Press Contact: Allegra Young, (512) 471-7330
AUSTIN, Texas — The University of Texas School of Law Alumni Association recently honored four of its members for their outstanding work. On Feb. 27, Bernard I. Dow, ’56, received the Lifetime Achievement Award; the Honorable Edith H. Jones, ’74, was named Outstanding Alumnus of the year; the Honorable James DeAnda, ’50, was awarded the Distinguished Alumnus Award for Community Service; and the Honorable Bruce Gibson, ’78, was awarded Honorary Order of the Coif.
"We are delighted to honor Bernie Dow, Judge Jones, Judge DeAnda, and Bruce Gibson. Their professionalism, talent, and good work have made an important difference for Texas and for our school. We are justifiably proud of these graduates and their accomplishments," Dean Bill Powers said.
Bernard O. Dow
Bernard O. "Bernie" Dow is a partner in the Houston law firm of Dow Golub Berg &
Beverly. He graduated with honors, Phi Beta Kappa, from The University of Texas
and received his LL.B. from the Law School in 1956. Before beginning his practice,
Dow served in the U.S. Air Force as an instructor in military law. He then joined
his father and brother in the real estate law firm of Dow, Cogburn & Friedman. He
is a well-recognized authority in real estate mortgages and leasing, has been board
certified in commercial real estate law since the inception of the certification
program, and has published more than one hundred outlines and articles on a wide
range of real estate topics. Dow received the Lifetime Achievement Award to a
Distinguished Real Estate Attorney from the State Bar’s Real Estate, Probate, and
Trust Law Section, and the First Annual Award for Texas Lawyer Professionalism from
the College of the State Bar of Texas. For twenty consecutive years he was listed
in The Best Lawyers in America. He is a member of the American Law Institute, a
life fellow of the American Bar Foundation, a fellow of the Texas Bar Foundation,
and a life fellow of the Houston Bar Foundation.
James DeAnda
Judge James DeAnda graduated from UT Law in 1950, when there were only a handful of
Hispanic law students, and the year the first African American law student, Heman
Sweatt, was enrolled. Before law school, DeAnda attended Texas A&M and served with
the U.S. Marine Corps in the Pacific theater during World War II. After graduation
from the Law School, DeAnda began practicing with Houston attorney John J. Herrera.
In the mid-1950s he moved to Corpus Christi, and through his associations with the
American GI Forum, the League of United Latin American Citizens, and the Mexican
American Legal Defense and Education Fund, DeAnda became involved in landmark cases
dealing with discrimination in the public education system in Texas. Those cases
include Hernandez v. State of Texas, Hernandez v. Driscoll CISD, and
Cisneros v. Corpus Christi ISD. In Cisneros, the U.S. Supreme Court
extended for the first time Brown v. Board of Education to Mexican Americans.
In 1979 President Jimmy Carter appointed DeAnda to the U.S. District Court for the
Southern District of Texas. The judge became only the second Mexican American
appointed to the federal bench. Since retiring from the bench in 1992, DeAnda has
continued to practice law with the Houston law firm of Solar & Associates and to be
involved in the struggle to secure civil rights for all citizens.
Bruce Gibson
After graduating from UT Law School in 1978, Gibson returned to his hometown of
Godley to practice law and engage in farming and business pursuits. In 1980 Gibson
was elected to the Texas House of Representatives, where he served six terms. During
his twelve years in the Texas House, Gibson served on the Conference Committee on
Tort Reform, Workers Compensation Reform, and School Finance. He authored and passed
legislation establishing the Texas Ethics Commission, and the Finance Commission of
Texas reform legislation. He also authored the Texas Department of Mental Health and
Mental Retardation sunset legislation, Texas interstate and branch banking legislation,
and legislation requiring timely reporting of last-minute campaign contributions.
Gibson served as chair of the Texas House Committees on Government Organization and
Financial Institutions, and as co-chair of the Joint Committee on Judicial Reform, the
Joint Committee on Deceptive Trade Practice Act, the Ways & Means Committee, and the
Commerce Committee. Texas Monthly named Gibson to its "Ten Best Legislators"
list in 1987 and 1989, and he received an Honorable Mention for his legislative service
in 1985. He was named one of the "Seven Best Legislators" by the Dallas Morning
News in 1991, one of the "Ten Best Legislators" by the Dallas Morning News
in 1985, and "one of the most diligent, capable members of the Legislature" by the
Fort Worth Star-Telegram in 1985. In 1992 Gibson was appointed executive
assistant to Lieutenant Governor Bob Bullock. In 1994 he returned to the business
world, first as president and chief executive officer of the Texas Chamber of Commerce,
then as vice president of Houston Industries Incorporated, and finally as senior vice
president of Reliant Energy. In 2003 Gibson reentered public service as chief of staff
to Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst.
Edith H. Jones
Judge Edith H. Jones, circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth
Circuit, is widely recognized as an outstanding jurist and one of the nation’s leading
experts on bankruptcy law. Jones, a 1974 graduate of the Law School, served as an editor
of the Texas Law Review. Upon graduation, she joined the law firm of Andrews,
Kurth, Campbell & Jones, L.L.P. (now Andrews & Kurth, L.L.P.), where she was the first
woman to make partner in the history of the firm. Nominated by President Ronald Reagan
to become a judge on the Fifth Circuit, she was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on April 3,
1985. During her 19 years on the bench, Jones has written nearly six hundred opinions.
She has served as a member of the Advisory Committee on Bankruptcy Rules for the Judicial
Conference of the United States and, in 1995, was named by Chief Justice William
Rehnquist to the National Bankruptcy Review Commission. Appointed by President George
W. Bush to the President’s Commission on White House Fellowships, Jones is deeply
involved in the selection process for White House Fellows. Jones has authored or
coauthored more than 15 publications on the topics of bankruptcy law, mass tort
litigation, arbitration, religion and the law, judicial workloads, and the judicial
selection process. Jones serves on the executive board of the Texas Law Review
Alumni Association, and on the board of directors of the Sam Houston Area Council of
the Boy Scouts of America. In 2003 the council awarded her its highest honor for her
years of service to scouting. She has worked for many years with the mock trial team at
St. Thomas Episcopal High School in Houston, and she is an active member of the
Garland Walker Chapter of the American Inns of Court. In 1998 the Texas Review of Law
and Politics honored her with its inaugural Jurist of the Year award.