Dona G. Hamilton - UH General Counsel

Dona Glimm Hamilton earned her undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Texas at Austin. She first
joined the Texas Attorney General’s office in 1987 as an Assistant Attorney General in the General Litigation
Division, having previously worked in Texas legislative positions. She left the position of Assistant Attorney
General in 1992 to become a shareholder in the Austin-based Morehead, Jordan & Carmona law firm.

Dona returned to the Attorney General’s office in 1995 and became Deputy Chief of the General Litigation
Division in 1996. As Deputy Chief of the General Litigation Division, Dona supervised 30 attorneys with
responsibility for the 700-plus cases handled by the division. The division represents state officials and
agencies/universities in litigation involving employment law, personal injury claims, whistle-blower claims, federal
and state civil rights law (including class actions), and claims of constitutional violations.

Dona represented the University of Houston in Septimus v. University of Houston, a high-profile discrimination and
retaliation suit brought by former General Counsel staff lawyer Susan Septimus, which resulted in a six-figure
damage award against the University. The judgment was reversed by the Fifth Circuit on a technicality in the jury
charge. See Septimus v. Univ . of Houston , 399 F.3d 601 (5th Cir. 2005). The parties subsequently settled the
case upon remand to the federal district court in Houston.

Dona has been licensed to practice law in Texas since 1986 and is a member of the bars of the United States
District Courts of all four federal districts in Texas. Dona is also admitted to practice before the Fifth Circuit Court
of Appeals in New Orleans.

Dona joined the University of Houston as General Counsel in June 2002, replacing Dennis Duffy after the
University had suffered a rare legal defeat in the precedent-setting Septimus case.

E-mail: dghamilton@uh.edu
Phone: (713) 743-0949
Fax:: (713) 743-0948