Margarita Trevino Balli Coale  
Associate Professor of Law
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Courses: Civil Procedure, Dispute Resolution and International Business Transactions

Professor Margarita Coale joined the faculty at Texas Wesleyan University School of Law as an associate professor in 2006. Born in Mexico, she came to the faculty from the bankruptcy group of Weil, Gotshal, & Manges, L.L.P., where she had major responsibility for the international (English, Dutch, Cayman Islands, and Peruvian) and claims handling aspects of the landmark bankruptcy case of In re Enron Corp. She had significant involvement in other large corporate bankruptcies, including those of a major toy manufacturer, paging service, and chemical treatment company, as well as work for a major asset purchaser in In re Trans World Airways. Professor Coale also taught several courses about international law at the University of Monterrey in Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico. Before joining Weil Gotshal, she clerked for Chief Judge Jerry Buchmeyer of the U.S. Northern District of Texas.

Professor Coale’s academic interests focus on several aspects of international law, including the management of cross-border bankruptcy cases, the resolution of international disputes, and international commercial law. Her research includes a significant emphasis on comparative legal analysis. In 2006, she presented research at the University of Gloucester conference sponsored by the law school about historical racial classifications in Latin American slavery.

Professor Coale earned her J.D. from the University of Texas, where she was articles editor of the Texas International Law Journal. She has an M.A. in Latin American Studies from the University of Texas, and earned her undergraduate degree (Licenciatura) from the University of Monterrey, where she graduated as valedictorian and was recognized as one of the outstanding students in the country by the president of Mexico. She is fluent in Spanish, her native language.

Selected publications

“Restricting Parallel Litigation in Federal Court,” 7 Communication & Business Litigation 5 (Fall 2005).

“Stabilization Clauses in International Petroleum Transactions,” 30 Denver Journal of International Law & Policy 217, (2002). 

“Stay, Dismiss, Enjoin, or Abstain? A Survey of Foreign Parallel Litigation in the Federal Courts of the United States,” 17 Boston University International Law Journal 79 (1999).

“Recent Changes to Mexican Arbitration Law: Is Constitutionality Achievable?,” 36 Texas International Law Journal 562 (1995).

“Torts and Divorce: A Comparison of Texas and the Mexican Federal District,” 17 Connecticut Journal of International Law, 1014 (1995).