General Counsel & Risk Manager, Acme Brick Company
Mr. Latham currently serves as General Counsel and Risk Manager for Acme Brick Company at its Fort Worth headquarters, a position he has held for 15 years. Licensed to practice in Texas since 1982, he began his legal career as a briefing attorney for the Honorable Charles Barrow, Justice of the Supreme Court of Texas. He then joined the prominent private practice law firm of McDonald, Sanders, Ginsburg, Day, and Maddox in Fort Worth, currently McDonald | Sanders P.C. Initially, he focused on trial and appellate law, becoming Board Certified in Appellate Law by the State Bar of Texas, Board of Legal Specialization. Through his representation of local, state, and national businesses, Mr. Latham’s areas of practice grew significantly. In 1996, he became General Counsel and created an “in-house” legal department for BMS Enterprises, Inc., a pioneer in the cleaning and restoration business with company-owned (Blackmon-Mooring) and franchised (Steamatic) operations throughout the U.S. and abroad.
In 2006, he was recruited by Acme Brick Company to establish a legal department and assume the risk management duties for all its affiliated companies. During his tenure, he has performed or managed the Company’s varied legal matters within the department and through outside law firms. In addition, he has been an active part of helping Acme overcome anticipated and unexpected challenges including restructuring of its corporate entities as a subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway, Inc., a historic recession, a crash in the housing industry, and the evolution of the company from a brick manufacturer into a diversified building products company. Today, Mr. Latham navigates a diverse legal practice, which includes corporate governance, business, commercial, consumer, creditor-debtor, bankruptcy, environmental, insurance, intellectual property, labor-employment, personal injury, workers’ compensation, transportation, customs and importing, oil, gas and energy resources, real estate, construction, and contracts (domestic and foreign).
He holds a Bachelor of Business Administration in General Business and Journalism from Baylor University and a Doctor of Jurisprudence/Juris Doctor (J.D.), with honors, from Baylor Law School. He volunteers with several charitable and faith-based organizations and is an active member of Travis Avenue Baptist Church.