Munck Wilson Mandala unanimously elected four partners, effective Jan. 1, 2022: Susan Hogan, Lauren Mitchell, Will Howison, and Keith Harden. Hogan, Howison, and Harden work in MWM’s Dallas office and Mitchell works remotely in Chicago. The four attorneys learned of their promotion in December 2021.
“Lauren, Susan, Keith and Will have brought tremendous success to our firm and demonstrated zealous work ethic,” said managing partner William A. Munck. “They excel as attorneys in corporate law, IP, and litigation and they have impressed all of us with their commitment to their practice, their clients, and our law firm.”
Hogan practices in MWM’s corporate law group. She has more than 20 years of experience representing public and private clients as both outside and in-house counsel. Her practice is focused on a broad range of transactional matters, including mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, entity formation, corporate governance, public offering and private placements of securities, venture capital investments, federal and state securities law compliance, and general commercial transactions.
Since joining MWM in January 2020, Hogan has been a key contributor on a number of significant M&A transactions, most recently including a $2.3 billion merger and an $84 million stock purchase for firm client Tyler Technologies and a $150 million equity sale of client Resi Media LLC. A graduate of Harvard Law School, Hogan holds a B.A. in English from Southern Methodist University.
Mitchell works in the complex litigation/dispute resolution group, focusing her practice on employment disputes. She defends employers against discrimination, harassment, and retaliation claims in EEOC investigations through civil litigation and provides legal counsel in defending against Title VII, ADEA, FLSA, state labor code claims, and employment-related tort claims. Mitchell frequently prosecutes claims for breach of covenants not to compete and she represents clients regarding confidentiality and non-solicitation agreements. She is licensed to practice in both Texas and Illinois.
Mitchell received her J.D. from the Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law, graduating cum laude. While in law school, she was selected as an articles editor for the International Law Review Association and she worked as a student attorney in the SMU Civil Clinic where she represented clients in consumer law matters. Mitchell earned a B.A. in crime and justice studies, graduating cum laude from the University of Texas at Dallas.
Howison works in the firm’s technology/intellectual property law group. His background in electrical engineering has been a relevant contributor to his practice where he focuses on the preparation and prosecution of patents, as well as acquiring, licensing, and enforcing patent rights, trademark rights, trade secrets, and copyrights for clients.
Howison represents companies and inventors on patent applications, patent protection and prosecution, and various other legal matters. He received his J.D. from the University of Texas School of Law, and he earned a Master’s in electrical engineering and a Bachelor of Science in electrical engineering from Rice University. Howison is the co-inventor of a patented haptic device gripper used for surgical teleoperation.
Harden practices in the technology/intellectual property law group focusing his practice on patent and trademark matters, including patent and trademark preparation and prosecution before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, as well as representing clients in post-grant proceedings before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board. Harden has extensive legal experience counseling companies regarding intellectual property identification, protection, and other intellectual property issues such as patent infringement and invalidity, and intellectual property portfolio management and due diligence.
Harden received his J.D. from the Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law where he served as a staff member and as technology director for the SMU Science and Technology Law Review. He holds two undergraduate degrees, a B.A. in music and business from Hardin-Simmons University, Abilene, Texas, and a B.S. in computer science from Regis University, Denver, Colorado.
“These new partners have played a major role in the success of our firm, and they have demonstrated a commitment to growing and excelling in their practice areas,” said chair of MWM’s corporate practice Larry Mandala. “We celebrate their success and I know we will see many future wins from these four.”
“Susan, Lauren, Will, and Keith continue to impress us with their hard work and excellent client service,” said Michael McCabe, co-chair of MWM’s commercial litigation/dispute resolution practice. “Their partnerships are well deserved, and our clients now have four additional partners working on their matters who are exceptionally smart and work well in high-demand environments.”
Munck Wilson Mandala is a technology-focused law firm with offices in Dallas, Austin, Houston, and Marshall, Texas, Los Angeles, California, and is currently opening an office in Miami, Florida. Listed as an Inc. Best Workplace in 2020 by Inc. Magazine, the firm offers full-service counsel in the areas of intellectual property litigation, complex commercial litigation, intellectual property portfolio development, corporate transactions and securities, real estate, employment law, and various other practices. Munck Wilson Mandala represents clients from start-ups to Fortune 50 companies. Learn more about the firm at http://www.munckwilson.com.
