Kelly Hart & Hallman opens Midland office

Robert Francis 

rfrancis@bizpress.net

Fort Worth law firm Kelly Hart & Hallman LLP have opened a new office in Midland. The new office will focus on oil and gas law as the Permian Basin, one of the state’s oldest oil fields, is undergoing a renaissance, currently producing 1.7 million barrels of oil daily. Joining the firm are Harold L. Hensley Jr., William B. Burford, and C. D. Martin, all who formerly practiced with the Hinkle Hensley firm in Roswell, N.M. Hensley is an experienced oil and gas trial lawyer and is a Fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers. Burford, partner in charge, and Martin are experienced oil and gas transactional lawyers. Also adding oil and gas expertise to the Midland office are partners Max Wright, Mary Baker and Anna Brandl.

The addition of the Midland partners and new office broadens the range of services Kelly Hart can provide to its clients in West Texas. “The attorneys joining our firm are established veterans in the Texas legal industry, with particular strengths in oil and gas litigation, title and transactional work, and commercial, medical and insurance litigation,” said Dee Kelly Jr., managing partner, in a news release. In June, Kelly Hart & Hallman, under the moniker Kelly Hart & Pitre, opened a New Orleans office. The slight name variation is a nod to the attorney joining the firm as partner-in-charge, Loulan J. Pitre Jr., a veteran of Louisiana’s legal community. Kelly Hart & Hallman also has an Austin office.

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The Kelly Hart & Hallman Midland team: • Hensley joins the firm as a partner in the oil & gas/energy section as well as the litigation section. He is a is a member of the Roehl Circle of Honor of trial lawyers in New Mexico and served the New Mexico Supreme Court as a member of its Uniform Jury Selection Committee. • Burford, a past chair of the oil, gas and energy resources law section of the State Bar of Texas, concentrates his practice on oil and gas transactional matters. He is a leader in the field of oil and gas title work and has been on the Texas State Bar’s editorial board for the development of title examination standards since its inception in 1991. He is a frequent speaker on oil and gas topics before legal and industry groups and serves as the Texas reporter for the Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation’s quarterly Mineral Law Newsletter. • Martin joins the firm as a partner focused on various issues in oil and gas law in Texas and New Mexico. He is board certified in Natural Resources Law, Oil & Gas, by the New Mexico Board of Legal Specialization. He has served as a Trustee of the Petroleum Museum and is currently a member of the Advisory Board of the University of Texas Permian Basin College of Arts & Sciences. • Wright joins the firm as a partner and concentrates his practice on medical, oil and gas, and complex commercial litigation. Wright is board certified in Personal Injury Trial Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. He is a member of DRI, the International Association of Defense Counsel, and the American Board of Trial Advocates. • Baker joins the firm as a partner focused on trial and appellate law, particularly oil and gas litigation. She previously served as a federal law clerk in the Western District of Texas. • Brandl joins the firm as a partner whose practice covers a broad range of complex litigation, including oil and gas, medical, and intellectual property litigation.

Joining the firm as associates are John Shelton and Taylor Spalla, both graduates of Texas Tech University School of Law, and Gareth Morton, a summa cum laude graduate of South Texas College of Law. The Midland office will be located at 508 West Wall Street, Suite 444 in Midland.