Michelle Heron has spent almost three decades as a trial lawyer and tireless advocate for her clients, including two decades as a family law attorney and five years assisting care givers in obtaining orders to protect children in cases involving domestic violence, child abuse, and child neglect.
Although raised in St. Louis, Missouri, Michelle has been a Texan “by choice” since 1987. Michelle earned her Juris Doctorate from Southern Methodist University in 1994 after graduating from St. Mary’s University with a Bachelor of Arts in Multinational Organizational Studies, Summa Cum Laude. She is a licensed attorney in both Texas and Maryland. She began her law practice handling consumer class action, business tort, psychiatric malpractice cases and litigating mesothelioma cases all over the country. She began handling family law cases in 2005, first as a volunteer attorney, following with her own family law firm, with the non-profit CitySquare Legal Action Works (LAW), and as an Assistant Attorney General in the Child Support Division. In early 2021, Michelle became the Assistant Director of LAW and served in that capacity until its closure in November of 2022. In December of 2022, she brought all of that vast experience to Hargrave Family Law.
She has been a member of the American Bar Association, the American Trial Lawyers Association, the Texas Trial Lawyers Association and the Dallas Bar Association where she served for numerous years on the Mock Trial Committee and the Juvenile Justice Committee. She was also a member of the first group of attorneys to participate in the DBA E-Mentoring Program which paired high school students from struggling high schools as “email pals” with local attorneys.
Michelle lives with her husband in Richardson, Texas. She has a stepdaughter in college and a daughter in grade school, both competitive swimmers. Her family also includes two dogs, two cats, and two fish. In addition to school and swimming activities, she and her husband are very involved at their church, and have spent the last thirteen years continually working to renovate their 1958 home.
Michelle was drawn to family law because of the direct impact it has on the daily lives of so many people across all walks of life. “Family law is like death and taxes – everyone is going to have some brush with it at some point in their lives. Sometimes it is your co-workers or friends, sometimes it is other members or your family, and sometimes it touches you, personally. I am no exception.” Michelle has been through her own divorce, is a stepmother who has lived with a visitation schedule and court ordered child support for more than a decade, and is the adoptive mother of a wonderful daughter. This personal experience gives her unique insight into what our clients experience as they deal with their own family law cases. “I can assure our clients that they can get through the difficult times to a brighter future for themselves and their families. And I am energized every day to work with our highly skilled team to help our clients get there.”
Areas of Practice
- Family Law
Licenses/Certifications/Admissions
-Licensed to practice law in Texas since 1994 and in Maryland since 2000
-Admitted to practice in the U.S. Northern, Eastern and Western Districts of Texas
-Certified as ad litem for children and adults
Education
Southern Methodist University, Dallas, Texas
Juris Doctorate – May 1994
St. Mary’s University, San Antonio, Texas
Bachelor of Arts – May 1991
Major: – Multinational Organizational Studies
Graduated Summa Cum Laude
Honors and Awards
Dallas Volunteer Attorney Program (Solo Attorney of the Year 2006)
Professional Associations and Memberships
- State Bar of Texas, Family Law Section, Member
- Dallas Bar Association, Family Law Section, Member
Pro Bono/Community Service Activities
- Former Chair of the Board of Directors of the Ascension Day School of the Episcopal Church of the Ascension
- Volunteer with The Family Place
- Volunteer with Genesis Women’s Shelter
- Volunteer with the Dallas Volunteer Attorney Program
- Current member of the Advisory Board for the Paralegal Program at Dallas College
- Parent volunteer with the City of Plano Swimmers
Lectures/Seminars/Publications
- Michelle Heron and Melissa Cason (CitySquare Legal Action Works), “Achieving Permanency without CPS Removal: the Role of Family Lawyers in CPS-Adjacent Litigation”, presented to caseworkers from the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, Dallas region, on September 16. 2022.
- Michelle Heron and Lillian Ferguson (Texas Department of Family and Protective Services), “Flipping the Script: DFPS and Family Lawyers Answer Each Other’s Questions About Helping Relatives Protect Children” presented as Continuing Legal Education to the Dallas Bar Association, June 2020.
- Michelle Heron, “Ins and Outs of Child Support and Its Ramifications Beyond Family Law”, presented as Continuing Legal Education to the Dallas Bar Association at the University of North Texas, Dallas College of Law, May 2016.
