Houston, Oct. 5, 2012 — Winstead shareholder Tom Forestier has been named the 2012 recipient of the Texas Minority Counsel Program (TMCP) Trailblazer Outside Counsel of the Year Award. The State Bar of Texas and the TMCP established the Trailblazer Outside Counsel of the Year Award to recognize an outside counsel who has consistently supported the TMCP’s goals of diversity and inclusion. Forestier received his award at a luncheon during the TMCP on Oct. 4, 2012, at the Westin Houston.

The criteria considered for determining Forestier as the recipient included efforts to recruit and retain minority attorneys, efforts to effectuate the promotion of diversity within the legal profession, retention and mentoring of minority and women attorneys, involvement with bar and/or community activities designed to promote diversity within the legal profession, and sustained participation in the TMCP.

Forestier is the managing shareholder of Winstead's Houston Office and a member of Winstead's energy and environmental law and Business Litigation Practice Groups. His clients include energy companies, banks, television stations, newspaper publishers, condemning authorities, landowners and developers, and insurance companies.

"I am honored to be selected for this award," said Forestier. "To be recognized among the many who make a difference in these efforts is humbling and much appreciated.”

Forestier has an impressive combination of community service, including his role as a trustee of the Lone Star College System (LSCS), the largest institution of higher education in the Houston region and the fastest-growing community college system in the nation. In the legal community, Forestier serves on the board of directors for the Hispanic Bar Association of Houston and is a member of the Hispanic National Bar Association and the Racial Diversity in the Profession Committee of the State Bar of Texas. Named a Texas Super Lawyer and Top Lawyer by H Texas magazine, Forestier received his J.D. from the University of Texas School of Law.

Winstead is among the largest business law firms in Texas. Winstead attorneys and consultants serve as trusted advisors to mid-market and large businesses, providing a core range of legal services that are critical to their operation and success. Winstead currently has offices in Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston, San Antonio, and The Woodlands, Texas; Charlotte, North Carolina; New Orleans, Louisiana; and Washington, D.C. For detailed information about Winstead, visit www.winstead.com.