Hooks Estate Planning Lawyers

Our firm specializes in Estate Planning, Probate Administration, Trust Law and Guardianship matters. We also help our clients create and maintain business related entities including corporations and partnerships.

Octavio Salinas II brings forth an extensive legal and business background. He has handled hundreds of criminal and civil cases throughout Texas and the United States, settled multi-million dollar personal injury claims, and argued before the state and federal appeal courts.

My practice is dedicated to growing and preserving the wealth of our community. I am a native of South Texas and grew up in Alice. After decades away gaining the education and experience needed to improve my community I have returned to raise my family and provide our community with quality legal services.

Stephanie was born and raised in Katy, Texas. She graduated from the University of Houston Law Center where she participated in the Educational Rights Clinic, Juvenile Law Clinic, Immigration Clinic, and the Alternative Dispute Resolution team. Through her work in the legal clinics, she had the privilege of zelalously advocating for her various clients. Stephanie is well versed in the financial aspects of divorce, having received her accounting degree from the University of Houston Honors College with cum laude honors, particularly as it affects real estate, retirement accounts, and business ownership. Stephanie’s passion for the legal profession, attention to detail, and professionalism...

Board Certified in Estate Planning and Probate Law by Texas Board of Legal Specialization and CPA

Mr. Deffenbaugh can offer over thirty years of legal expertise in an array of legal areas. He has worked on cases involving contracts, probate, taxation, insurance, real estate, oil and gas, business startups, and credit unions. He received his Bachelor of Business Administration from St. Mary’s University in 1975 and become a Certified Public Accountant in 1977. Mr. Deffenbaugh went on to complete his Master of Business Administration at the University of Texas at San Antonio in 1982. He received his Doctor of Jurisprudence from St. Mary’s University Law School in 1992. Mr. Deffenbaugh has been a small business owner for...

Brooke is a passionate advocate for her clients both inside and outside the courtroom. Brooke understands that when her clients come to see her, they are often dealing with a lot of emotions, sometimes good and sometimes bad, but she handles their case with care and guides them to a solution. Brooke practices family law, including divorce, child custody, child support, adoptions, gestational agreements, pre & post marital agreements, and the list goes on. Brooke also leads the firm's estate planning and probate department. Call Brooke today to see how she and the Branch Law Firm...

Tom Carnes is a civil trial lawyer and mediator in Fredericksburg, Texas, in the heart of the Texas Hill Country.

Tom's practice in business litigation includes a broad range of matters, ranging from contracts, to real estate litigation, to construction disputes, to competitive hiring and trade secret litigation. His family law practice includes, but is not limited to, collaborative divorce matters. His traditional family law practice includes all aspects of family law, including divorce, child custody, modification, and enforcement.

Tom also serves as a neutral third-party mediator in a broad range of business and family law...

Expert legal and strategic advice for probate, wills, trusts, estate planning, guardianship, and elder law by one of only 2 Georgetown and 6 Williamson County attorneys who are board certified by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization in Estate Planning & Probate.

Specific types of matters include advice, drafting, review, and representation regarding wills, revocable trusts, living trusts, irrevocable trusts, dynasty trusts, IRA and retirement trusts, probate administration, trust administration, powers of attorney, living wills, guardianship, elder law, and asset protection planning with series LLCs. Georgetown, Williamson County, Texas attorney with degrees from The University of Texas law school...

As a seasoned advocate, Tracie Wright-Reneau is skilled in navigating the justice system to handle legal issues between parties with meticulous attention to detail, poise, and intelligence. She works to provide services to clients at a reasonable cost, with the goal of using client resources most effectively. She is experienced in communicating with clients in a manner that is both comprehensible and knowledgeable. Tracie Wright-Reneau graduated from St. Mary’s University School of Law in 2006 and was admitted to practice law in the State of Texas immediately thereafter. She handles primarily Family Law cases such as divorces, custody suits,...

I have been practicing law in Austin since 1977. After many years of a litigation-focused practice I have changed that focus to Estate Planning and Probate. I am no longer maintaining a downtown office, so I frequently meet at clients’ homes or offices or at other places convenient for the client. I am able to offer services for much less than I did in the past. I hope that my clients will continue to consult me about the important issues in their lives. If I unable to personally assist them I will recommend appropriate professionals.

Tom is married since 1971 to...

My job is to help each client achieve their life and legacy goals. I help you protect your family’s current and future financial security through careful planning. I care about this work because so many people either fail to plan or make simple mistakes that endanger their financial stability. As an estate planning attorney, I help clients plan for both the inevitable and the unexpected by: 1) helping clients achieve their personal, family, and business goals; 2) reduce potential risks and expenses; and 3) providing clients with increased peace of mind. Bringing the experience of managing hundreds of millions of dollars from one generation...

Attorney Wes Hazen comes from a working class family and strives to serve as a role model not only within the legal community but more importantly, his local community in South Austin. For many, the assistance of "quality" legal services is often correlated with the pedigree of an attorney, the prestige of the firm they work with, or the sheer experience a particular practitioner may possess. All fine attributes to possess, but not entirely what truly matters in the practice of law. The true measure of greatness in practicing law, I believe, boils down to three relatively simple principles. First...

Accomplished attorney with a strong background in civil litigation. Licensed to practice in Puerto Rico State Courts. Native Spanish speaker

I bring an unusually wide range of both legal and business experience that bring a unique depth and breadth the services that I provide, including, but not limited to, real estate, contracts, commercial law, and banking. My business background prior to law school provided me with many unique insights and a greater appreciation of the many interrelationships between the law and business.

My career actually began in community banks and savings and loans in Arlington and Houston. I ultimately served as the president of a newly-chartered national bank during its organization and start-up phases.

After fifteen years in business, I...

Jeff is licensed to practice in all state courts, as well as the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas. He currently is a member of the State Bar of Texas, Austin Bar Association, Austin Business Executives League (ABEL), and Business Networking International (BNI). Jeff’s legal practice focusses primarily on business & commercial litigation, collections, business transactional law, business entity formations, mergers & acquisitions, contracts, wills, trusts, estate planning, and probate. Jeff is also a certified Mediator. He mediates legal disputes in family, business, and civil law.

Jeff graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a BBA...

Paul's background as a Texas attorney is in Probate Litigation. His practice focuses on will contests, trust contests, contested guardianships, breach of fiduciary duty claims, right of survivorship accounts, determination of heirs, probate administration and guardianship administration. Paul also assists his clients with the preparation of wills, trusts, powers of attorney, family limited partnerships and other business entities.

We are a Houston, Texas bankruptcy and tax specialty practice. We primarily serve the North Houston, Texas area. We are conveniently located near Cypress, Tomball, The Woodlands, Spring, Magnolia, Katy and many surrounding north Houston, Texas neighborhoods and suburbs. We help people save their home and stop foreclosure, stop repossession, stop garnishment, stop IRS and get a fresh start.

Clark S. Willingham is engaged in estate planning and taxation, handling the formation and governance of business entities, real estate transactions and governmental relations in Washington, D.C and Austin.

Mr. Willingham was born in Houston, Texas in 1944. He received an Accounting degree from Texas Tech University in 1967. He received his Juris Doctor Degree from the Dedman School of Law at SMU in 1971 and his LLM in Taxation in 1984. He was admitted to the State Bar of Texas in 1971. Mr. Willingham is a member of the American Law Institute, the American Bar Association, the State Bar of...

John Freeman's primary areas of practice are employment law, civil litigation and related areas of business litigation. He regularly advises clients regarding employment law practices, non-competes, discrimination and other employment related matters.

Mr. Freeman was born in Jackson, Tennessee, in 1945. He received his bachelor's degree from Baylor University in 1967, and served in the United States Navy from 1967 – 1969 as a Supply Officer aboard the USS Duval County, LST-758. He attended law school at the Vanderbilt University School of Law, where he was an Associate Editor of the Vanderbilt Law Review in 1972 and 1973, and from which...

Darren Harrington is a shareholder whose principal area of practice is focused on representing local, national, and international corporations and their officers in cases involving trade secrets, non-compete agreements, union issues, personnel, and government regulatory matters. He has been recognized as one of the premier Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) defense counselors in the country, and is regularly called upon by employers to enforce and defend against restrictive covenants such non-compete and non-disclosure agreements, as well as defend against claims under the various anti-discrimination in employment statutes, the minimum wage and overtime requirements under the Fair Labor Standards Act...

Isreal focuses his practice on tax and estate planning. He advises clients on how to minimize estate, gift and generation-skipping transfer taxes, as well as the implementation and administration of complex estate planning structures. Isreal is Board Certified in Tax Law and Estate Planning & Probate Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, a Certified Public Accountant, a Certified Financial Planner™ practitioner, and a Personal Financial Specialist. Before going into private practice, Isreal served for five years as a trial attorney for the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, where he personally handled over 1,700 cases, including over 850 cases...

I am a small firm attorney here in Dallas, TX and I want to show you that smaller is better. I take on a limited number of clients at one time to ensure that every single one receives my undivided attention and care. My clients know they can call me at the office or at home anytime and that their satisfaction is my priority.

Licensed attorney offering Estate Planning services in the State of Texas through in-person and virtual settings. The Law Office of John Garland offers Wills, Islamic Wills (Shariah Compliant), Professional Wills, Power of Attorney, Guardianship and Medical Directives.

Coleman Jackson is managing shareholder of the law firm Coleman Jackson, P.C., a regional law firm in Dallas, Texas representing clients from around the world. Attorney Jackson provides caring, thorough and professional representation for people who need help with federal & state tax matters, contracts litigation issues, and immigration concerns.

I am an Associate Attorney and focus my practice on litigating and forming business entities, guardianships, probates, and estate planning. I am committed to assisting my clients with their legal needs in some of the most important moments of their lives. I work to ensure their goals are reached no matter the complexity. I attended the University of Oklahoma College of Law and graduated with my Juris Doctorate. In my spare time, I enjoy watching my Oklahoma State Cowboys athletic teams, playing basketball, and learning more about historical events.

Paula Lock Smyth is a family law attorney who is dedicated to providing effective and efficient representation to clients in Dallas, Texas, and the surrounding communities. She genuinely cares about her clients and invests in each and every case she handles, taking the time to ensure that clients understand all of their options so that they can make informed decisions about what is right for their family.

Maria "Marisol" Trottier

Ms. Trottier obtained her law degree from George Washington University Law School. She moved to Texas in 1997 and focused initially on representing commercial lenders.
Since 2015, Ms. Trottier has been in private practice, focusing on probate proceedings, estate planning, trusts, and other closely related areas of the law.
When she is not practicing law, Marisol enjoys spending quality time with her teenage son, family, and friends. She enjoys yoga, any type of activity in nature (tennis, biking), and perfecting her proficiency in Spanish. Marisol was born in Chile and moved to the United States as a young...

Taylor Mohr distinguishes herself by offering effective, affordable, and compassionate legal services. Her practice focuses on family law in Williamson and Travis counties. She is a member of the Williamson County Bar Association, Texas Bar Association, Texas Trial Lawyers Association and the Baylor Law Alumni Association.

Taylor graduated from the Baylor Law School. She attended this prestigious university with a full-tuition scholarship. As a law student, she balanced her studies with a variety of extracurricular work, serving as Secretary and Executive Vice-President for the Student Bar Association and working as an editing assistant for professor Gerald Powell, director of...

Matthew Gilpin began working for McCathern as a partner in 2018 and his practice primarily focuses on probate matters, estate administrations, and inheritance issues in the North Texas region.

Mr. Gilpin’s probate experience involves managing all aspects of cases – legal and administrative – from start to finish. This includes helping his clients find the most efficient and cost-effective solutions to settling estate matters. Additionally, he advises clients regarding estate planning and asset protection and he drafts trusts, wills, directives, releases, and other estate planning documents.

Mr. Gilpin firmly believes that to create the most effective estate plan, it must be...

Steven C. Holman has been a licensed attorney for the past fourteen years. He comes from a family of estate planning attorneys that have been in practice for over 35 years. Steven received his law degree from Whittier Law School and an LLM from Boston University. He received an undergraduate degree in Economics from Willamette University. Steven is licensed to practice in Texas and California.

Bill Bronson is a former judge. He enjoys going to battle for each client, making the most of the relief available under the IRS Code, IRS Manual, and other laws. He puts his 39 years of experience to work for each client, to present a case to the clients’ best advantage and achieve the best deal possible with the IRS. Mr. Bronson uses the Taxpayer Bill of Rights and 15 other programs to put the IRS on the defensive, with you in control and the IRS responding to your proposals, instead of the other-way-around.
The Bronson Law Firm isn’t...

Chosen by peers as one of the Top 100 lawyers in the entire Dallas/Fort Worth region according to SuperLawyers magazine.

We help people get a Soft Divorce®...
...divorce doesn't have to be so hard!®