A Final 4th Court Farewell

When I started this blog, I wanted to show the human side of the court of appeals, which can sometimes seem to be isolated from the rest of the activity at the Bexar County courthouses. One of the segments I started was called "4th Court Farewells" for staff who left the court.

During the pandemic, I haven't had the same opportunity to post updates on incoming and outgoing attorneys because working remotely makes it more difficult to get photos of everyone.

So here it is, my final 4th Court Farewell and final staff update:

WENDY MARTINEZ, the court's former Chief Staff Attorney, retired after decades of service to the court. Wendy served under five different chief justices. She retired in January 2021.

PAMELA JEWELL is the court's former original proceedings attorney. She moved into the chambers of Justice Lori Valenzuela as of January 2021. She previously worked for Chief Justice Sandee Bryan Marion.

BEN ROBERTSON, formerly a partner at Santoyo Wehmeyer, joined the chambers of Justice Valenzuela in February 2021.

JACK SALMON and NADEEN ABOU HOSSA moved into the Chief's chambers when Chief Justice Martinez took office as chief. Nadeen has been promoted from a briefing attorney to a staff attorney, and Jack has been named the court's new Chief Staff Attorney.

ME: In January 2021, I became the original proceedings attorney, after serving over six years in the chambers of Justice Luz Elena D. Chapa, and will be leaving the court to join the firm of Schmoyer Reinhard in San Antonio to do labor and employment and develop an appellate practice. The Original Proceedings Attorney position is now open, and the court is accepting applications. Please see the job posting here.

TRINA LOZOYA, who worked in Justice Rios's chambers and previously at the Court of Criminal Appeals, left the court in the fall of 2020.

CRAIG O'NEILL, Justice Martinez's former briefing attorney, was hired as Justice Rios's new staff attorney.

ANDREA MORRIS, who worked in Justice Beth Watkins's chambers, left the court in the spring of 2021 to work in private practice at Prichard Young.

AMY WILSON, who formerly worked in Judge David Newell's chambers at the Court of Criminal Appeals, has joined Justice Watkins's chambers.

If you're looking to join the 4th Court team, the court is now hiring a new Original Proceedings Attorney.