Announcements

Ten Munsch Hardt Attorneys Honored by DAYL Foundation

May 4, 2009

Munsch Hardt, a Texas-based law firm with over 100 attorneys and offices in Dallas, Houston and Austin, Texas, announced that Phil C. Appenzeller, Jr., Barbara M. Boudreaux, Steven A. Caufield, Y. W. Peter Chen, Mark A. Girtz, Jonathan L. Howell, Robert W. Ivey III, Gregory C. Noschese, Lee J. Pannier and Devon D. Sharp have been elected as members of the Fellows of the DAYL Foundation. "Fellows are nominated by their peers and the Trustees for professional distinction and service to the State Bar of Texas," said the DAYL Foundation. "The DAYL Foundation is an esteem group of Dallas lawyers and judges who are devoted to serving the community. The program was created in 2002 with 79 DAYL Foundation Fellows and is now comprised of over 250 lawyers."

Phil C. Appenzeller, Jr.
Phil is the firm's Section Head of the Business Litigation group, which consists of over 40 attorneys in Dallas, Houston and Austin. He also served as a Business Development Coordinator for two years. Phil’s experience involves large commercial/complex litigation cases. Recently his practice focus has been representing bankruptcy trustees and creditors’ committees in litigation against former officers and directors and other professional advisors of failed companies. Phil also has experience in large breach of contract disputes, commercial mortgage backed securities litigation, patent infringement litigation, stockholder derivative litigation, officer and director liability, professional negligence partnership disputes and governmental contract disputes. He frequently represents clients in the technology, manufacturing, banking and financial industries. Phil received his Juris Doctor from the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law and his Bachelor of Science, graduating with honors, from Evangel University.

Barbara M. Boudreaux
Barbara assists in all phases of lending, structured finance, corporate workouts, complex commercial transactions, banking transactions, debt restructuring, mergers and acquisitions, bankruptcy, asset based finance, leveraged buyouts and syndicated loan transactions in representing clients in both complex and normal course business transactions and controversies. Prior to joining Munsch Hardt, Barbara was a judicial extern for the Honorable Jerry A. Brown, United States Bankruptcy Judge for the Eastern District of Louisiana and spent a semester in Washington, DC as an intern for the White House Council of Economic Advisers, helping to prepare the annual Economic Report of the President. She received her Juris Doctor from Tulane University School of Law, where she served as the Editor in Chief of Tulane Journal of International and Comparative Law. Barbara received her Bachelor of Science, graduating cum laude, from The State University of New York at Albany.

Steven A. Caufield
Steven's practice focus is on the acquisition and development of commercial real estate properties, including office, hotel, mixed-use and industrial properties. He received his Juris Doctor from Tulane University Law School and his Bachelor of Arts in English and History from Rice University.

Y. W. Peter Chen
Peter practices general commercial litigation, with an emphasis on real estate related litigation and complex commercial matters. He received his Juris Doctor, graduating with honors, from The University of Texas School of Law, where he was an Associate Editor of Texas Review of Law and Politics. He obtained his Bachelor of Arts, graduating cum laude, from Texas A&M University.

Mark A. Girtz
Mark is the Business Development Coordinator of the firm's Corporate & Securities group, which consists of over 15 attorneys in Dallas, Houston and Austin. He advises clients on a wide variety of corporate, business, technology and securities matters. He has significant experience in capital structuring and implementation, fund formation, mergers and acquisitions, venture capital financings, private placements of equity and debt securities, public securities offerings and periodic reporting, equity incentive plans and general corporate matters including shareholders' agreements, employment and consulting services agreements, employee benefit plan matters, equipment leases and general business contracts. Mark routinely advises management and boards of directors in connection with corporate governance and fiduciary duty issues. In addition, he has been involved in a large number of technology matters including technology transfers, software development and licensing agreement negotiation and drafting, web hosting and web services agreements, value added reseller and distribution agreements and trade secret agreements. Mark earned his Juris Doctor from Texas Tech University School of Law and his Bachelor of Arts in Finance from Michigan State University.

Jonathan L. Howell
Jonathan is an Associate in the Insolvency, Restructuring & Creditors' Rights group. Prior to joining Munsch Hardt, he served as the Judicial Law Clerk for the Honorable D. Michael Lynn, United States Bankruptcy Judge for the Northern District of Texas, during which time he played a substantial role in drafting numerous opinions and orders in many complex cases. Before Jonathan's clerkship, he interned for the Honorable Stacey G.C. Jernigan, Bankruptcy Judge for the Northern District of Texas, and the Honorable Ron Clark, District Court Judge for the Eastern District of Texas. Jonathan received his Juris Doctor, having been named to the Dean's List, from Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law, where he served as Staff and Articles Editor for the International Law Review. He received his Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Southern Methodist University.

Robert W. Ivey III
Robert has experience in complex commercial transactions and controversies. He has represented international corporations in litigation and arbitration and has also been involved in the defense of Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Department of Justice (DOJ) and United States Senate Subcommittee investigations. Robert received his Juris Doctor from the University of Pennsylvania Law School and his Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance, graduating magna cum laude, from Texas A&M University.

Gregory C. Noschese
Greg's practice focus is on construction litigation and real estate litigation including contract disputes, land use litigation, boundary disputes, landlord/tenant litigation and commercial litigation where he handles a broad range of issues including consumer protection, bankruptcy litigation and Deceptive Trade Practices Act (DTPA). Greg recently served as the firm's Business Development Section Head for the Business Litigation group in addition to the Shareholder and Associate Liaison and the Law School Recruiting Chair. Greg received his Juris Doctor, graduating magna cum laude, from Texas Tech University School of Law, where he was a Case Note Editor of the Texas Tech Law Review and Appellate Advocacy Vice Chair of the Texas Tech Board of Barristers. He obtained his Bachelor of Arts, graduating magna cum laude, from The Catholic University of America.

Lee J. Pannier
Lee assists in all phases of corporate workouts, debt restructuring, bankruptcy, bankruptcy litigation, creditors' rights, insolvency proceedings and issues in representing clients in both complex and normal course business transactions and controversies. Prior to joining Munsch Hardt, Lee was a judicial intern for the Honorable Chief Judge Rudolph T. Randa, United States District Court Judge for the Eastern District of Wisconsin. He received his Juris Doctor, graduating cum laude, from Marquette University Law School and his Bachelor of Arts from The University of Texas at Austin.

Devon D. Sharp
Devon practices general commercial litigation with an emphasis in employment law. She received his Juris Doctor from Baylor University School of Law and her Bachelor of Arts in Mass Communication, graduating summa cum laude, from Louisiana State University.

Munsch Hardt, a commercial law firm, provides the highest quality legal services and strategic business advice to companies and individuals of all sizes. Whether you’re a big business or a growing company seeking cost-effective results — Munsch Hardt is the Right Firm. Right Now. Our practice groups include all aspects of Business Litigation; Corporate & Securities; Energy & Environmental; Finance; Insolvency, Restructuring & Creditors’ Rights; Intellectual Property; Real Estate and Tax. Munsch Hardt is a multispecialty firm where experienced practitioners work together as a team across disciplinary lines to solve legal problems. For more information, visit munsch.com.