State Bar of Texas members elect Santos Vargas of San Antonio president-elect, approve rule amendments

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 30, 2024
Contact: Rebecca Johnson
Public Affairs Director, State Bar of Texas
512-427-1714, [email protected]

AUSTIN-In a combined election and referendum, Texas attorneys elected Santos Vargas of San Antonio to be president-elect of the State Bar of Texas and approved all 12 proposed disciplinary rule amendments.

Vargas received 52.06%-10,925-of the 20,986 votes cast during the monthlong voting period that closed at 5 p.m. CDT today. His opponent, Denise Scofield of Houston, received 47.94%, or 10,061 votes.

Vargas will be sworn in as president-elect during a State Bar of Texas Board of Directors meeting on June 20, 2024, and will serve as president of the State Bar of Texas from June 2025 to June 2026.

Santos Vargas

Santos Vargas is a former chair of the State Bar of Texas Board of Directors, co-chair of the Texas Bar Journal Board of Editors, and past president of both the San Antonio Bar Association and the San Antonio Young Lawyers Association. Vargas has practiced for nearly 20 years and is an equity partner at Davis & Santos, PLLC, where he focuses on estate and trust litigation, fiduciary litigation, and business litigation matters. Vargas has been honored as a top lawyer by Super Lawyers, Lawyers of Distinction, and by San Antonio Magazine.

Vargas earned his law degree from Syracuse University College of Law and his undergraduate degree from St. Mary's University. Vargas is also a member of the St. Mary's University Alumni Association Board of Directors, a fellow of both the Texas Bar Foundation and the San Antonio Bar Foundation, and a member of the William S. Sessions American Inn of Court.

Vargas is married to fellow lawyer Patricia Vargas and is father to Laura (13), Santos, Jr. (11), and Lucia (5).

In other results, the following individuals were elected to the State Bar of Texas Board of Directors:

• Jeff Weinstein, Athens, District 1

• Diana Gomez, Houston, District 4, Place 3

• Jeff Work, Houston, District 4, Place 5

• Amy Rod, Wharton, District 5

• Andrew "Drew" Spaniol, Dallas, District 6, Place 2

• Chris Nickelson, Fort Worth, District 7, Place 1

• Lowell A. Keig, Austin, District 9, Place 3

• Steve Alfonso Chiscano, San Antonio, District 10, Place 1

• Chris Wrampelmeier, Amarillo, District 13

• Rebecca P. Linehan, Midland, District 16

Texas Young Lawyers Association election

In the Texas Young Lawyers Association election, Alyson A. Martinez of Laredo was elected president-elect and will serve as TYLA president from June 2025 to June 2026. Martinez received 57.45% of the 4,675 votes cast, while her opponent, Michael Hanson of Richmond, received 42.55%.

Alyson A. Martinez

Alyson A. Martinez, a native of Laredo, is the first attorney in her family, graduating from Texas Southern University Thurgood Marshall School of Law. Commencing her career at the Webb County Public Defender's Office, she represented justice-involved, indigent individuals. Currently, Martinez serves as the director of the Webb & Zapata County Community Supervision and Corrections Department. In addition, she is the legal adviser for the Probation Advisory Committee of Texas.

In 2020, Martinez served as president of the Laredo-Webb County Bar Association. Her leadership extended to the State Bar of Texas after participating in the 2020 cohort of LeadershipSBOT. Martinez has represented District 19 of TYLA for three years, earning recognition for her contributions including the President's Award of Merit in 2023.

The following individuals were elected to the TYLA Board of Directors:

• Bailey Bridges, Houston, District 6, Place 2

• Rosalyn Lark, Fort Worth, District 10, Place 2

• John D. Garcia, Corpus Christi, District 12

• Hanna Lee, College Station, District 2

• Ally Caskey, Plano, District 4

• Alexandra Lambring, Dallas, District 5, Place 2

• Ashton Barrineau Butcher, Dallas, District 5, Place 4

• Sushant Mohan, Richmond, District 6, Place 4

• Timothy Adams, Houston, District 6, Place 6

• Sarah Harp, Austin, District 8, Place 2

• Jenée A. Durán, El Paso, District 14

• Holton Westbrook, Amarillo, District 16

2024 Rules Referendum

Now that Texas lawyers have approved all 12 proposed amendments to Texas' disciplinary and procedural rules, the Supreme Court of Texas may adopt or reject the proposals. The court will determine the timeline of next steps.

Proposed individually between 2021 and 2023, the changes were recommended by the bar's Committee on Disciplinary Rules and Referenda to its board of directors. The board petitioned the Supreme Court of Texas for a rules referendum, which the court ordered in October.

Attorneys cast a total of 21,572 votes, representing a turnout of approximately 19% of eligible voters. Attorneys who are active and in good standing with the State Bar of Texas are eligible to vote in State Bar elections and referenda.

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