Dallas LGBT Bar Association
From Staff Reports
The birth of the Dallas LGBT Bar Association came in January of 1992 when gay attorneys Lee Taft and Ed Ishmael sat down together and talked about the need for just such an organization. LGBTQ attorneys in Dallas were already meeting infrequently in private homes as The Stonewall Legal Society, and Taft and Ishmael felt it was time to formalize the group and thus become a voice for LGBTQ attorneys and their clients.
They started out by creating the Gay and Lesbian Study Group within the Dallas Bar Association, which lasted through 1999, when Rob Wiley formed the Dallas Gay and Lesbian Bar Association and served as its first president. And then in November 2019, the board of the Dallas Association of Young Lawyers voted to recognize what had by then become the Dallas LGBT Bar Association as an official Sister Bar Association.
It was the first time that any Bar association in Texas had recognized a local LGBTQ affinity Bar association as a Sister Bar Association.
Dallas LGBT Bar Association is made up of “lawyers, law students, para-professionals and related professional allies who share an interest in the laws that affect and protect” the LGBTQ community.
The association’s mission is to “promote awareness in its community of issues pertinent to the lives of gender and sexual minority citizens, lawyers, legal professionals, and law students; celebrate the diversity and culture of GSMs; advocate for inclusion and equality of all persons regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity; assist in research and further legal scholarship on GSM concerns; educate fellow lawyers on how to be inclusive of GSMs in the community, work place, and legal academy; provide a safe space for GSM lawyers and allies to meet and form a sense of community; and show appreciation to allies of the GSM community.”
The association’s 2022 board and officers are:
President Nadia Haghighatian; Secretary and Vice President of Communication — and President-elect — Callie Butcher; Treasurer Sean Buckley; Vice President of Programming Michael Debnam; Vice President of Community Partnerships Adwoa Asante; Vice President of Professional Development Karri Bertrand; Vice President of Membership Elissa Wev and board member Derek Mergele-Rust.
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Legal Directory
When it comes to legal matters, whether that is a divorce or child custody case, a criminal defense case or a case dealing with discrimination, members of the LGBTQ community often face issues and problems that the hetero and cisgender communities don’t have to worry about. Even something as simple as a drawing up a will or a power of attorney can be fraught with hurdles.
Sometimes, it’s not even a matter of specific legal questions related to LGBTQ issues as it is just a matter of wanting to know the attorney you are dealing with truly understands your situation and feeling you can be fully open and authentic with your attorney.
For that reason, Dallas Voice has compiled this directory of attorneys who are either LGBTQ or allies, and who have the experience and understanding LGBTQ people are looking for.
This is by no means an exhaustive list of LGBTQ and ally attorneys. But it is certainly a place to start. Contact these attorneys or visit their websites for more information on their experience and their specialties.
BURCH, LORIE L.
burch-law.com
7920 Belt Line Road, Ste. 700
972-385-0558
CHILES & WARREN LAW
chileswarrenlawgroup.com
3001 Bookhout St.
214-363-5117
COVELL, REBECCA S.
covellpc.com
12222 Merit Drive, Ste. 340
214-443-0300
GARCIA, DOMINGO
domingogarcia.com
1111 W. Mockingbird Lane, Ste. 1200
214-941-8300
GUELICH, HOLLY B.
holly-guelich.com
12740 Hillcrest Road, Ste. 138
214-522-3669
HAYNES BOONE
haynesboone.com
2323 Victory Ave., Ste. 700
214-651-5000
McSHAN, JODI
jodimcshanlaw.com
4144 N Central Expressway, Ste. 1000
214-800-2091
O’NEIL WYSOCKI FAMILY LAW
owlawyers.com
Michelle May O’Neil, Karri Bertrand,
Jordan Ezell, Kassie Hines
2 DFW locations
972-852-8000
OLINGER LAW IMMIGRATION
Lynn S. Olinger | LSOLaw.com
3710 Rawlins St., Ste. 1420
214-396-9090
PATTERSON LAW FIRM
thepattersonlawfirm.com
2626 Cole Ave., Ste. 300
469-751-8565
SEIDEL, ADAM L.
adamseidel.com
8150 N. Central Expressway, Ste. 1255
214-528-3344
VAN WEY, KAY L.
Van Wey, Metzler & Williams
vanweylaw.com
12720 Hillcrest Road, Ste. 600
214-329-1350
WEBB FAMILY LAW
webbfamilylaw.com
325 North St. Paul St., Ste. 4450
214-871-9339
WEST, CHAD
chadwestlaw.com
3606 S. Tyler St.
214-509-7555
WILEY, ROB
robwiley.com
2613 Thomas Ave.
214-528-6500
WILKERSON, JAYLA
txenvironmentallaw.com
14001 Zippo Way, Haslet
214-616-7120
WOMACK, JENNY L.
WomackAdoptions.com
Jenny@WomackAdoptions.com
5495 Beltline Road, Ste. 365
214-935-3310
