St. Mary’s Law receives $1 million gift from Gamez Law Firm for scholarships, courtroom upgrades – St. Mary's University
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November 3, 2025
On Oct. 25, at the St. Mary’s University Law Alumni Association’s annual Distinguished Law Graduate Dinner, a special announcement concluded the awards program. The family of Joe A. Gamez (J.D. ’73), founder of the Gamez Law Firm, surprised their patriarch with the naming of the School of Law’s courtroom as the Joe A. Gamez Courtroom.
The $1 million gift from the Gamez Law Firm to St. Mary’s supports upgrades to the Joe A. Gamez Courtroom and the Law Classrooms Building in which it is located. Half of the gift will allocate funds to the already established Joe and Carmen Gamez Endowed Law Scholarship and the Joe A. Gamez Promise Scholarship, which provides two three-year, half-tuition scholarships for J.D. students.
President Winston Erevelles, Ph.D., revealed the $1 million gift to the audience at the awards dinner.
“It is my sincere pleasure to announce a remarkable gift from an individual who has long championed a Marianist education rooted in service and justice,” Erevelles said. “Under the loving direction of Joe’s wife, Carmen Gamez, and their children, Natalie, Melissa and Joseph, the Gamez Law Firm has graciously made a generous gift to honor Joe.”
Erevelles said the family had managed to keep both the gift and the naming a secret from Joe Gamez.
“This gift of $1 million will forever strengthen Joe’s legacy at the St. Mary’s University School of Law,” Erevelles said. “It will provide scholarships for students with financial need and invest in the future of our law facilities, advancing the excellence of our programs and the success of our students.”
Born and raised on the West Side of San Antonio, Gamez attended Lanier High School and was the first in his family to attend college. Since earning his J.D. in 1973 from St. Mary’s Law, Gamez has enjoyed a successful law career spanning more than five decades, including serving as a member of the Texas House of Representatives.
“Growing up on the West Side of San Antonio, I witnessed many injustices that inspired my lifelong desire to give back and help others who simply need an opportunity,” Gamez said. “St. Mary’s Law strengthened that calling through its Marianist values of service, justice and community. I am proud to support the law school that taught me not only how to practice law but how to serve others with compassion and purpose.”
Patricia Roberts, J.D., Dean of the School of Law, said the Gamez family’s generosity will impact many future generations of law students.
“I am proud to support the law school that taught me not only how to practice law but how to serve others with compassion and purpose.”
— Joe Gamez (J.D. ’73)
“As a Catholic law school that enrolls and graduates a majority of Hispanic students — many of them first-generation college graduates — seeing Mr. Gamez’s name on the wall of our courtroom will inspire them and remind them that they belong here at St. Mary’s Law and in the profession,” Roberts said.
At the awards dinner, Gamez was one of the three School of Law graduates who were recognized for their service to their clients, the legal community and the School of Law.
The Hon. Kathleen Cardone (J.D. ’79), U.S. District Judge, Western District of Texas
Cardone was sworn in as El Paso’s first female U.S. District Court Judge in 2003. Prior to taking the federal bench, she had more than 16 years of judicial experience. In 2025, Cardone was appointed by Chief Justice John G. Roberts to sit on the Board of Directors for the Federal Judicial Center.
Joe A. Gamez (J.D. ’73), founder, Joe A. Gamez Law
Lara Brock (J.D. ’14), senior partner attorney, Espinoza & Brock
A native of Roanoke, Virginia, Brock came to Texas to attend St. Mary’s Law. She has been with Espinoza & Brock since 2011. She focuses on non-subscriber injury cases, third-party injury cases, and employment discrimination and retaliation cases. She serves as vice president of political affairs for the Texas Trial Lawyers Association and president of the San Antonio Trial Lawyers Association
Sister Grace Walle, F.M.I., D.Min. (B.A. ’77), School of Law Chaplain
Walle received the Dean’s Marianist Law Legacy for her 43 years of service to St. Mary’s University and its School of Law. Walle celebrates 50 years as a Marianist sister in 2025. As the longtime Law Chaplain, Walle was honored for her dedication to serving and supporting generations of School of Law students.
