Gardere Partner Bill Whitehill to Serve on the Texas Fifth District Court of Appeals

    DALLAS, TX, November 21, 2014 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Gardere Wynne Sewell LLP congratulates Trial Partner William G. Whitehill on his election to the Texas Fifth District Court of Appeals. On Jan. 1, 2015, Mr. Whitehill will fill the seat being vacated by Justice Kerry FitzGerald.

"It has been a pleasure to have Bill at the Firm as a partner, colleague and friend for over 32 years," says Gardere Chair Holland N. O'Neil. "He is a very talented, well-respected litigator and arbitrator, who is devoted to the profession, the community and his family. It goes without saying that Bill will be an asset to the bench. We will miss him dearly at Gardere and wish both him and his wife Kit the best of luck in this new and exciting endeavor."

Mr. Whitehill has been with Gardere since he graduated from Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law in 1982. As a young associate, Mr. Whitehill was mentored by a current member of the court, Justice Douglas Lang, who was also a Trial Partner at the Firm prior to being appointed to the bench in 2002.

"Leaving Gardere, which has been my professional home for more than 32 years, will be bittersweet," Mr. Whitehill says. "It is a great firm, and I will leave with many wonderful memories and friendships. But it will also be an honor and privilege to serve Texas and the citizens of Dallas, Collin, Grayson, Rockwall, Kaufman and Hunt Counties."

Mr. Whitehill adds, "Not only will serving on the Court of Appeals be a great honor, but it will be a great responsibility. There will be much to do to ensure that justice is served blindly, equally and efficiently and to ensure that the rule of law and our fundamental governing principles are protected. I look forward to accepting these responsibilities and serving with humility and integrity."

At Gardere, Mr. Whitehill has built a successful legal practice handling complex commercial litigation and arbitration matters across multiple jurisdictions, including the Bahamas, Canada, Germany, Italy, Mexico, the United Kingdom, the United States, South Korea and Switzerland. In addition, he routinely handles estate and trust cases, and he has served as an arbitrator on more than 15 arbitrations.

This is not Mr. Whitehill's first time on the bench, having been appointed by Governor Rick Perry on Feb. 27, 2013, to serve as a special justice on the Tenth Court of Appeals in Waco, Texas in case number 10-13-00009, Hubert Warren v. McLennan County Judiciary, Rex D. Davis, Bill Vance, Tom Gray, et. al.

Gardere Wynne Sewell LLP, an Am Law 200 firm founded in 1909 and one of the Southwest's largest full-service law firms, has offices in Austin, Dallas, Houston and Mexico City. Gardere provides legal services to private and public companies and individuals in the areas of bankruptcy and business reorganization, corporate, energy, environmental, financial services, government affairs, hospitality, insurance, intellectual property, international, labor and employment, litigation, private equity, real estate and tax.

For more information, contact Dorothy L. Seals at 214.999.4019 or [email protected], or Jennifer Dilworth at 214.999-4718 or [email protected].

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