Alumni Spotlight
From Part-time Law Student to General Counsel: Laura Tyson (J.D. '97) Shares Her Corporate Law Journey
Laura Tyson (J.D. ’97), an alumna of the UH Law Center, is the general counsel, COO and managing director of the private equity firm Energy & Minerals Group in Houston.
Aug. 3, 2026 — University of Houston Law Center alumna Laura Tyson (J.D. '97), general counsel of the private equity firm Energy & Minerals Group, received the Houston Corporate Counsel Award for General Counsel of the Year for a Small Legal Department this year. She also serves as EMG’s chief operating officer and managing director and oversees billion-dollar transactions.
The honor came on the heels of one of the most challenging matters of Tyson's career. In late 2025, she was leading the legal strategy for a $1.5 billion transaction when a sovereign wealth fund filed suit in Delaware Chancery Court on the eve of Thanksgiving, seeking to block the deal and make the dispute public despite contractual provisions requiring arbitration. The litigation delayed the closing by nearly three months, but Tyson and her team ultimately prevailed in expedited arbitration, allowing the transaction to close in March 2026.
Tyson said the award was especially meaningful because it came alongside recognition of other respected Houston legal leaders, including Steve Scheinthal of Landry's and Richard McGee of Plains.
"I am rarely in the spotlight anymore since I have been in-house, which is fine with me," Tyson said. "EMG tends to very intentionally stay under the radar and as a result, I do as well."
Early Exposure to the Law
The 1997 UHLC graduate's legal journey began far from Houston's boardrooms. As a teenager in Lake Charles, Louisiana, Tyson got her first exposure to the legal profession while working at a full-service law firm, where she handled everything from courthouse filings and mailroom duties to real estate and title research.
That early experience gave her a broad view of the profession and helped shape her interest in business law.
"I was fortunate to be in a full-service firm, so I was able to learn about the different types of practices rather than only litigation, which is what most people think about when they think of lawyers," Tyson said.
Her undergraduate studies in economics and finance further fueled her interest in capital markets and investments. When she decided to pursue a law degree, she moved to Houston to study at the University of Houston Law Center.
The Law School Experience
The Law Center stood out because of its reputation, strong job placement record and evening program, which allowed her to work as a legal secretary at the Giessel, Barker & Lyman insurance defense firm in downtown Houston while earning her degree.
"UH Law was my top choice because it was well ranked, the job placement rate was very high and it offered an opportunity to get a law degree fully at night with relatively affordable tuition," Tyson said. "Back then, few law schools offered a night school option."
Balancing work and law school required significant sacrifice, but Tyson said the experience helped develop the discipline and resilience that would serve her throughout her career.
Looking back at her time at the Law Center, Tyson credits the school's adjunct faculty with helping prepare her for the realities of practice. Unlike full-time academics, many adjunct professors bring direct experience from the legal profession into the classroom.
"I really enjoyed my adjunct professors at UH," Tyson said. "They were able to provide a really good perspective on the day-to-day things you would encounter in corporate and securities law."
Among the professors who made a lasting impression were Adrienne Randle Bond, who taught corporate transactions, and Patricia Porter, who taught securities regulation.
Building a Corporate Law Career
After law school, Tyson built a successful career in corporate and securities law, including just over 16 years in private practice before joining EMG in 2014, where she has now been for more than 12 years. Today, as general counsel at EMG, she plays a key role not only in legal matters but also in strategic business decisions.
"I enjoy being involved in transactions early on in the decision stage," Tyson said. "As outside counsel, you often do not get brought in until after a term sheet is signed, so you don't have as much input or ability to shape the transaction with other ideas."
She particularly values the collaboration that comes with working alongside EMG's investment team.
"I enjoy being surrounded by incredibly intelligent, hard-working people who work together as a team," she said.
Navigating Challenges
The litigation surrounding EMG’s $1.5 billion transaction tested Tyson’s ability to remain calm under pressure.
For Tyson, the experience reinforced an approach that has helped her throughout her career: remain calm, identify what needs to be done and work through problems methodically.
"Getting frantic or stressed out doesn't change anything or help anything. It is wasted energy," Tyson said. "I look at the task ahead of us, determine what needs to be done, develop a plan and tackle each piece one at a time."
“Getting frantic or stressed out doesn't change anything or help anything. It is wasted energy,” Tyson said.
That mindset extends beyond her professional life. In 2018, Tyson lost her husband of 27 years after a three-and-a-half-year battle with cancer. When people asked how she managed during that period, she said her approach was the same one she applies to difficult professional challenges.
"You are not given a choice," Tyson said. "You just manage one day at a time."
Advice for Future Lawyers
For current law students and young attorneys, Tyson emphasizes that a law degree is not limited to one career path. Instead, she sees legal education as a foundation that provides the confidence and skills to solve problems across industries.
"I believe that no matter what you do with a law degree, the education itself is invaluable," Tyson said. "It gives you the confidence and the tools to solve problems."
Her advice to students balancing school, work and other responsibilities is straightforward: the sacrifices made early in a career are worthwhile.
"You make sacrifices now," Tyson said. "Those sacrifices will be worth it and in the grand scheme of your career and what you are setting yourself up to achieve — it will be worth it."
For Tyson, those sacrifices transformed her from a part-time law student working her way through school into an award-winning corporate leader helping guide major transactions in Houston's business community.
