Governor Abbott Announces Appointments To New Houston Business Court Division

TEXAS, June 14 - June 14, 2024 | Austin, Texas | Appointment

Governor Greg Abbott today announced his appointments to the new Eleventh Business Court Division in Houston, which was created last year to provide an efficient mechanism for businesses to resolve complex commercial disputes in Texas. The Governor has appointed Sofia Adrogué and Grant Dorfman to be judges of the Eleventh Business Court Division, effective September 1, 2024, for terms set to expire on September 1, 2026. The Eleventh Business Court Division is composed of the counties of Brazoria, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Matagorda, and Wharton.

Sofia Adrogué of Houston is a partner with Diamond McCarthy LLP. She is Founder and Editor of the Texas Business Litigation Treatise (ALM 5th Edition). At the outset of her career, she clerked at the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. Having served on over 15 boards, she is currently a member of the Houston First Board of Directors and the City of Houston Mayor's Hispanic Advisory Board and fellow of the American Bar Foundation, Texas Bar Foundation, and Houston Bar Foundation (HBF). Her previous service includes serving as president and member of Houston Law Review (HLR) Alumni Association Board of Directors and member of the Hispanic Bar Association of Houston, Mexican-American Bar Association of Houston, Texas Women Lawyers, and the Texas Supreme Court Advisory Committee. She has received over 40 awards and has been recognized for her public service by the City of Houston with proclamations of ''Sofia Adrogué Day." Adrogué received a Bachelor of Arts in English and Legal Studies from Rice University, magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, and a Juris Doctor from the University of Houston Law Center, magna cum laude, both on full academic scholarships. Additionally, she is a graduate and alumna of the Harvard Business School Owner President Management Program, where she served as a U.S. keynote speaker and class representative.

Grant Dorfman of Bellaire is a Visiting Judge and former Deputy First Assistant Attorney General for the Office of the Texas Attorney General. Previously, he served as Judge of the 334th Judicial District and the 129th Judicial District both in Harris County, as a Visiting Judge for the State of Texas, as counsel for Sheehy, Ware, Pappas & Grubbs, P.C., and as Senior In-House Counsel to Nabors Industries. He is a member of the State Bar of Texas, The Federalist Society, Houston Bar Association (HBA), and the American Law Institute. He is a sustaining life fellow of the Texas Bar Foundation, an HBF life fellow, and a member of the HLR Board of Directors. Additionally, he is treasurer of the Texas Association of Retired, Senior and Former Judges, a member of the HSPVA Friends Board of Directors, former co-chair of the HBA Communities in Schools Committee, former member of the HBA Professionalism Committee, and former faculty member of the National Judicial College. Dorfman received an Artium Baccalaureus in Honors History from Brown University, a Master of Studies in History and Political Philosophy from Oxford University, and a Juris Doctor from Yale Law School.

Last year, Governor Abbott signed House Bill 19 into law creating a new statewide specialty business trial courts to streamline resolutions of business disputes.