Andi truly believes that the best way to end a marriage, or resolve a dispute between people who have been in a relationship, is by reaching an agreement so that an already strained relationship does not become damaged further by the intensity of the litigation process. But not every case settles. That is why Andi engages in thorough preparation: so that if a case must be tried, it is tried well.  Working hard to settle a case while being thoroughly prepared to try the case in court is the pinnacle of effective lawyering to which Andi strives with the help of her able paralegals and assistants.

Andi has a penchant for the tough custody cases, and has tried many in her 17 year career. She enjoys helping people during this turbulent time by offering them information, guidance and compassion as they make important decisions about their futures. She also enjoys the rigor of a good property case that focuses on valuing business entities, tracing separate property and/or interpreting premarital agreements.

Andi’s dad is a doctor and her mom is a nurse, so they clearly care about people (and are averse to lawyers.) Andi found her way to law school through her shared desire to help people. She wanted to work with people, not for corporations (and definitely not in medical malpractice.) Family law was a natural fit that allowed her to spend her day with individual people as clients.

Andi hales from northwest Indiana (the Region). She attended Munster High School (National Speech Champion in 1990), Miami University in Ohio for her bachelor’s degree and Valparaiso University School of Law. She did not return to the mid-west after coming to Texas for her law school internship in Austin in 1998 and found that she was not a lonely transplant. Midwesterners are everywhere, y’all.

She was effective in transplanting her husband, Christopher, from Indiana in 2003. She later persuaded her parents and brother to relocate to Texas by having two children, Lucian and Beah. They all happily reside in Lockhart, Texas, just 30 miles south on 183 where the barbeque roams. Her children share in her passion for physical activity and performing arts; so there are a lot of dance, singing and theatre classes being coordinated on the official family calendar.

Recent Cases:

  • Same sex marriage case – including common law same sex marriage claim
  • International custody case with jurisdictional dispute and protective order
  • Three post-nuptial agreements (our cases tend to come in three’s) each partitioning existing property and future income in different ways
  • Modification case requesting court-ordered Soberlink testing of possessory parent
  • Protracted contested divorce and custody case resulting in a settlement agreement that was then appealed by opposing party. Appeal dismissed by the 3rd Court of Appeals.

Honors & Affiliations:

  • Andi was included in The Best Lawyers In America, Woodward/White, Inc., from  2013-2017 in Family Law
  • Selected to the 2012 Texas Rising Stars list, Super Lawyers, a Thomson Reuters business
  • Selected  to the Texas Super Lawyers list, a Thomson Reuters business, from 2014 – 2015
  • Travis County Family Law Advocates, President,  2012 – 2016
  • Austin Bar Association – Family Law Section, President, 2009-2010, Vice-President, 2008-2009, Treasurer, 2007-2008; Board Member, 2005-2007
  • Collaborative Law Institute of Texas
  • Travis County Women Lawyer’s Association
  • Hays County Bar Association
  • Texas Academy of Family Law Specialists
  • Texas Bar Foundation, Fellow, 2011- present
  • Texas Family Law Foundation
  • AV Rating Martindale-Hubbell AV: Highest Legal Ability and General Ethical Standards
Education
  • J.D., Valparaiso University School of Law, Indiana
  • Bachelor of Philosophy, Miami University, Oxford, Ohio
  • University of Grenoble, France
Certification
  • Board Certified Family Law – Texas Board of Legal Specialization – 2008
Jurisdictions
  • Travis County, Caldwell County, Hays County, Other Texas Counties on a case-by-case basis
Professional Development
  • University of Texas Mediation Training
  • American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers Arbitration Training
  • Collaborative Law Interdisciplinary Training
  • Collaborative Law Training

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