Promotions
 
Congratulations to Tonya Ramsey (Dallas, Restructuring and Reorganization) and Avelyn Ross (Austin, Intellectual Property) who were recently promoted to Counsel.
Welcome Back!
 Rindala Beydoun has rejoined Vinson & Elkins' Dubai office, further extending our global corporate practice. Rindala has 15 years of experience and specializes in cross-border and domestic mergers, acquisitions and dispositions, real estate development and asset purchases, as well as a wide variety of corporate transactions.
Accolades
 The American College of Trial Lawyers inducted V&E Complex Commercial Litigation Partner Karen Hirschman as a member on February 26, 2009. This prestigious honor is extended only by invitation, after careful investigation, to experienced trial lawyers who have mastered the art of advocacy and whose professional careers have been marked by the highest standards of ethical conduct, professionalism, civility, and collegiality.
 The American College of Environmental Lawyers named Vinson & Elkins Environmental Partner Carol Dinkins as a member of its first class of fellows. The ACOEL is a newly formed organization that brings together the most experienced and distinguished lawyers in the environmental law practice. "By admitting Carol into its inaugural class, the ACOEL is recognizing her status as one of the truly elite environmental litigators in the world," says V&E Managing Partner Joe Dilg. "Carol has been a leader and role model for all of us at Vinson & Elkins, and a leader and role model for the entire legal profession."
Partnering for Diversity
Vinson & Elkins is pleased to join forces with The Project for Attorney Retention (PAR), an initiative of The Center for WorkLife Law of the University of California Hastings College of the Law, that works with law firms to reduce attrition by helping improve the development and promotion of women and minority lawyers. By becoming a supporting member of PAR, V&E adds a tremendous resource that demonstrates our commitment to hire and retain the best and brightest legal minds in the profession. By adding the unique programs dedicated to women and work/life balance as well as diversity that are available through PAR, V&E aims to go above and beyond what others are doing in the market. The partnership with PAR is a testament to our ongoing commitment to our attorneys.
The Business Case
 Corporate Finance Partner Valinda Wolfert recently led an all women legal team in closing a new $40 million senior secure credit facility for Taylor Logistics LLC, the largest independent for-hire crude hauling business in the United States.
The extraordinarily complex transaction will allow Taylor, a portfolio company of private equity firm The Halifax Group, to expand its current fleet of 320 specialized tractors and trailers to more than 500 units by 2011 by refinancing its existing debt. Taylor is a critical link in the domestic distribution of crude oil.
Valinda said the $40 million transaction was complicated by the incredibly tight credit market and the fact that Taylor Logistics is a “roll up” of several different companies that have been acquired by Taylor and its parent company, Taylor Companies LLC, over the past few years. Valinda’s team spent a considerable amount of time on organizational structure and related corporate agreements, allowing the new asset-based credit facility to refinance all existing debt.
Valinda and her team coordinated payoffs on a large number of loans that were secured by various vehicle and trailer titles. The V&E team then assisted Taylor in hiring a company to help with the title process going forward.
The V&E team also included associates Bailey Pham (Restructuring & Reorganization), Catherine Callahan (Finance), Laura Love (Finance), and paralegal Julie Cooper.
  
In Print
 Capital Markets Associate Tricia Boutros’ article, "Innovation and New Opportunities: Sukuk in the West" was accepted for publication by Euromoney Books, to be published as a chapter in their 2009 book, Islamic Wealth Management: A Catalyst for Global Change and Innovation.
 Public Finance Associate Monica Coffey authored an article, "Local Government and Municipal Law" in the SMU Law Review, Vol. 61, No. 3, Summer 2008 edition.
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 Complex Commercial Litigation Associate Jessica Mussallem co-authored an article entitled, "Shareholder Suits: You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet," which was published in the January/February 2009 issue of Corporate Board Member magazine.
 Complex Commercial Litigation Associate Margaret Boren’s article about a recent summary judgment opinion appeared in the January 2009 issue of The Antitrust Practitioner, a newsletter published by the ABA Section of Antitrust Law.
 Complex Commercial Litigation Associate Tracey Keegan was recently asked to be on the Board of Directors for the Aurora Picture Show, a non-profit cinema dedicated to presenting non-commercial films. Aurora has distinguished itself as a home for vanguard work that falls outside of conventional moviemaking.
 Environmental Partner Molly Cagle and six women from Austin law firms and corporations organized a charity luncheon as a way to give back the community. On December 3, 2008, 146 guests joined Vinson & Elkins for this annual charity luncheon. During the luncheon, V&E collected gift items and over $3,500 in cash/gift cards for the Rise School of Austin and Any Baby Can program.
Center Stage
Environmental Partner Carol Dinkins was on the faculty for the Environmental Crimes Symposium at the University of Utah Law School on January 15, 2009. The daylong symposium, “Environmental Criminal Prosecution: Essential Tool or Government Overreaching,” featured presentations by Carol Dinkins and five other top practioners and renowned scholars in the field of environmental crime.
 Intellectual Property Partner Margaret Sampson spoke on a work-life panel at The University of Texas School of Law on February 19, 2009. The panel was hosted by UT's Women's Law Caucus.
Veronica Lewis, Complex Commercial Litigation Partner, Bailey Pham, and Valinda Wolfert participated on a panel hosted by the SMU Women in Law group on February 26, 2009. The panel discussion addressed “How Women Succeed in Law Firms in Today Marketplace.”
 On April 16, 2009, Paula Hinton, V&E Complex Commercial Litigation Partner, Margaret Enloe, Associate General Counsel of PricewaterhouseCoopers, and Catherine Stempien of Duke Energy Corporation spoke on a panel at Yale Law School. The panel luncheon, hosted by Yale Law Women, focused on "Women and the Law: Where are we, where are we going, and how do we get there?"
On April 29 - May 1, 2009, V&E lawyers participated in the first “Women’s Power Summit on Law and Leadership” conference sponsored by the Center for Women in Law at the University of Texas at Austin, which was co-founded by a group of women lawyers including V&E partners and UT law alumni Marcia Backus and Karen Hirschman.
Conference attendees included Managing Partner Joe Dilg, Partners Dorene Cohen (Tax - EBEC), Karen Hirschman (Complex Commercial Litigation, Kathy Lake (Energy Regulatory), Valinda Wolfert (Finance), and Associates Marcy Darsey (M&A/Private Equity), Abbie Giraud and Lisa Hobbs (Appellate), and Christina Stanland (Complex Commercial Litigation).
The conference drew many preeminent attorneys from around the country, including Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor who delivered the keynote address and offered perspectives on how lawyers can help eliminate barriers to women in the workforce.
Pictured left to right: Marcy Darsey, Abbie Giraud, Dorene Cohen, and Lisa Hobbs
Karen Hirschman headlined a panel discussion with V&E consultant Arin Reeves and Cathy Lamboley, retired General Counsel for Shell Oil Company and a member of V&E Women’s Initiative Advisory Board. The discussion explored how economic issues impact equality for women in the legal profession.
Visit our website to learn more about V&E and our Women's Initiative.
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