Latest News
Lara Hollingsworth and Kirk Pittard present a CLE for the Texas Trial Lawyers Association webinar
DP&S Houston Partner, Lara Hollingsworth and Dallas Partner, Kirk Pittard presented a CLE for the Texas Trial Lawyers Association webinar on February 19, 2025. The topic was “Voir Dire: Hot Topics & Other Good Stuff”. They both discussed the current law related to strikes for cause, the inapplicability of Gregory v. Chohan in voir dire, and Batson challenges.
Shelby White successfully defends venue appeal to the Texarkana Court of Appeals.
Congratulations to DP&S Dallas attorney, Shelby White, for successfully defending a Lamar County venue ruling. The appeal stemmed from the trial court's denial of all defendants’ motions to transfer venue to Childress County, where the wreck occurred. The court of appeals determined that venue in Lamar County was proper based on deposition testimony of a defendant’s vice president which established that the entity’s principal place of business was in Lamar County.
DP&S welcomes Shannon Hays to our Dallas Office!
DP&S is excited to announce the addition of Shannon Hays to our team as an attorney in our Dallas office.
Prior to joining the firm in 2025, Shannon was lawyer at Payne Mitchell Ramsey Law Group for fourteen years. Shannon graduated with high honors and Order of the Coif from the University of Texas School of Law, where she served on the Texas Law Review, was published in Volume 78 of the Texas Law Review, and received the honor of Best Texas Law Note that year. She earned her undergraduate degree from Baylor University, summa cum laude.
After law school, Shannon worked at Vinson & Elkins in Dallas and then Hogan & Hartson, LLP in Washington D. C., before serving as a staff attorney for the United States Courts of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Shannon is admitted to practice law in both Texas and the District of Columbia. Welcome aboard, Shannon!
Kirk Pittard speaks at the Capital Area Trial Lawyers Association’s Monthly CLE
Dallas partner, Kirk Pittard, presented a CLE at the Capital Area Trial Lawyers Association’s monthly membership lunch on January 14, 2024. The topic was “Legal Issues Related to Non-Economic Damages: Gregory v. Chohan”. Thank you for representing DP&S in Austin this week, Kirk.
Roz Bienvenu has been appointed Chair of the New Mexico Civil Jury Instruction Committee
DP&S is proud to announce that Santa Fe attorney Rosalind Bienvenu has been designated to serve as chairperson of the Uniform Jury Instructions Civil Committee by the New Mexico Supreme Court. Roz has extensive experience assisting DP&S’s trial lawyer clients with jury instructions and has served on the Committee since January 2023. Congratulations, Roz!
DP&S Ranked in 2025 Edition of Best Law Firms
Durham, Pittard & Spalding is proud to have been recognized in the fifteenth edition of Best Law Firms in appellate practice and personal injury litigation for our offices in Dallas, Houston and Santa Fe, respectively. Best Law Firms rankings celebrate firms that have consistently demonstrated excellence in legal expertise and industry knowledge.
Shelby White speaks at the Fort Worth Paralegals Association’s Holiday Luncheon
Congratulations to Dallas attorney, Shelby White, who presented at the Fort Worth Paralegals Association’s holiday luncheon on November 21, 2024. The topic was “The Appellate Process: What Your Attorney Wants You to Know for Litigation and Appeals”. Thanks for representing DP&S, Shelby.
Aditi Deal’s law review article cited by STCL professor in Constitutional Law article!
DP&S would like to congratulate Aditi Deal, whose 2020 law review article, “When Less Is More: A New Formula for Avoiding Equally Divided Decisions in the Supreme Court,” was cited by South Texas College of Law’s Constitutional Law professor, Josh Blackman, in his article “Making Sense of the 7-1-1-8 Split in Environment Texas Citizen Lobby v. ExxonMobile” in the online publication Reason Magazine. You can read Professor Blackman’s article here and you can access Aditi’s law review article here.
Lara Hollingsworth discusses the benefits of appellate counsel in preparing for trial
On November 21, 2024, DP&S Partner, Lara Hollingsworth spoke to the lawyers attending the State Bar of Texas CLE, “Prosecuting and Defending Truck and Auto Collision Cases.” Lara discussed the benefits to and advantages of making appellate counsel part of the trial preparation team. Thanks for representing DP&S, Lara.
Thad Spalding is interviewed on Fox 4 News Dallas
On November 21, 2024, DP&S attorney Thad D. Spalding was interviewed by Fox News regarding a recent $98.6M verdict in the Botham Jean v. Amber Guyger civil rights case. Mr. Spalding’s interview focused on why the City of Dallas was not a defendant in the case and the difficulty in holding municipalities liable when constitutional violations are committed by their officers. You can listen to the interview here: Fox 4 News Dallas Interview.
Caren Friedman and Philip Kovnat win in the New Mexico Court of Appeals!
Congratulations to Santa Fe attorneys Caren Friedman and Philip Kovnat who successfully convinced the New Mexico Court of Appeals to affirm the judgment in its entirety in this consolidation of two domestic relations appeals in which DP&S represented the Father as Appellee. The Appellant had argued that the district court abused its discretion in refusing to modify child support and concluding that Father could claim Child on his tax returns. DP&S argued that the appeals were untimely, depriving the Court of Appeals of jurisdiction. In the alternative, DP&S argued that the district court did not err. The Court of Appeals agreed with DP&S that one of the appeals was untimely. The Court also agreed that the district court correctly decided the issues in the remaining appeal. You can read the memorandum opinion in Burke v. McCargar, A-1-CA-40947 (N.M. App. October 10, 2024), here.
Thad Spalding and Intern, Claire Moulton, published in this month’s Headnotes!
Congratulations to Dallas partner, Thad Spalding, along with DP&S summer intern and second-year law student at the University of Oklahoma, Claire Moulton, on getting their co-written article published in this month’s Headnotes, a publication put out by the Dallas Bar Association. The article, titled “DIY Clerk’s Records – How Could this Possibly Work?” explores the new rule allowing appellants to file their own clerk’s records. Headnotes publishes articles on timely legal issues, membership news, and upcoming Continuing Legal Education programs. You can read the October edition of Headnotes, including Claire and Thad’s article featured on page 8, here.
Roz Bienvenu argues in the New Mexico Supreme Court!
Congratulations to Santa Fe partner, Roz Bienvenu, who presented argument in the New Mexico Supreme Court on October 4, 2024. Roz argued on behalf of the Plaintiffs-Real Parties in Interest in Shook, Hardy & Bacon v. Wilson, an extraordinary writ proceeding arising from two lawsuits filed by the Alvarez Law Firm. The Plaintiffs-Real Parties in Interest developed smoking-related illnesses as a result of the well-known tobacco conspiracy. When they sued a tobacco manufacturer and three law firms for their participation in the conspiracy, the law firms moved to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction. Two district courts denied their motions, ruling that the conspiracy theory of jurisdiction permitted suit against them in New Mexico. The law firms then sought an extraordinary writ of prohibition, arguing that the conspiracy theory of jurisdiction is unconstitutional.
Shelby White featured in the 2024 Athletes in Law Special Issue
Attorney At Law Magazine has just published its 2024 Athletes in Law special issue celebrating lawyers who played collegiate sports. This issue features our own Shelby White, who was on the Equestrian team at Baylor University for four years. Click here to read about Shelby and all the other amazing “Athletes In Law”.
Lara Hollingsworth is Recognized as a member of Lawdragon’s 500 Leading Litigators in America for 2025!
We are thrilled to announce that our Houston partner, Lara Hollingsworth, has been recognized as one of the 2025 Lawdragon 500 Leading Litigators in America! This prestigious honor highlights Lara’s exceptional skill, dedication, and impact in the legal field, confirming her standing as a top litigator in the country.
Congratulations to our 2024 Texas Super Lawyers!
Five of our talented attorneys have been selected to the prestigious 2024 Texas Super Lawyers list, an accolade reserved for the top 5% of lawyers in the state. Congratulations to Kirk Pittard, Thad Spalding, Leighton Durham, Rick Thompson, and Lara Hollingsworth for this much-deserved honor! Dallas partner, Kirk Pittard, was also included in the Top 100 for Dallas/Fort Worth!
Thad Spalding wins UM/UIM appeal in the Dallas Court of Appeals!
Congratulations to Thad Spalding who, along with trial counsel Charlie Reed and Tom Herald, successfully defended Allstate’s appeal of a judgment against them, including attorney’s fees, in a UM/UIM case. Allstate challenged virtually everything that the trial court did, including the award of past medical expenses, prejudgment interest, and declaratory judgment act attorney’s fees.
DP&S welcomes its newest attorney, Aditi Deal!
DP&S is pleased to announce that Aditi Deal has joined our team as an associate in our Houston office.
Prior to joining the firm, Aditi practiced commercial litigation at Locke Lord LLP. While there, Aditi worked on commercial cases at the state and federal level in Texas, Maryland, and Louisiana, and briefed appeals to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, the Court of Special Appeals of Maryland, and numerous intermediate appellate courts.
Caren Friedman to become a Fellow in the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers!
Congratulations to Santa Fe partner Caren I. Friedman, who has accepted an invitation to become a Fellow in the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers. AAAL was founded to recognize outstanding appellate lawyers and promote the improvement of appellate advocacy and the administration of the appellate courts. Membership in the Academy is by invitation only. Fellows face stringent membership criteria, undergo rigorous screening, and must be approved by the Academy’s Board.
Kirk Travels the State on the Speaking Circuit!
This month, DP&S partner Kirk Pittard traveled around Texas on the speaking circuit delivering presentations on Legal Issues Related to Non-Economic Damages: Gregory v. Chohan to the San Antonio Trial Lawyers Association, Effective Use of Appellate Counsel on Your Trial Team to the Corpus Christi Bar Association, and Ethical Issues in Contracting Appellate Counsel to the Appellate Section of the State Bar of Texas.