David A. Chaumette, founding partner of Chaumette, PLLC, is the new president of the Houston Bar Association (HBA). He took office on May 16 at the HBA’s Annual Dinner Meeting at River Oaks Country Club. Mr. Chaumette succeeds Brent Benoit of Locke Lord LLP. With over 11,300 members, the HBA is the fifth largest metropolitan bar association in the nation.
Mr. Chaumette has been a member of the HBA Board of Directors since 2004, holding the offices of president-elect; first vice president, second vice president, secretary and two terms as director. He chaired the Houston Lawyer Referral Service and the Dispute Resolution Center, and he served as chair or co-chair of the HBA’s Administration of Justice, Judicial Polls, Law Week, Campaign for the Homeless and Membership committees. He also chaired the HBA’s Corporate Counsel Section.
Mr. Chaumette received the Standing Ovation Award from the State Bar of Texas for his service to TexasBarCLE and has been recognized as an Extraordinary Minority in Texas Law by Texas Lawyer. He is a life fellow of the Houston Bar Foundation. He also served on the board of directors of Neighborhood Centers, Inc. and First Colony Little League. He is a member of the National Bar Association, the Houston Lawyers Association, the College of the State Bar of Texas and the Pro Bono College of the State Bar of Texas.
He holds degrees in aerospace engineering from Princeton University and Stanford University and obtained his law degree from The University of Chicago Law School. As the founding partner of Sugar Land-based Chaumette, PLLC, his practice focuses on business litigation. He is a leading lawyer on issues related to electronic discovery and data management. In addition, he is a fellow of the American Law Institute and the Litigation Counsel of America.