Sarah L. Buzby

Partner

Biography

Sarah L. Buzby is a Partner in the Real Estate practice at McCathern, Shokouhi, Evans, where she advises clients across the full lifecycle of complex commercial real estate transactions. Her practice spans acquisitions and dispositions, development, leasing, financing, and asset management, with a focus on delivering practical, business-oriented solutions that protect value, allocate risk effectively, and drive deals forward.

Sarah brings a unique in-house and law firm perspective to her practice. Most recently, she served as General Counsel of a Dallas-based real estate development firm, where she was the primary legal advisor to executive leadership on all corporate and real estate matters. In that role, she led legal strategy across a diverse development portfolio, structuring and negotiating purchase and sale agreements, ground leases, commercial leases, development agreements, construction contracts, and complex financing arrangements. She also advised on title, zoning, and environmental matters and worked closely with internal teams to guide projects from site acquisition through stabilization and disposition.

Prior to her in-house role, Sarah was Senior Counsel at a Dallas law firm, where she handled sophisticated real estate transactions nationwide across hospitality, multifamily, land, and retail assets. Her experience includes managing transactions from letter of intent through closing, structuring joint ventures and other ownership vehicles, and navigating complex debt and equity financing structures.

Earlier in her career, Sarah practiced at national law firms, including Paul Hastings LLP, Gardere Wynne Sewell LLP (now Foley Lardner) , and Reed Smith LLP, and served as real estate counsel for a development company, where she closed hundreds of transactions and developed deep experience in title and survey review, due diligence, and transactional execution.

Sarah earned her J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania Law School and holds dual undergraduate degrees from Duke University. She is licensed to practice law in Texas, California, the District of Columbia, and Virginia; and is a member of the Dallas Bar Association and Dallas Woman Lawyers Association.

Based in Dallas, Sarah represents developers, investors, and operators in complex real estate transactions and values building long-term client relationships grounded in responsiveness, efficiency, and commercial insight. Sarah resides in Dallas with her two daughters, two dogs and enjoys taking them on exciting adventures. She is also on the planning committee for the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation’s Night of Champions.

Awards and Associations

Location

Dallas (Main)

3710 Rawlins Street
Suite 1600
Dallas, TX 75219

PRACTICE AREAS

EDUCATION

Juris Doctor

PROSPER ISD PARENTS QUESTION DISTRICT RESPONSE TO BUS DRIVER ACCUSED OF SEXUALLY ASSAULTING STUDENTS

December 15, 2025

Author: Rebecca Lopez with WFAA Watch the interview here. PROSPER, Texas — Parents of two young girls who say they were repeatedly sexually assaulted by a Prosper ISD school bus driver are speaking out about what they describe as serious failures by the district — including delayed notification to families and promised safety changes they say were never fully implemented. The parents asked that they not be identified to protect their children, who were just elementary school age at the time of the abuse. In a lawsuit filed in 2023, the girls — identified only as Jane Doe 1 and Jane Doe 2 — allege former bus driver Frank Paniagua assaulted them repeatedly during the 2021–2022 school year. According to the lawsuit, Paniagua would wait until other students exited the bus, then assault the girls, sometimes holding one child back so he could take her to the rear of the bus. Attorneys say the abuse occurred over several months and was captured on bus surveillance video. How the abuse was discovered The girls’ mother said the abuse came to light after their grandmother noticed troubling comments about gift cards offered by the bus driver. When the mother later questioned the girls again, they disclosed what had been happening. Prosper ISD police reviewed surveillance video from the bus in May 2022. Paniagua was arrested two days later and charged with aggravated sexual assault of a child, continuous sexual abuse of a child under 14, and indecency with a child. Paniagua later died after jumping from the second floor of the Collin County Jail while awaiting trial. Concerns about delayed notifications Attorneys for the family say more than 100 days passed after Paniagua’s arrest before Prosper ISD publicly acknowledged the allegations — a delay parents say may have prevented other potential victims from being identified. At a packed school board meeting, Prosper ISD parent Morgan Grahovec, a child psychologist whose daughter attended the same school as the victims, told trustees that delays in notifying parents can have serious consequences. “Children who are victims of abuse need to be identified and interviewed as soon as possible because memory fades over time,” Grahovec said. “The longer you wait, it’s harder to get a child to report abuse accurately.” Parents at those meetings called for Superintendent Holly Ferguson’s resignation, arguing district leaders should have acted sooner and communicated more transparently. Ferguson did not step down, instead promising changes to safety protocols. District response and former statement In an earlier written statement to WFAA, Prosper ISD said it took appropriate action once allegations surfaced: “We are horrified that an employee violated the trust of our families and students, as Prosper ISD’s foremost priority is to protect our students’ safety and well-being at all times. We strongly condemn the actions of any adult who would cause mental or physical harm to a child, and we do not tolerate such behavior.” The district has declined additional comment, citing pending litigation. Disputed claims about safety changes Prosper ISD previously told parents it would implement additional safeguards, including increased supervision during bus drop-offs, a volunteer “bus buddy” program, and improved monitoring of bus surveillance video. But the parents and their attorneys say those changes were not consistently put in place. Attorney Levi McCathern says the district does not regularly review bus surveillance footage — even though video captured the alleged abuse in this case. “You would think the first thing you would do after this happens is change your monitoring program,” McCathern said. “They don’t monitor them at all.” McCathern and co-counsel Kristin Hecker say the lawsuit is aimed at forcing policy changes rather than seeking financial gain. Questions about oversight and leadership The case has also raised broader concerns about district leadership and oversight. Prosper ISD’s school board president later resigned in an unrelated child abuse case, further shaking confidence among some parents. Families have also questioned the independence of the district’s internal review, noting that the law firm hired to investigate the district’s response is also defending Prosper ISD in the lawsuit. “All we want is an independent investigation,” McCathern said. Parents push for accountability and change The parents say their children remain enrolled in Prosper ISD, but they continue to press for reforms they believe could prevent similar abuse. “We want justice for our kids,” the girls’ mother said. “But we also want changes to happen at the district so that this doesn’t happen to other children.”