Ellen Williamson Law, PC

08/11/2026

I recently remembered an old Dilbert comic and looked it back up. It was funny back when it was first published decades ago, but it seems even more relevant now with AI and other technological advances that enable lawyers to handle tasks more quickly and efficiently.

The comic is funny because it's true. Under hourly billing, that lawyer got punished for being good at his job. If he'd fumbled around for two hours to produce the same document, he'd have made a lot more money for a worse client experience.

That's backwards. If a lawyer can do excellent work quickly, that's not a discount — that's the payoff of experience. A plan done well in less time isn't worth less than one that took longer. If anything, it's worth more: same result, less of the client's time and money spent getting there.

That's a big part of why I moved Ellen Williamson Law to flat fees for most estate planning, probate, and guardianship work.

The shift to flat fees also did something I didn't fully anticipate: it made a case manager model practical. When you're not billing by the hour, having an experienced paralegal handle the parts of a matter they're best positioned to handle isn't "diluting" the client's time with the attorney — it's the client getting a better, higher-touch experience while enabling me to stay focused on the work that actually needs my judgment. Everyone's incentives point in the same direction: toward getting it right, efficiently, at every step. We don't have to be like Dilbert's sad-sack World's Fastest Worker!

05/24/2026

You probably haven't read the Texas Estates Code.
But our legal system assumes that you have.
And if you don't create an estate plan of your own, it assumes that you agree with the one the State of Texas wrote for you.

05/24/2026

You probably haven't read the Texas Estates Code.
But our legal system assumes that you have.
And if you don't create an estate plan of your own, it assumes that you agree with the one the State of Texas wrote for you.

05/07/2026

Today's episode of the Lawyerist podcast features...me! I talk about my journey from a true do-it-all solo to building systems and empowering my team to do the work so we can serve more clients more efficiently.

It can feel tempting for lawyers to "hide out" in the legal work because we're good at it, it's a discreet task that we know when we've finished it, and it has a specific dollar value that it yields fairly quickly. Business owner work, on the other hand, can feel harder. It feels less clearly-defined. Harder to know what "done" looks like. And the ROI may be uncertain or take longer. But I've increasingly realized that while I should always be striving to become a better lawyer, the firm's ability to grow depends much more on my growth as a business owner and manager--the parts of the job we didn't learn about in law school.

That's where the Lawyerist Lab comes in. I've learned so much from the wonderful coaches and from fellow "Labsters." Even for solos, practicing law is better and more fun when we do it with friends and have people to lean on and hold us accountable. If you're wondering if Lab might be a good fit for you, happy to chat about my experience.

05/02/2026

I just spent a great 2 days at North Texas Probate Bench Bar. Informative and relevant CLE sessions and fun with colleagues I get to call friends. Aside from just being fun, it’s part of how I make myself a better lawyer and more effective advocate for my clients. The educational content is important, but so is the socializing, the karaoke, the “probate law prom.”

The NTX probate bar is a fairly small world. Those of us who do this know each other well. That means when I run across a new issue to me, I can get help from someone else who’s seen it or, if it’s a case we’re not the best fit for, I can send that client to a trusted referral and know they’ll be in good hands.

That also means when we have a case together, we start from a position of respect and trust that can make finding resolution easier. That makes practicing law more enjoyable. It also means we can serve our clients better.

04/29/2026

This video addresses one of the most common questions I get as an estate planning attorney. In this short explainer, I’ll tell you why the answer is “both…sort of.”

04/24/2026

How do trusts work, and why is it important to fund them? This short explainer video shares an analogy I use with my estate planning clients. Want to set up a trust of your own or did this make you realize you need to update yours? Let us know!

04/16/2026

You've probably heard that Texas is a community property state — but what does that mean for you in practice?

Many people assume community property laws only matters if you get divorced, but the rules that govern ownership and management of property during a marriage are the same rules that determine property rights at death and upon the incapacity of a spouse.

If you're married, community property law defines what you own, and your estate plan can only give away what you own. And regardless of your marital status, if you plan to leave something to children or other loved ones in your estate plan, how you structure that gift can determine whether it stays clearly theirs or becomes subject to commingling with marital property.

Like a lot of legal concepts, community property is less about finding the "right" answer and more about making sure the answer you end up with is an intentional choice you made, rather than one the state of Texas chose for you.

We put together a practical overview, consolidating the things most relevant to your situation into a few minutes' read.

https://www.ellenwilliamsonlaw.com/blog/community-property-in-texas-estate-plan

03/22/2026

If you've been appointed as executor of a Texas estate, one of the first things we'll sort out is what type of administration applies — and that choice has real consequences for how long probate takes, how much it costs, and how often you'll have to go back to court. Here's what independent and dependent administration actually mean in practice.

Most Texas estates are better served by independent administration — but not all. Here’s what the difference means for executors and beneficiaries.

12/31/2025

Looking back at 2025; did your stuff or your people change?

We hope you’ve enjoyed the holiday season and had opportunity to spend time with loved ones and relax. As we head into 2026, it's a natural time to take stock: What changed in 2025? For many of you, the answer includes significant life events—new family members, new assets, relocations, or relat...