Cox Smith Continues Austin Expansion with Addition of Three K&L/Gates Partners

Cox Smith Matthews Incorporated (Cox Smith) today announced the addition of three experienced and well-known Austin attorneys in its Austin office. Keith Shuley, Phil Slinkard and Mary Schaerdal Dietz were previously partners in K&L/Gates’ Austin office.

“Keith, Phil and Mary are fine people and great lawyers. Their practices complement the work being done in our Austin office and will add additional depth and experience to service client needs throughout the firm,” said Jamie Smith, managing director of Cox Smith. “It’s very exciting for us to add these attorneys, who were attracted by Cox Smith’s regional footprint and value proposition for their clients.”

Keith Shuley joins Cox Smith as managing shareholder of the Austin office and a member of the firm’s real estate group, where he will continue to assist clients with environmental law, construction and design contracting, public private partnerships and green building issues. He represents clients on environmental matters involving permit acquisition and compliance, pollution abatement and remediation, due diligence investigation and general regulatory issues. He also assists clients in the development, design and construction of new facilities and the resolution of related construction disputes. Shuley received his Doctor of Jurisprudence from the University of Houston Law Center, an MBA from the University of Texas at Austin, a Master of Architecture from Rice University, a Bachelor of Architecture (summa cum laude) from Washington State University and a Bachelor of Science (with distinction) from Washington Statute University. He is also a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Accredited Professional (LEED^® AP), a distinction earned through the Green Building Certification Institute; has taught at the University of Texas at Austin for 30 years; and has been recognized as one of the Best Lawyers in America for Environmental Law and as a Texas Super Lawyer. He is licensed to practice in Texas, Colorado and the District of Columbia.

Phillip Slinkard, who joins the firm’s corporate group, is a highly regarded corporate attorney in Austin. His corporate and business law experience includes mergers and acquisitions, private placements, corporate governance, contracts, litigation strategy, trade secrets, copyrights, covenants not to compete, franchising, intellectual property licensing, executive compensation and employee stock options. He received his Doctor of Jurisprudence from the University of Texas at Austin School of Law and Bachelor in Business Administration degree from the University of Oklahoma. Recognized by Best Lawyers in America in Corporate Law and Securities Law and as a Texas Super Lawyer, Slinkard was recently elected to serve on the board of directors of Rachel’s Challenge, a nonprofit organization founded to honor the memory of Rachel Scott, the first victim of the Columbine High School shootings.

President-elect of the Texas chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates and a former director of the Austin Bar Association, Mary Dietz assists clients with commercial and business litigation, including contract, construction and administrative law, Deceptive Trade Practices Act matters, records management solutions, e-discovery matters and white collar crime investigations. Dietz holds a Doctor of Jurisprudence from Baylor University School of Law and Bachelor of Science degree from Texas Woman's University. She has been recognized by the Best Lawyers of America in Commercial Litigation and as a Texas Super Lawyer in Business Litigation Law.

Cox Smith’s Austin office is highly regarded for its experience in a wide variety of banking and financial services matters, leading-edge technology industry issues, and the complex and fast-changing world of healthcare regulatory law. Cox Smith's financial institutions attorneys represent national banks, state banks and bank holding companies and their officers, directors and shareholders in corporate, securities and regulatory matters, as well as providing operational lending, compliance and litigation services. Cox Smith’s award-winning healthcare practice assists a full range of healthcare providers across Texas in business formation and counseling, transactions, general healthcare law, regulatory matters and dispute resolution.

Cox Smith also recently announced that Tom Forbes has joined the firm’s Austin office from Longbow Partners, a public affairs and consulting firm with which the firm has an ongoing relationship. Tom will continue his role at Longbow but will work more closely with Cox Smith clients in identifying and addressing legislative and public affairs issues.