Kelly Frels is a retired partner with Bracewell, and he is one of the winners of Texas Lawyer's Lifetime Achievement award. Read a Q&A with him below.

What are the moments that have defined your legal career?

While there are undoubtedly many great moments that have defined my career, I am most proud of my work helping to desegregate the Houston Independent School District, serving as Bracewell's managing partner and leading all of Texas' great lawyers as the president of the State Bar of Texas. For HISD, that work was challenging but also very rewarding, as it helped to modernize the city from a social standpoint. Leading Bracewell, we did some great things to help the firm through a period of tremendous growth. As the president of the State Bar, it was indeed an honor to help shape legal policies that, to this day, are both used and built upon. I was proud to be a leader in the greater Texas legal community.