In Memoriam 2021

Ernest Acevedo, Jr.

Ernest Acevedo, Jr. died in July at the age of 69. A native of San Antonio, Acevedo graduated from Thomas Jefferson High School and received his law degree from St. Mary’s University. He practiced law for forty-five years, including twenty-seven years in practice with his son, Ernest III. In 2009 Acevedo was appointed as Judge for the newly created County Court-at- Law No. 14.

Saul R. Acevedo

Saul R. Acevedo died in January at the age of 57. Acevedo was a graduate of Thomas Jefferson High School and received his undergraduate degree from the University of Texas at San Antonio. He earned his law degree at Thurgood Marshall School of Law. He served as a Justice of the Peace for eight years and practiced law for thirty years.

Frank Baker

Francis William Baker

Francis William Baker died in November at the age of 97. Born in Victoria, Baker received his undergraduate degree in 1948 and his law degree in 1949 from St. Mary’s University. He served in the United States Air Force and achieved the rank of Colonel. In 1984 Baker was honored by St. Mary’s University as a Distinguished Law Graduate. He was the recipient, in 2003, of the Joe Frazier Brown, Sr. Award of Excellence from the San Antonio Bar Association. He was a mentor to many attorneys in San Antonio.

I was very fortunate and blessed to have worked with Frank at Matthews & Branscomb, as a law clerk, an associate, and then as his partner. I can’t count the number of times I sought Frank’s advice and wisdom over the years. I was always amazed at Frank’s ability to provide me from memory the citation to the controlling case law on legal issues I was researching. One of the first cases I tried as a young associate was with Frank, and I was literally in awe of his ability and prowess in the courtroom. Whenever I had a difficult legal or ethical issue arise, Frank was always there with sound advice and counsel. It was always a joy to be around Frank. I loved his dry wit. Frank was one of the best, if not the best, lawyers I have ever known. He was the epitome of what a lawyer should be.

- Leo D. Figueroa, Executive Director, Texas Board of Legal Specialization

David Arnold Benavides

David Arnold Benavides died in July at the age of 74. Benavides was born in San Antonio. His ancestral family farmed and ranched in Medina, Wilson, and Bexar counties. He was a graduate of Brackenridge High School and received his undergraduate degree from St. Mary’s University. Benavides served in the United States Army and separated from service as a Captain. He received his law degree from St. Mary’s University in 1974. Benavides was active in numerous local charitable organizations, including his service as a Shrine clown beginning in 1986. He was a long-time member of the Los Bexarenos Genealogical and Historical Society, and a re-enactor of Tejano history.

Taylor Scott Boone

Taylor Scott Boone died in September at the age of 72. Boone was a Houston native. He received his undergraduate degree from the University of Texas and his law degree from St. Mary’s University. Boone was a well-respected estate planning attorney. He also held a master’s degree in Divinity from Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University. Boone was an ordained Deacon of the United Methodist Church and served at Travis Park Methodist, where he often ministered to the homeless and the marginalized.

Jim Branton

James L. Branton

James L. Branton died in July at the age of 83. Branton was raised in Cisco, Texas. The first in his family to go to college, Branton attended the United States Air Force Academy on a swimming scholarship. He received his law degree from the University of Texas. Branton was a co-founder of the law firm of Branton, Hall, Rodriguez & Cruz, and focused his practice on personal injury litigation. He was a past president of both the State Bar of Texas and the San Antonio Bar Association. In 2017 he received the Luther Soules III Award for Outstanding Service from the San Antonio Bar Association.

Jim was a lawyer’s lawyer. He was known for his integrity, ethics, trial preparation, and skill in the courtroom. His word was his bond. Jim was a hard worker. He was always the first to come to the office and the last to leave. He loved the law and believed in giving back to the legal community. As a result, he served as president of the State Bar of Texas. During his presidency, he found time to maintain a full docket, tried a number of cases, and managed the office in spite of the demands required of the president of the State Bar. Jim also served as president of the San Antonio Bar Association, the San Antonio Chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates, the San Antonio Trial Lawyers Association, and the Texas Trial Lawyers Association. He was deeply involved in drafting the Texas Evidence Code and the Texas Lawyer’s Creed. He was an Advocate of the American Board of Trial Advocates and a Fellow of both the American College of Trial Lawyers and the International Society of Barristers. Jim showed tremendous willingness to teach and train both attorneys and staff. His fairness, honesty, and willingness to teach led to a low turnover rate in office staff. A number of the staff remained with Jim more than twenty years. Jim and Molly were married in 1968 and remained married until parted by Jim’s death. They shared the joy of three daughters—Christina, Victoria, and Claudia—and their five grandchildren.

- James A. Hall, Attorney

Oscar Luis Cantu, Jr.

Oscar Luis Cantu, Jr. died in September at the age of 58. The San Antonio native was a graduate of Winston Churchill High School and received his undergraduate degree from the University of Texas. He earned his law degree at California Western School of Law in San Diego. He practiced in and around San Antonio for thirty-one years, with a practice emphasis on family, bankruptcy, and personal injury law.

Daniel Diaz, Jr.

Daniel Diaz, Jr. died in May at the age of 73. Diaz was born in Giessen, Germany. He was raised in Del Rio and was the valedictorian of his high school graduating class of 1966. He received his undergraduate and graduate degrees from the University of Texas. He was a member of the Order of Barristers. For many years he practiced with Plunkett, Gibson & Allen.

Roland R. Esparza

Roland R. Esparza died in January at the age of 53. Esparza was a graduate of Thomas Jefferson High School. He received his undergraduate degree from the University of Texas and his law degree from the University of Houston Law Center. Esparza practiced law in San Antonio and served as a Municipal Court Judge for six years. He served on the Unauthorized Practice of Law and the Fee Dispute Committees for the San Antonio Bar Association.

Dawn Bruner Finlayson

Dawn Bruner Finlayson

Dawn Bruner Finlayson died in February at the age of 68. She was the first of seven siblings and grew up on the family farm in Dallas. She received her undergraduate degree in psychology from the University of Texas and her law degree from St. Mary’s University. She began practice as a law clerk to Chief United States District Judge William Sessions and later served as an Assistant United States Attorney. In private practice, she specialized in labor and employment law. Finlayson was highly active in the San Antonio Bar Association and was President-Elect of SABA at the time of her death.

Dawn was her father’s daughter. Fred Bruner was a notable larger-than-life Dallas criminal defense attorney who believed that every person deserved equal access to justice and to be treated with dignity. While a college freshman, Dawn watched her father participate in the Roe v. Wade argument from the gallery of the United States Supreme Court. That experience sealed the deal for Dawn. As inspiring as he was, however, watching Fred sometimes accept payment for legal services in live poultry, lawncare, and remodeling services gave Dawn pause, and she settled into an employment law practice with more traditional compensation. Dawn’s sense of fair play and justice ignited her in recent years to volunteer in voter registration and education, block walking, and working the phone bank. She was committed to expanding pro bono services to those in need and was especially proud to be an inaugural board member of the San Antonio Legal Services Association. Dawn was planning for her upcoming term as President of the San Antonio Bar Association, with a focus on identifying and supporting a talent pipeline of bright college students who might eventually practice law in San Antonio. She would be incredibly touched to know that the SABA Board will implement many of her ideas in her honor. What a testament to her leadership and how deeply loved and respected she was by so many.

- Dan Finlayson, Dawn’s husband of thirty-nine years.

John Joseph Franco, Jr.

John Joseph Franco, Jr. died in August at the age of 83. Franco was a native of Vicksburg, Mississippi. He received his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Mississippi. He later received a Master of Laws degree in Labor Law from George Washington University. He served in the United States Air Force in the Judge Advocate General’s Corps. He was in private practice in San Antonio with Groce, Locke & Hebdon, and served as its President. Franco was a Fellow of the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers, a Life Fellow of the Texas State Bar Foundation, and a Life Fellow of the San Antonio Bar Foundation. For many years he served on the Board of Directors of Fisher House, Inc.

Forrest Alan Futrell

Forrest Alan Futrell died in November at the age of 69. Futrell was born in Dumas, Texas, and graduated from Texas A&M University. After several years in the cattle industry, Futrell attended law school at St. Mary’s University and graduated in 1989. His practice focused on state and federal criminal defense, with an emphasis on death penalty defense. A diehard Aggie, Futrell served as Class Agent for his 1974 graduating class, and as a Director and Secretary of the Texas Aggie Bar Association.

Sarah Garrahan

Sarah Garrahan

Sarah Garrahan died in March at the age of 84. Garrahan was born and raised in Stockdale and was the valedictorian of her high school graduating class. While married and raising three children, she pursued higher education and was a member of the first graduating class from the University of Texas at San Antonio in 1977. She earned her law degree from St. Mary’s University in 1981. Upon graduation, she worked as an attorney with the FBI as part of the team that prosecuted Charles Harrelson for the murder of United States District Judge John H. Wood, Jr. In 1986, she won the election for County Court-at-Law No. 4 and served on the bench for more than thirty years.

My wife was truly impressed by Sarah when she showed up at the U.S. Attorney’s office as an intern her final year at St. Mary’s. LeRoy admired Sarah’s gumption and effort. After she graduated and was studying for the Bar, Sarah volunteered to continue giving us needed help in the closing days of the investigation of the death of Judge John H. Wood, Jr. She was so helpful that the powers that be in Washington were embarrassed to get so much effort for free and hired her as a Special Assistant United States Attorney, the first and only such hire in our forty years with the Department of Justice. Her job was whatever arose (referred to as “Duties as assigned”), and she never once said she couldn’t do it. As the trial approached, LeRoy decided to assign Sarah duties as one of the trial attorneys appearing in court. She had an enduring spirit, and her sense of humor relieved a lot of stress. On the final day of the first trial, I had the final closing argument and was as nervous as I could be. As I entered the courtroom, Sarah assured me that I was going to do a good job and, with a twinkle in her eye, said, “Remember, you can’t lose my first trial.” She stayed with us for more months until all the trials were resolved, for better or worse. Her future after that is known by all, and I can truly say the world is a better place, and we are better people, because of her. I know the grief the family is going through now, and it is only made bearable by the ability to recall the goodness of her life.

- Ray Jahn. Jahn and his late wife LeRoy served as Assistant U.S. Attorneys for nearly forty years.

Patricia Kay “Tricia” Hernden

Patricia Kay “Tricia” Hernden died in February at the age of 56. Hernden, a San Antonio native, was a graduate of Tom C. Clark High School. She received her undergraduate degree from the University of Texas and her law degree from St. Mary’s University in 1989. She began her legal career as a prosecutor for the Bexar County District Attorney’s Office and later managed a thriving practice of her own with offices in San Antonio, Laredo, and the Rio Grande Valley.

Ronald James Johnson

Ronald James Johnson died in August at the age of 72. Johnson, one of nine siblings, was born in Mart, Texas. He was a graduate of Hubbard High School and was a member of both the football and the rodeo teams. He received his undergraduate degree from Southwest Texas State University and his law degree from St. Mary’s University. He clerked for United States District Judge John H. Wood and for United States Bankruptcy Judge Joseph C. Elliott. Johnson was a prominent member of the local bar and focused his practice on commercial and bankruptcy disputes.

Stella Ortiz Kyle

Stella Ortiz Kyle died in January at the age of 70. Kyle was born in San Antonio and attended Mount Sacred Heart Catholic School and Incarnate Word High School. She held undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in Psychology from Texas Tech University and earned a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology from the University of Texas in 1981. After working in the field of clinical psychology for several years, she enrolled in law school at St. Mary’s University, from which she graduated in 1987. She worked for the City of San Antonio before being appointed the first female Presiding Judge of the San Antonio Municipal Court.

James Masterson Parker

James Masterson Parker died in November at the age of 95. The San Antonio native was a graduate of Thomas Jefferson High School. Following his first semester at Texas A&M, Parker joined the United States Army during World War II and saw combat at both the Battle of Leyte Gulf and the Battle for Cebu City in the Philippines. He returned to college after the war and received his Civil Engineering degree from Texas A&M in 1947. After more than a decade of work as a construction estimator and field engineer, he enrolled in night law school at St. Mary’s University. Upon graduation, he served as the first briefing attorney for the Fourth Court of Appeals. He later worked in the San Antonio City Attorney’s Office and became the City Attorney in the late 1970s.

Theodore James Ralph

Theodore James Ralph died in February at the age of 90. Ralph was a native of Wisconsin. He earned an undergraduate degree in mining from the University of Wisconsin-Platteville in 1952. He received his law degree from the University of Wisconsin in 1962 and was admitted to the bars of Wisconsin, Nebraska, and Texas. Ralph worked as an engineer in the oil industry prior to law school. He also served in the United States Army during the Korean War as an Explosive Ordnance Disposal Specialist. Following law school, Ralph moved to San Antonio and worked for H.B. Zachry Company until his retirement in 2011.

Bruce Biggs Robertson, Jr.

Bruce Biggs Robertson, Jr. died in October at the age of 86. Robertson received his undergraduate degree from the University of Texas. Upon graduation he entered the United States Navy, achieving the rank of Warrant Officer. Robertson attended law school at St. Mary’s University and graduated first in his class. He was Board Certified in both Civil Trial Law and Personal Injury Law.

Stanley David Rosenberg

Stanley David Rosenberg

Stanley David Rosenberg died in May at the age of 89. He was a 1949 graduate of Texas Military Institute. He received both his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Texas. He was a Chancellor and a member of the Texas Law Review. Following law school, he served in the United States Air Force as a JAG officer. After his separation from the Air Force, he returned to San Antonio and helped found the law firm of Oppenheimer, Rosenberg & Kelleher, Inc. in 1971. Rosenberg was instrumental in all manner of business and philanthropic activities, including the formation of Southwest Airlines, Tom Benson’s purchase of the New Orleans Saints, and the creation of the Rosenberg School of Optometry at the University of the Incarnate Word.

Stanley David Rosenberg, leading real estate attorney, visionary business advisor, and philanthropist, died peacefully May 21, 2021. Stanley graduated from his beloved University of Texas School of Law, a member of the Law Review and a Chancellor. Known for his sense of humor, energy, and brilliant negotiating skills, Stanley was deeply involved in San Antonio’s development. People said there was not a real estate project in the 1980s that did not have Rosenberg’s mark on it. Stanley represented Tom Benson for over half a century, from the purchase of Benson’s first dealership through his purchase and stewardship of the New Orleans Saints and Pelicans. Stanley gave his time and his resources to institutions he loved, creating scholarships at the University of Texas and contributing to the development of the University of the Incarnate Word. Stanley will be deeply missed by his loving wife, Sandra, and their family, but his legacy lives on.

- Carol Baskin, Attorney, Rosenthal Pauerstein Sandoloski Agather LLP, and daughter of Stanley and Sandra Rosenberg

Mark Jay Sideman

Mark Jay Sideman died in July at the age of 79. Sideman was born at the Nix Hospital in San Antonio. He graduated from Alamo Heights High School. He received his undergraduate degree from the University of Texas and his law degree from St. Mary’s University. Sideman worked as an attorney in San Antonio for fifty-five years.

Eunice Elaine (Martin) Smith

Eunice Elaine (Martin) Smith died in August at the age of 82. Smith was born in Corpus Christi and attended W.B. Ray High School. She received her undergraduate degree from Texas A&I in 1971. She was among the first women to receive a law degree from St. Mary’s University. Her career spanned many years in real estate law and title work.

William Frederick (“Bill”) Stolhandske

William Frederick (“Bill”) Stolhandske died in March at the age of 84. The Baytown native attended the University of Texas, where he played football and graduated with a degree in Business and Accounting. He received his law degree from South Texas College of Law in 1966. He practiced law with his brother, Tom Stolhandske, for many years.

Harry Swearingen

Patrick Henry “Harry” Swearingen, Jr.

Patrick Henry “Harry” Swearingen, Jr. died in June at the age of 97. Swearingen was born in San Antonio. He graduated from Thomas Jefferson High School and received his undergraduate degree from Princeton University in 1947. Swearingen’s service in the Army Air Corps as a reconnaissance meteorologist interrupted his undergraduate studies. He received his law degree from the University of Texas in 1950. He was Casenote Editor of the Texas Law Review and was inducted into the Order of the Coif. Upon graduation from law school, he joined the San Antonio law firm of Brewer, Matthews, Nowlin, & McFarlane. He spent his entire career with the same law firm in its various transformations, ultimately with Dykema Cox Smith.

If anyone has ever epitomized the term “selfless,” that person was Harry Swearingen. Harry was smart, hard-working, and extraordinarily loyal to his clients, and he cared deeply for everyone that worked with him. The depth and breadth of his legal knowledge and his devotion to keeping current were extraordinary. Harry’s office was a minefield of advance sheets, issues of The Texas Bank Lawyer, and those huge orange 3-ring binders with the latest advanced banking or mortgage conference materials. He was also very good at forecasting South Texas weather—no easy feat. Far more important, though, were the counsel and emotional support that Harry, and his wife Gail, afforded to countless young people—often, but not always, young lawyers. If you needed help, professionally or personally, Harry and Gail were there for you.

- Patrick H. Autry, Branscomb Law

Charles Buchanan “Bucky” Tennison

Charles Buchanan “Bucky” Tennison died in January at the age of 79. He graduated from Alamo Heights High School in 1959. He received his undergraduate degree in 1963 and his law degree in 1966 from Southern Methodist University. Following eighteen months as a stockbroker in New York, Tennison returned to San Antonio and worked with the United States Attorney’s Office. Later he became a criminal prosecutor with the Bexar County District Attorney’s Office. In private practice he focused on criminal defense.

Luis Vera

Luis R. Vera, Jr.

Luis R. Vera, Jr. died in November at the age of 65. The San Antonio native received his undergraduate degree from St. Mary’s University and his law degree from Western New England University School of Law. Vera was a nationally recognized civil rights leader and advocate, and he worked with the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) for three decades. In 2017 the government of Mexico presented Vera with the Ohtil Award, one of its highest civilian honors, for contributing to the empowerment of Mexican communities abroad. At the time of his death, he was national General Counsel to LULAC.

We have lost a great friend and a hero. To have known and worked with Luis Vera was to have touched history. His work has made the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) ever more vigilant, stronger, and unrelenting in championing civil rights for the oppressed and justice for all brothers and sisters, including those in Puerto Rico. Luis did not know what impossible odds meant, and he did not cower before the forces of power and influence. He charged at the centers of political and judicial authority because he believed fiercely in the promise of our democracy and the righteousness of our constitutional protections. Luis was respected in the halls of justice and beloved in his community because of his passion. He has left an imprint that shall remain indelibly etched in our souls and in our hearts—a man whose legacy will endure for years to come.

- Sindy Benavides, LULAC National Chief Executive Officer

Ben Alton Wallis, Jr.

Ben Alton Wallis, Jr. died in January at the age of 84. Wallis was raised in Llano. He received both his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Texas. Wallis practiced for more than fifty years. He was a long-time member of the San Antonio Bar Association’s District Courts Committee, former chairman of the State Bar Agricultural Tax Committee, and an active real estate law practitioner. He also served as Associate Counsel on the Impeachment Task Force for the United States House of Representatives Committee on the Judiciary in 1974 regarding President Nixon’s involvement in the Watergate scandal.

Dale Weyand

Dale Weyand died in November at the age of 61. The Dallas native attended St. Mark’s School of Texas from kindergarten through twelfth grade. He received his undergraduate degree from the University of the South in 1982 and his law degree from St. Mary’s University in 1985. Weyand had a general civil practice, with an emphasis on bankruptcy and real estate matters.

Jon Clair Wood

Jon Clair Wood died in February at the age of 78. Wood was a native of Wichita, Kansas. He received his undergraduate degree from Yale University in 1964 and his law degree from the University of Texas in 1967. Following graduation, Wood clerked for United States District Judge D.W. Suttle in El Paso and San Antonio. He and his wife, Connie, settled in San Antonio, and he joined what was then known as Matthews, Nowlin, McFarlane & Barrett. He served as outside general counsel for City Public Service (now known as CPS Energy) and, in addition to many other duties, helped manage the utility’s involvement in the South Texas Nuclear Project for more than three decades.