R E S O L U T I O N 1-1 WHEREAS, The passing of J. Donald Bowen of Abilene and 1-2 Houston on March 3, 2000, has brought a sense of profound loss to 1-3 the family and many friends of this exceptional man; and 1-4 WHEREAS, A nationally known plaintiffs' attorney, Don Bowen 1-5 was born in San Angelo on September 20, 1944; although he 1-6 subsequently did most of his work in Houston, he maintained his 1-7 home in Abilene, where he was raised; for many years he was a 1-8 valued member of Abilene's Highland Church of Christ; and 1-9 WHEREAS, Mr. Bowen received a bachelor's degree from Abilene 1-10 Christian University in 1967 and a J.D., cum laude, from The 1-11 University of Texas School of Law in 1970; while a law student he 1-12 was inducted into Phi Delta Phi, an international legal fraternity, 1-13 and the Order of the Coif, a prestigious honorary society; his 1-14 diligence and academic achievements also earned him the position 1-15 of case note editor on the Texas Law Review; and 1-16 WHEREAS, Following graduation, Mr. Bowen worked in the trial 1-17 section of Baker and Botts in Houston for three years before 1-18 joining the firm that became Helm, Pletcher, Bowen and Saunders; he 1-19 served as managing partner of the latter firm from 1984 onward; and 1-20 WHEREAS, Mr. Bowen steadily gained recognition as one of the 1-21 most successful civil trial attorneys in the country; he 1-22 represented clients in a number of high-stakes cases, including a 1-23 suit by Exxon against its insurers after the Exxon Valdez oil 1-24 spill; in that litigation Mr. Bowen, as lead counsel, won a 2-1 substantial verdict in behalf of the oil company, which was seeking 2-2 compensation for massive clean-up costs; and 2-3 WHEREAS, Mr. Bowen brilliantly and steadfastly represented 2-4 working people throughout the United States, handling some 450 2-5 claims a year as longtime designated counsel for the United 2-6 Transportation Union; more recently, he was instrumental in pulling 2-7 together trial lawyers from all over the country to litigate in 2-8 behalf of many thousands of Americans injured by the diet drug 2-9 Fen-Phen; shortly before his passing Mr. Bowen went to court in a 2-10 Texas suit related to this drug and won a substantial settlement 2-11 for his client; and 2-12 WHEREAS, Mr. Bowen was certified by the Texas Board of Legal 2-13 Specialization in Personal Injury Trial Law and by the National 2-14 Board of Trial Advocacy as a Civil Trial Advocate; he was admitted 2-15 to the Texas Bar in 1970 and was also admitted to practice in the 2-16 United States district courts for the Southern, Western, Northern, 2-17 and Eastern districts of Texas; and 2-18 WHEREAS, Among the numerous professional groups to which he 2-19 belonged were The College of the State Bar of Texas, Texas Bar 2-20 Foundation, American Board of Trial Advocates, and Academy of Rail 2-21 Labor Attorneys; and 2-22 WHEREAS, This distinguished Texan served as president of the 2-23 Texas Trial Lawyers Association and as a member of the Pepperdine 2-24 University School of Law Board of Visitors; he was a Fellow of the 2-25 American College of Trial Lawyers, and his name was repeatedly 2-26 listed in The Best Lawyers in America; and 2-27 WHEREAS, Mr. Bowen relished challenges outside of the 3-1 courtroom as well as within: a former college football lineman in 3-2 spite of his relatively light weight, he found rejuvenation in 3-3 running marathons and competed in the Boston Marathon on several 3-4 occasions; for relaxation he also loved retreating to the quiet 3-5 simplicity of his ranch in Coke County; and 3-6 WHEREAS, The integrity, courage, and loyalty that Don Bowen 3-7 displayed throughout his life, together with his erudition, 3-8 virtuoso legal skills, and unequivocal commitment to his clients, 3-9 gained for him the enormous respect and affection of his family, 3-10 friends, and associates, and the spirit of this good man will 3-11 surely live on in the hearts of all he so deeply touched; now, 3-12 therefore, be it 3-13 RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 77th Texas 3-14 Legislature hereby pay special tribute to the life of J. Donald 3-15 "Don" Bowen and extend sincere sympathy to his family: to his 3-16 wife, Latimer Bowen; to his daughter and son-in-law, Ashley Bowen 3-17 Mayo and Todd Mayo; to his sons, Watson Bowen and Shane Bowen; to 3-18 his mother, Jo Bowen; to his sister, brother-in-law, and nephew, 3-19 Donna Bowen, Steve Stiles, and Michael Hughes; and to the many 3-20 others who held him dear; and, be it further 3-21 RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be 3-22 prepared for the members of his family and that when the Texas 3-23 House of Representatives adjourns this day, it do so in memory of 3-24 J. Donald Bowen. Uher Laney Goodman Merritt Alexander Goolsby Miller Allen Gray Moreno of Harris Averitt Green Moreno of El Paso Bailey Grusendorf Morrison Berman Gutierrez Mowery Bonnen Haggerty Naishtat Bosse Hamric Najera Brimer Hardcastle Nixon Brown of Kaufman Hartnett Noriega Brown of Brazos Hawley Oliveira Burnam Heflin Olivo Callegari Hilbert Pickett Capelo Hilderbran Pitts Carter Hill Puente Chavez Hinojosa Ramsay Chisum Hochberg Rangel Christian Hodge Raymond Clark Homer Reyna of Bexar Coleman Hope Reyna of Dallas Cook Hopson Ritter Corte Howard Sadler Counts Hunter Salinas Crabb Hupp Seaman Craddick Isett Shields Crownover Janek Smith Danburg Jones of Lubbock Smithee Davis of Harris Jones of Bexar Solis Davis of Dallas Jones of Dallas Solomons Delisi Junell Swinford Denny Keel Talton Deshotel Keffer Telford Driver King of Parker Thompson Dukes King of Uvalde Tillery Dunnam Kitchen Truitt Dutton Kolkhorst Turner of Coleman Edwards Krusee Turner of Harris Ehrhardt Kuempel Uher Eiland Lewis of Tarrant Uresti Elkins Lewis of Orange Villarreal Ellis Longoria Walker Farabee Luna West Farrar McCall Williams Flores McClendon Wilson Gallego McReynolds Wise Garcia Madden Wohlgemuth George Marchant Wolens Geren Martinez Fischer Woolley Giddings Maxey Yarbrough Glaze Menendez Zbranek _______________________________ Speaker of the House I certify that H.R. No. 344 was unanimously adopted by a rising vote of the House on March 21, 2001. _______________________________ Chief Clerk of the House