_______________________________________________________________________

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

For information contact:

Georgia Clonch

817-336-2400

email@deckerjones.com

             www.deckerjones.com

RIAA Anti-Piracy Vice President Don Valdez

joins Decker Jones IP Practice Group

Fort Worth, Texas (April 3, 2006) – Donald J. Valdez, recently retired Vice President, Anti-Piracy Legislation & Regional Counsel of the Recording Industry Association of America, has joined the growing Intellectual Property Practice Group of Decker, Jones, McMackin, McClane, Hall & Bates P.C.

“This is a new challenge for me, a chance to approach my chosen field from an entirely different perspective. Decker Jones is innovative, forward thinking, and committed to becoming the go-to firm for IP matters in North Texas,” Valdez said. “I'm really energized.”

Valdez is the fifth attorney in the Intellectual Property Practice Group at Decker Jones, a specialty area for which the firm has built a strong reputation and gained featured prominence in the Dallas/Fort Worth region. He will focus his practice on brand protection and entertainment law.

“Don will be a great asset to the firm and our clients,” said Decker Jones shareholder Jeff Storie, who started the firm's IP and entertainment practice in 1990. “The experience he brings is invaluable and the relationships and good will he enjoys within the entertainment industry are unmatched. We simply could not have found a better fit.”

Valdez already has landed representation of a leading luxury Swiss watch company and a major financial firm in the Metroplex . His broad, national experience in anti-piracy matters brings a unique skill set to the practice area. Valdez began his career as an investigator at the RIAA in 1979 and served as vice president of the Dallas region from 1994-2005.

Respect for Don Valdez's prowess as an IP attorney is not limited to his peers in the recording industry. Said Steven J. D'Onofrio , executive director of the International Anti-Counterfeiting Coalition: “Decker Jones is extremely fortunate to add Don Valdez to its Intellectual Property practice. Don brings more than 25 years of criminal, civil and legislative Intellectual Property experience to the firm and its clients. While at the RIAA, Don was involved in initiating, implementing, and testifying on behalf of a legislative campaign that resulted in the passage of 42 felony and state anti-piracy laws, a huge accomplishment for the music and film industries.”

Before joining the RIAA, Valdez spent four years as a special agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Quantico, Va., Newark, N.J., and Miami, Fla., two and a half years as a adjunct professor in Advertising and Public Relations at the University of Memphis' Department of Journalism, and four years in the United States Air Force, leaving as a Captain, Control Center Commander.

Valdez received his Bachelor of Science Degree in Journalism at the University of Memphis . After a year at the University of South Carolina Graduate School of Journalism, he returned to the University of Memphis to attend Law School and earned his Juris Doctor in 1975. He is an adjunct professor in the School of Music Business and the Political Science Department at Dallas Baptist University .

He is a member of the State Bar of Texas and the American Bar Association, and belongs to the Criminal Justice, Intellectual Property Law, and Entertainment and Sports Law sections of both organizations. Valdez also serves on the legislative committee of the International Anti-Counterfeiting Coalition.

Valdez is a former recording artist, writer and producer; he is a member of the Country Music Association, the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the United States Tennis Association and the United States Golf Association.

He lives in Mansfield, Texas, with his wife Lynda. They have two grown children, Shana and Ryan.

Decker, Jones, McMackin, McClane, Hall & Bates, P.C. has provided sound legal advice and counsel to Texans and their businesses since 1896. The firm has throughout its history remained at the forefront of business law practice, and most recently has enjoyed considerable recognition in the fields of Litigation and Intellectual Property Law. To learn more about Decker, Jones, McMackin, McClane, Hall & Bates, P.C., go to www.deckerjones.com.