Justia Legal Services & Lawyers Directory

Ms. Hennessee was born in Nashville, Tennessee and grew up in the Austin area. She earned her degrees from the University of Texas at Austin, graduating with honors in December of 1999 with a Bachelor of Business Administration in marketing and a Bachelor of Arts in Spanish. In May of 2006, she graduated from Texas Wesleyan University School of Law in Fort Worth, Texas. While attending law school, Ms. Hennessee served as Articles Editor of The Texas Wesleyan Law Review. Upon graduation, she began practicing in Dallas, Texas at a full-service immigration firm.

Since 2006, Ms. Hennessee’s practice has focused on family-based immigration and deportation defense. She has extensive experience in consular processing, adjustment of status, citizenship and naturalization, waivers (fraud, crime, health, prior deportation), self-petitions under the Violence Against Women Act, U visas for victims of crime, humanitarian parole, NACARA, custody redetermination hearings, de novo TPS claims, and cancellation of removal.

Ms. Hennessee is admitted to practice in Texas and is a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association and the Dallas Bar Association. She is also fluent in Spanish.

Augustus Corbett is building a reputation as one of the best Dallas Fort Worth criminal defense, personal injury, and family law lawyers in Texas. He represents people throughout the Dallas Fort Worth Metroplex, which includes Collin, Dallas, Delta, Denton, Ellis, Hunt, Johnson, Kaufman, Parker, Rockwall, Tarrant, Wise Counties. Mr. Corbett also practices federal criminal defense in the United States District Court in the Northern District of Texas.

Specifically, the Corbett Law Firm provide legal assistance on the following areas of practice:

- Criminal Law

Our Dallas based criminal law practice covers many types of state and federal criminal cases including capital murder.

• All 3G Offenses

“3g” offenses are a special set of offenses under Texas laws that get special treatment, i.e., they receive harsher treatment from the courts and the penal system. They are codified in Chapter 42.12 § 3g of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure. The offenses include: Murder, Capital Murder, Indecency with a Child, Aggravated Kidnapping, Sexual Assault, Aggravated Sexual Assault, Aggravated Robbery, offenses under the Controlled Substances Act involving use of a child or a second Drug Free Zone offense, Injury to a Child, Injury to an Elderly Person, Injury to a Disabled Person, Sexual Performance by a Child, or offenses where there is a finding of a Deadly Weapon.

• Murder

Nothing is more serious in the Texas criminal justice system than when the government accuses a person of criminal homicide, especially capital murder. If convicted, the person will most likely lose his freedom, certainly his civil rights and possibly his life. Although we take each case seriously, for the reasons above, we approach murder cases with a heightened sense of importance. We realize the consequences can be dire. We know a person’s fate, in no small part, depends on our preparation and performance.

• Drug Charges

Mr. Corbett has helped some of his clients take advantage of the benefits of drug court. By an Act of the 77th Legislature, all counties with a population of more than 550,000 were required to create a Drug Court by September 1, 2002. Hence, the following counties operate drug courts: Bexar, Harris, Hidalgo, Dallas, El Paso Tarrant, and Travis counties. People charged with drug offenses who have a substance abuse problem may benefit from time spent in Drug Court.

• Assaults

We have successfully defended many assault cases. In fact, our efforts have resulted in the district attorney’s office dismissing some of those cases including aggravated assault. What’s more, in some situations our efforts have prevented the Grand Jury from returning indictments. We are proud of our record defending assault cases. With all assault cases, we began by determining if there are any reasons that justify the use of force. If so, we are not bashful about taking a case to trial to demonstrate to the jury that our client was justified in using force.

• Sex Crimes

The Corbett Law Firm has represented people charged with sexual assault and aggravated sexual assault. These cases are challenging and require special knowledge in the law since the legislation has given the state special statutory tools to go after people accused of these crimes. For instance, typically out of court statements are inadmissible at trial; however, if a child makes an out of court outcry statement that someone has sexually assaulted him, that statement is admissible under circumstances.

• Robbery & Burglary

A simple theft can easily become a robbery under Texas law. For instance, a theft can become a robbery if the alleged victim is injured or threatened. What is more, it is aggravated robbery if a deadly weapon was involved or if the alleged victim was seriously injured, 65 or older, or disabled. These cases present a different set of challenges. Often, the government has eyewitnesses or surveillance video as evidence to bolster their case. A skilled attorney must therefore be abreast of the law and science regarding this type of evidence.

• Fraud

One more type of offense in this class of offenses is fraud charges. Fraud charges encompass a very broad range of criminal charges including theft, writing bad checks, criminal simulation (forgery), identity theft, credit card abuse, welfare fraud, deceptive business practices, bribery, falsely claiming to have a college degree and many others. It is not unusual for fraud charges to result in penitentiary time if the monetary loss is substantial and the circumstances flagrant.

• We also cover the following areas of Criminal Law: DWI & DUI; Probation Violations; Computer Crimes; and Juvenile Crimes.

- Personal Injury

Our Dallas based personal injury practice is dear to our heart. We believe strongly that victims should be compensated when they suffer injuries due to another person's negligence. The specific types of personal injury cases we handle are Car, 18-Wheeler and Motorcycle Accidents, Forklift Accidents, Automotive Defects, Spinal Cord/ Brain Injury, Wrongful Death, and Workplace Injuries.

- Family Law

Family law is a very challenging area of law since decisions are being made about people's families, children, property, etc. We handle cases involving divorce, child support, custody, CPS, modifications, and enforcement.

- Bankruptcy

• Chapter 7

Chapter 7 Bankruptcy is “liquidation”, i.e., the trustee sales your nonexempt property and distributes the proceeds to your creditors. There are no filings of repayment plans since the trustee liquidates your assets. However, you will be allowed to keep certain “exempt” property.

• Chapter 11

Usually favored by corporations, Chapter 11 Bankruptcy allows debtors to reorganize their debts and pay them over time in an effort to save their businesses. However, individuals may also file Chapter 11 Bankruptcy.

Sandy M. Liu concentrates her practice in the areas of family law and immigration law. With roots in Taiwan, China, and France, Ms. Liu's background and experience have given her a unique understanding of the goals and struggles of the immigrant family. Ms. Liu received her bachelor's degree in Molecular Cell Biology from the University of Texas at Dallas and her Juris Doctorate from St. Mary's University School of Law in 2003. A member of Phi Delta Phi, Ms. Liu became licensed by the State Bar of Texas in 2003 and began her legal career at Legal Aid of NorthWest Texas as a Staff Attorney. She was also an Associate Attorney at a major law firm in Plano, Texas, which specialized solely in family law litigation and complex property disputes. Prior to opening her own law practice, Ms. Liu was the Program Director and Senior Attorney of the Multicultural Legal Program at Mosaic Family Services, a nonprofit, community-based organization which provides services to both victims of domestic violence and human trafficking, gaining invaluable litigation experience.

Some examples of entities the firm has successfully prosecuted claims against include Abilene Psychiatric Hospital, Abilene Regional Medical Center, AmeriCredit Financial Services, Inc., Ashland, Inc., Baylor All Saints Medical Center, Baylor Medical Center at Southwest Fort Worth, Beverly Health and Rehabilitation, Inc., Bridgestone Americas Holding, Inc., Carriere Trucking Company, East Texas Medical Center, E.I. DuPont de Nemours & Company, ExxonMobil Corporation, Gateway Concrete Inc., Home Depot U.S.A., Inc., Kelly-Moore Paint Company, Kennedy Financial Services, MasTec North America, Inc., Medtronic, Inc., Schlumberger Technology Corp., SEI Investments Management Corp., State Farm, The Home Depot, Inc., Universal Insurance Exchange, Vanguard Utility Service, Inc., VRS Financial Services, Inc., and Walsh Press Co. The firm has also successfully defended many individuals and companies in court.

We help people get a Soft Divorce(sm)...
...because divorce doesn't have to be so hard!(sm)

Attorney Martin Valko of Dallas immigration law firm of Chavez & Valko, LLP, represents individuals and families from around the world, private and publicly traded companies in employment-based immigration, international Olympic and professional athletes, car racers, artists, and musicians in various non-immigrant and immigrant matters, and visas to foreign countries.

Martin Valko has a first hand knowledge about the U.S. immigration laws as he has been through the entire process – from being a high-school exchange student, college student to an H-1B worker to his permanent residency and dual citizenship. Martin's clients greatly appreciate his in-depth understanding of the complex immigration process. Among others, he is experienced in the areas of labor certifications (PERM), EB-1, EB-2, EB-3 immigrant visas, H-1B specialty occupation and H-2 visas, L-1A/B visas for intracompany transferees, E treaty investor and trader visas, F and J visas for foreign and exchange students, O and P visas for extraordinary ability aliens, athletes and performers. He assists his clients with securing I-212 and I-601 waivers of inadmissibility, Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for nationals of Haiti and of other designated countries, represents clients in removal proceedings, and on appeal. He has been a speaker for educational and business seminars on various immigration law topics.

Born in Levoca, Slovakia, Martin Valko spent his childhood traveling and living in several countries due to his father’s career as a diplomat and Ambassador for Slovak Republic (formerly Czechoslovakia). He moved to the United States in 1991 to complete his high school studies, where he also obtained his college and law degrees.

Martin Valko is married to a 5-time Olympian (2-time Olympic silver medalist, World and European Champion) swimmer Martina Moravcova, and they reside in Dallas, Texas. Martin is fluent in Slovak, Czech, and English, and is conversant in Russian.

Myles Porter is a trial lawyer in northeast Texas. A 6th generation native of Fannin County, he is the former District and County Attorney whose main areas of practice are criminal defense, personal injury and corporate representation.

I am very experienced in domestic litigation and do appeals in areas of civil law. I am a mediator and a member of the State Bar College. I volunteer at Fathers for Equal Rights and am a member of the American Bar Association and the State Bar of Texas.
I am very dedicated to my clients and will always put their interests first. I bring new techniques and strategies to my cases.