12/1/25 - News
Fraser Holmes Law360 Interview — “Prep, Panic & Poise: Inside an Associate’s First Oral Argument”
Law360 recently published “Prep, Panic & Poise: Inside an Associate’s First Oral Argument,” an interview with Hicks Johnson PLLC Associate Fraser Holmes on reaching a major career milestone at the Texas Third Court of Appeals.
The engaging conversation covered topics including:
Why Fraser chose appellate law:
“What I really like about being an appellate lawyer is that I get to … think about how to persuade somebody and do it in a way that benefits at least one person, which is the client, and that has a real-world impact.”
Leading up to the argument:
“I was very nervous. But I’ve talked to a lot of partners here — people who have argued over and over again, and who are incredibly good — and they get nervous, too, and that made me feel better. You learn to use energy positively and make sure you can handle anything … So, I am actually grateful I felt nervous. If I had been complacent, I might not have been as well-prepared.”
And the most important feedback — the client’s reaction:
“[I]t was incredibly rewarding to hear directly from the client how pleased they were. It kind of gets back to why I was so excited to do appellate work to begin with: It’s everything I enjoyed about graduate school — becoming an expert, trying to convince others of your position, etc. — with the real-world impact of getting to help someone with your work product.”