ERNY SIMMONS

JULIA LEARY

Sponsored by The Catholic Foundation and American National Bank & Trust 

Erny’s portion of the presentation will identify important estate planning and probate topics that the new associate should learn early in practice. These are substantive topics and techniques that are valuable to the new associate and clients. Julia’s portion of the presentation will respond to the various topics and give perspective on how the new associate can best acquaint with them. She also will present ideas on how the senior lawyer can learn to use new technologies and to incorporate them into practice. The new technologies include AI, social media, and cell phone apps. The objective of the presentation will be to provide both the experienced practitioner and the new associate with suggestions on listening to and learning from each other. The expectation is that the attendee will develop or expand both substantive knowledge of the practice area, and the technologies and new tools that can be incorporated into his or her practice. The attendee may use the knowledge gained to be more efficient and productive, and deliver a valuable service to the client.

Erny Simmons practices in the fields of estate planning, trusts and probate law.  He is board certified in estate planning and probate law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization.  His work includes preparation of wills, trust agreements, and other estate planning documents for clients with taxable and non-taxable estates.  He is also involved with development of lifetime gifting strategies and implementation of estate planning techniques, including charitable planning, business succession planning, life insurance planning and preparation of federal gift and estate tax returns. He has created various corporate and charitable entities, including corporations, limited liability companies, limited partnerships, public charities and private foundations.  He received a B.S. in management from Tulane University and J.D. from Loyola Law School.

Julia Leary graduated from Texas A&M School of Law with a concentration in estate planning. Throughout law school, Ms. Leary worked in the probate and estate planning clinic, where she found her passion for this area of law. She joined Erny Simmons’ and James V. Roberts’ trust and estate practice at the Dallas firm of Glast Phillips Murray Zopolsky in September of 2023. Her practice areas include estate planning, trusts, probate, and guardianship law.