Patrick Upton is a native of Houston, Texas, where he attended St. Thomas Episcopal, Lanier Middle, and Bellaire High Schools. He received a B.B.A. from Texas A&M and had a successful ‘first’ career as a financial analyst at IBM. After earning his J.D. from St. Mary’s University College of Law in 2007, he went to work for Revenew International as General Counsel.
Patrick later opened his own law firm, making a name for himself representing children in abuse, neglect, and high conflict custody cases. His experience as a court-appointed ad litem and amicus for abused and neglected children, and children caught in difficult custody cases, gives him a unique perspective on how those kinds of cases are likely to be handled by the courts.
Patrick was judicially nominated for the American Bar Association’s child advocate of the year as well as the Houston Bar Association’s child advocate of the year. He is board certified in family law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization and is known for his successes in trying contentious custody and complex property cases before judges throughout Texas. Patrick is a realist with plenty of jury trial experience.
He knows how emotionally fraught family law cases can be and is open, honest, and straightforward in communicating expectations to his clients. “My job is to get you through the divorce process based on realistic expectations,” says Patrick. “Family law cases are emotional enough as it is without having unrealistic expectations.” Patrick–an enthusiastic Aggie, and his wife Lindsey–an avid Longhorn, have two children.
Presentations & Publications:
- Co-author, “Why Every Athlete Needs A Family Lawyer.” Texas Lawyer, June 27, 2019.
- Co-author, “10 Things Divorced Dads in Texas Need to Know About Custody.” Texas Lawyer, June 19, 2019.
- Author, “Late To the Game 3rd Party Standing in CPS Cases.” The Houston Lawyer, 51, no. 5 (2014). 24-29.
- Presenter, “Trial of a family law jury trial case.” Paper presented at the Advanced Family Law Trial Institute, Houston, TX, 2014.
- Presenter, “Building a Practice through Court Appointments.” Paper presented at the South Texas College of Law, Houston, TX, 2014.
- Presenter, “Amicus Ad Litem.” Paper presented at the South Texas College of Law, Houston, TX, 2014.
- Presenter, “Building a Practice through Court Appointments.” Paper presented at the South Texas College of Law, Houston, TX, 2013.
- Presenter, “Amicus Ad Litem.” Paper presented at the South Texas College of Law, Houston, TX, 2013.
- Panelist, “Beyond the Bench.” Panel at the St. Mary’s University School of Law, San Antonio, TX, 2012.
Education:
- St. Mary’s University College of Law, J.D. (2007)
- Texas A&M University, B.B.A. (2000)
Certifications:
- Board Certified in Family Law, Texas Board of Legal Specialization (2015)
Legal Training Programs:
- Completed, National Family Law Trial Institute Program (2011)
- Business Valuation Program (2012)
- Forensic Custody Evaluations Program (2013)
Admissions:
- State Bar of Texas (2007)
Community & Professional:
- American Bar Association, Family Law Section
- Burta Rhoads Raborn Family Law American Inn of Court
- ChildBuilders, Board Director
- Gulf Coast Family Law Specialists, Board of Directors (2019)
- Houston Bar Association, Family Law Section
- State Bar of Texas, Computer and Technology Section and Family Law Section
- Texas Family Law Foundation
- Texas Bar College
Honors/Accreditations:
- Awarded, Platinum Client Champion by Martindale-Hubbell (2019 to present)
- Awarded, Client’s Choice Award by Avvo (2019)
- Honoree, Top Lawyer by H Texas magazine (2018 to present)
- Honoree, Top Lawyers by Houstonia magazine (2019 to present)
- Honoree, Texas Super Lawyer by Thomson Reuters (2020)
- Honoree, Texas Rising Star by Thomson Reuters (2017, 2018)
- The Best Lawyers in America© in family law as recognized by Best Lawyers, LLC (2017 to present)
- Recognized, Elite Lawyer by Elite Lawyer (2018)
- Honoree, Top Lawyers by ReviewIt Magazine (2018)
- Awarded, Best Article of the Year for “Late To the Game 3rd Party Standing in CPS Cases” by Houston Bar Association (2015)
- Judicially nominated, Child Advocate of the Year, Young Lawyers Division of the American Bar Association (2013)
- Judicially nominated, Child Advocate of the Year, Houston Bar Association (2013)
Cost
Rate : $$$