Prior BigLaw and In-house Experience
- Vial Hamilton Koch & Knox
- Hughes & Luce (now K&L Gates)
- McKool Smith
- Samsung
Education
- Baylor University, B.B.A. in Accounting, 1990
- Baylor Law School, J.D., 1994
Licenses
- Admitted to practice law in Texas
- Admitted to practice in the U.S. District Courts for the Northern District of Texas
- Passed all parts of the C.P.A. exam
Practice Areas
Brief Bio
Gary’s practice focuses on commercial, business and technology matters. He serves as an outsourced General Counsel for companies, from start-ups to established businesses, and handles all forms of contract drafting, review and negotiations, corporate governance, dispute resolution and human resources, along with strategic business advice and other corporate matters. He also provides general guidance and helps clients find specific legal advice in a variety of other practice areas as part of the firm’s full-service capabilities.
The Rest of the Story
Gary was born and raised in Houston, Texas, along with two brothers and a sister. He graduated from Klein High School where he played football and baseball and then went on to study accounting at Baylor University while playing linebacker on a full football scholarship for Grant Teaff. He took one year off after completing his undergraduate accounting degree and took and passed the C.P.A. on the first try while working for Transco Energy in Houston. He then returned to law school at Baylor in 1991, from which he received a J.D. in 1994.
After passing the bar exam, Gary practiced law for several big law firms in Dallas for eleven years, including Vial Hamilton, Hughes & Luce and McKool Smith, where he both litigated and handled transactional work. In 2005, he was offered a position with Samsung and worked there for ten years where he became the Associate General Counsel for all cell phone operations in the United States. After leaving Samsung in 2015, Gary held other high-level in-house positions, including serving as the General Counsel for two other companies.
He met his wife, Melissa, at Big Tex at the State Fair in 1998 and they were married in 2000. Melissa has worked in Global Sales for Four Seasons for 27 years. They have a wonderful daughter, Annabella, along with Gracie, their beloved King Charles Spaniel. Gary loves to travel, play golf and spend time with his family.
Gary, based on his high-level in-house positions, learned that the legal profession had changed such that companies needed reasonably priced, high quality legal services, but the fees at traditional firms had skyrocketed. Companies have struggled financially with the decision to either have an in-house legal team versus paying big law firm rates, so he has seen the business need for an outsourced legal model. This gives companies the ability to determine the scope of the legal services needed that fits within its financial budget, rather than avoiding seeking necessary advice. Providing first-rate legal services in a timely manner is much more important to clients than having a firm with traditional office space and the related overhead that forces rates to an unaffordable level.
Gary is extremely excited to be a Member of Grable Martin PLLC in order to provide quality legal services by experienced attorneys at a reasonable cost to a variety of clients.
