Jackson Walker announces the election of the following to the partnership: George L. Diamond, Leonard E. Hoffman, III, and Michael L. Kaufman of the Dallas office; Leonard H. Dougal and Lisa K. Vaughn of the Austin office; and Wayne F. Malecha of the Fort Worth office.
George L. Diamond practices in the Business Transactions section. Mr. Diamond has diverse experience in corporate and securities laws, public and private financings, and complex contract negotiations. He has represented business entities in a broad spectrum of industries, including oil and gas, manufacturing, retailing, banking, and financial services. Mr. Diamond earned both his B.A. degree, cum laude, and his J.D. degree, from Southern Methodist University.
Leonard E. Hoffman, III, is a member of the the Business Transactions and Real Estate sections Mr. Hoffman is Board Certified in Commercial Real Estate Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. He has extensive experience in a wide range of real estate transactions and financial matters including acquisition and development of properties; purchase and sale of income producing properties; tax free exchanges; interim and permanent financing; industrial revenue bond financing; construction law; leasing; equity participation transactions; zoning and other forms of land use control; infrastructure issues; condominiums; real estate brokerage; mixed-use developments; and management agreements. He has represented corporations, privately-held businesses, and individuals in a variety of other general day-to-day business related legal issues. His experience also includes general business law; securities; joint ventures; general and limited partnerships; syndications; and most other forms of general business law. Mr. Hoffman received his B.A. degree from Southwestern University (1971) and his J.D. degree from the University of Arkansas (1974).
Michael L. Kaufman practices in the Tax section. Mr. Kaufman’s areas of expertise include estate planning and administration, and charitable organizations. A fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, and Board Certified in Estate Planning and Probate Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, Mr. Kaufman’s practice has encompassed all areas of individual and family asset planning, including design, drafting and implementation of family limited partnerships and related corporations, public and private charitable entities, charitable remainder trusts, wills, insurance trusts, revocable (or “living” trusts), and other taxable and non-taxable gift transactions. Mr. Kaufman received both his B.A. degree in psychology, with honors, and his J.D. degree from the University of Texas. As an undergraduate, Mr. Kaufman was elected to Phi Beta Kappa.
Leonard H. Dougal is a member of the Administrative and Environmental sections. Formerly with Small, Craig & Werkenthin, Mr. Dougal joined Jackson Walker in January 1999 when the two firms combined. His practice focuses on environmental compliance and permitting, water rights, water utility rates, and service area disputes. Mr. Dougal also advises clients on open records matters, including protection of trade secrets and confidential commercial information, and advises governmental bodies on compliance with the Open Meetings Act. Additionally, Mr. Dougal advises clients on insurance regulatory matters and insurance retaliatory tax issues. Mr. Dougal earned both his B.S. degree in chemical engineering, with honors, and his J.D. degree, with honors, from the University of Texas.
Lisa K. Vaughn is a member of the Litigation section and focuses her practice on trying business-related disputes such as breaches of contract, business torts, partnership disputes, and allegations of fraud or deceptive trade practices, especially in the health care and real estate industries. Ms. Vaughn earned her B.A. degree, magna cum laude, from Louisiana Tech University, and her J.D. degree, with honors, from Ohio State University, where she was Managing Editor of the Ohio State Law Journal, was judged Best Oral Advocate, received first prize in the OSU Nathan Burkan Memorial Writing Competition, and was Order of the Coif.
Wayne F. Malecha is a member of the Real Estate section. He represents clients in all types of real estate transactions and has particular expertise in commercial leasing, having negotiated numerous commercial leases for office, retail, and industrial space. He also has considerable experience handling acquisitions of office, shopping center, and industrial properties, as well as land purchases. In addition, his practice includes mortgage lending and construction and development. Mr. Malecha received his B.A. degree, cum laude, in economics and mathematics from St. Norbert College in De Pere, Wisconsin. He received his J.D. degree from the University of Notre Dame, where he was served as the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Legislation and was awarded the William T. Kirby Award for Excellence in Legal Writing. Mr. Malecha also attended the Concannon Program of International Law at the Notre Dame Law Centre in London, England.
Jackson Walker is one of the oldest and largest Texas-based law firms, with more than 100 years of experience in providing legal counsel to clients in Texas, throughout the United States, and internationally. The firm provides a strong regional base of over 230 attorneys in Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston, San Angelo, and San Antonio. The firm’s practice areas include litigation, finance, securities and corporate, administrative, agricultural, employee benefits and executive compensation, energy, environmental, estate planning and administration, governmental, health care, labor and employment, real estate, tax, technology, transportation, bankruptcy, intellectual property, and international law.
