give up-and-coming attorneys an opportunity to develop their practices at an accelerated pace under the mentorship of experienced lawyers. These talented young attorneys know that our clients expect the sophistication of a big law firm with the personal service that our mid-size firm allows.”
Marcus Burnside rejoined the firm as an associate in the Intellectual Property practice, where he focuses on intellectual property rights for both domestic and foreign clients, drafting patent applications, responses to office actions, and appeal briefs, as well as drafting and negotiating licenses, providing non-infringement opinions and invalidity opinions, and conducting due diligence. He leverages his experience in mechanical and electrical engineering to counsel clients in a broad range of technologies, including computer hardware, oil and gas, automation technologies, robotics, communication hardware and software, data storage, gas turbines, as well as green energy technologies, including solar and wind.
Burnside graduated from the University of Texas at Dallas with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering and obtained his law degree from the University of Houston Law Center.
Arlin Dawson joined Chamberlain Hrdlicka’s Corporate, Securities & Finance practice as an associate. Prior to joining the firm she participated in a Securities Arbitration Externship where she represented clients in securities arbitration proceedings before the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority. She was also affiliated with the Center for Business and Financial Law.
Dawson received a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Texas at Austin and her law degree, cum laude, from New York Law School, where she was a member of the Dean's Leadership Counsel and Law Review.
David Dorris joined the firm’s Commercial Litigation practice as an associate. David’s practice involves assisting clients with construction, energy, and business litigation matters. David has a range of prior experience that includes assisting clients in complex commercial litigation, business disputes, construction, labor and employment, trusts and estates matters, and securities litigation. Prior to David’s career as an attorney, he worked for a nationwide construction supplier where he partnered with his clients to help them achieve their business goals.
David graduated from the University of Alabama with a bachelor’s degree in finance. He received his law degree from the South Texas College of Law, where he was a member of the South Texas Law Review and co-chaired the Board of Advocates. He is a member of the Houston Bar Association’s Litigation and Construction Law Section, as well as the Special Olympics and Golf Tournament Committees.
Ross Holley joined the firm’s Estate & Income Tax Planning & Estate Administration practice as an associate. He focuses on complex estate planning for high-net-worth individuals, especially the owners and operators of closely-held businesses, with a secondary focus on fiduciary litigation matters. Prior to joining Chamberlain Hrdlicka, Holley was an associate at two well-known law firms in the Houston area where he litigated complex director and officer and partnership disputes.
Holley earned his bachelor’s degree, with honors, from the College of New Jersey and a Master of Library and Information Science degree from Rutgers University. He received his law degree from Harvard Law School where he was awarded two Dean’s Scholar prizes and was a student attorney in the Federal Tax Clinic. He has been named to Best Lawyers in America’s Ones to Watch for 2023 and is a member of the Houston Bar Association, the Houston Young Lawyers Association, and the State Bar of Texas. Holley also assists multiple nonprofit organizations affiliated with the Effective Altruism movement.
Scott McCarty joined the Commercial Litigation and Fiduciary Litigation sections at Chamberlain Hrdlicka’s San Antonio office. He has seven years of experience managing civil litigation cases from inception to trial and has obtained favorable outcomes for clients before judges and juries in courts throughout the State of Texas in disputes involving personal injury, products liability, contracts, fiduciary duties, family law, and others. Prior to starting his legal career, he served as the legal clerk for judge Micaela Alvarez, U.S. District Court – Southern District of Texas.
McCarty graduated from the University of Texas at San Antonio with a bachelor’s degree in political science. He earned his law degree from St. Mary’s University School of Law, where he served as the senior associate editor for the St. Mary’s Law Journal.
Otto Timm joined Chamberlain Hrdlicka as an associate attorney in the firm’s International Tax and Tax Planning & Business Transactions practices. He concentrates his practice on federal international tax compliance issues and assisting high-net-worth individuals with complex international income, estate, and gift tax planning, including immigration and emigration planning, cross border business transactions, and business restructuring. He has also assisted clients with Streamlined Domestic and Foreign Offshore Procedures, the Delinquent Information Return and FBAR Submission Procedures, and various other compliance issues. Prior to joining Chamberlain Hrdlicka, he practiced law for two years as an associate in the Tax Planning and Estate Planning practice of a Houston-area law firm.
Timm graduated from Pitzer College with a bachelor’s degree in Anthropology. He received his J.D. from Emory University College of Law and his LL.M in Taxation from the University of Houston Law Center. He is a member of the Houston Bar Association: Taxation Section and the State Bar of Texas: Tax Section.
Brittney Williams joined Chamberlain Hrdlicka’s Labor and Employment and Commercial Litigation practices as a senior associate. With nearly ten years of legal experience, she counsels clients on compliance issues related to employee handbooks and policies, leaves of absence, reductions in workforce, unemployment compensation, as well as management and employee training. She also represents employers in various types of employment disputes involving wrongful termination, retaliation, harassment and discrimination, disability accommodations, wage and hour disputes, and employment-related contracts. Additionally, she represents clients in a variety of commercial disputes, including claims for breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, fraud, misrepresentation, Deceptive Trade Practices Act violations, and Texas Uniform Trade Secrets Act violations.
Williams graduated from The University of Texas at Austin with a Bachelor of Business Administration from the McCombs School of Business, and a Bachelor of Science from the College of Communication. She earned her law degree at UCLA School of Law. While in law school, Williams served as Co-Chair of UCLA’s Black Law Students Association, and as Co-Chair of UCLA’s Public Counsel CARES (Connecting Angelenos to Resources and Essential Services) - a legal clinic at UCLA School of Law. She has been named to the Top 40 under 40 by The National Black Lawyers in 2020-2022, Texas Rising Stars by Super Lawyers in 2022, and Best Lawyers in America’s Ones to Watch for 2023. She is a member of the Houston Bar Association, Texas Young Lawyers Association, and the Greater Houston Black Chamber of Commerce. She is licensed to practice law in California and Texas.
Pearson Wolk joined the firm as an associate in the Tax Planning & Business Transactions practice in Houston. Pearson obtained a bachelor’s degree in communication from Washington & Lee University. He earned his law degree, cum laude, from Louisiana State University Paul M. Herbert Law Center, where he served as a senior graduate editor of the Journal of Civil Law Studies and was a member of the Tax Law Society. Wolk received his LL. M. in Taxation from New York University. He is a member of the State Bar of Texas.