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Ford + Bergner: A Houston-Founded Probate Litigation Firm That Splits Its Attorneys Into Two Teams

Most estate planning firms have their attorneys handle a client’s file end to end — draft the will, then, years later, help administer the estate, and litigate if something goes wrong. Ford + Bergner does the opposite on purpose: the firm structurally separates its attorneys into an uncontested-matters group and a litigation group, on the theory that drafting a clean estate plan and fighting a contested will contest call for different skills entirely.

Origin and Background

Ford + Bergner LLP was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Houston, with additional offices in Dallas and Austin — worth stating plainly rather than letting the Austin office presence imply the firm is Austin-founded. Managing partner Don D. Ford III holds a J.D. and has practiced since 1997, with an academic background in tax (a B.B.A. in addition to his law degree) that he’s applied specifically to estate and gift tax planning. In 2010, Ford became board certified in Estate Planning and Probate Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, a distinction the firm describes as held by fewer than 3% of Texas attorneys generally (TBLS’s own figures put board certification across all specialty areas at roughly 8% of the state’s licensed attorneys). Ford also completed mediator certification through the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution at Pepperdine University’s law school in 2009, making him one of relatively few Texas attorneys specifically credentialed to mediate probate and guardianship disputes rather than only litigate them.

Practice Concentration

The firm handles probate administration, contested probate and will-contest litigation, guardianship (including contested guardianship) and guardianship mediation, trust administration and trust litigation, and estate planning, almost exclusively — the firm describes itself as a boutique handling “almost exclusively” estate, trust, and guardianship matters. Its Austin office specifically offers probate administration, probate litigation, and appellate work, positioning it as a litigation-capable complement to more transactional estate-planning practices covered elsewhere in this Estate Planning & Probate directory.

Notable Work / Track Record

The firm’s published case summaries describe representing a sole beneficiary in a contested will contest and a client who received a substantial structured settlement in a combined personal injury and estate matter, among others; these are presented as the firm’s own case summaries rather than independently sourced verdict data, and Awesome Attorneys is labeling them accordingly. Court filings and outcomes in contested probate and guardianship matters are frequently sealed or restricted from public access in Texas given the sensitive, often incapacity-related nature of guardianship proceedings, which limits how much of this practice area’s track record can be independently verified by an outside publication.

Client Voice

The firm’s published reviews are largely strongly positive: one client wrote that “Don Ford III handled a difficult litigation matter which resulted in an outcome that far exceed my expectations,” and a financial professional referring multiple clients over the years said each “came back and raved about the level of service and professionalism.” Awesome Attorneys also located a genuine negative review not featured on the firm’s own site, alleging the firm changed its understanding of the engagement scope mid-case and led to unexpectedly high billing. Awesome Attorneys is disclosing that negative review directly rather than presenting only the firm-curated positive testimonials, consistent with this publication’s standard practice.

Beyond the Courtroom

Don Ford’s mediator certification reflects a specific investment in alternative dispute resolution for probate and guardianship matters — cases that, by their nature, often involve emotionally exhausted families who may be better served by a negotiated resolution than a contested hearing. The firm operates across three major Texas metros (Houston, Dallas, Austin) under a single unified attorney roster rather than as separate franchised offices.

Recognition for This Austin Estate Planning and Probate Attorney

Peer-reviewed and third-party credentials: Don D. Ford III is board certified in Estate Planning and Probate Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization and holds a Certified Mediator credential from Pepperdine University’s Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution. Super Lawyers has recognized Ford for his Houston-based practice. Awesome Attorneys notes that most of Ford’s individual peer recognition is documented for his Houston practice specifically, rather than separately for the Austin office.

Texas Legal Backdrop

Contested probate matters in Texas — will contests, guardianship disputes, breach of fiduciary duty claims against executors or trustees — proceed through Texas’s statutory probate courts (in counties that have them) or through county or district courts with probate jurisdiction elsewhere, under the Texas Estates Code. A will contest generally must be filed within two years of the will’s admission to probate under Texas Estates Code § 256.204, with limited exceptions for fraud or forgery. Guardianship proceedings are governed by Texas Estates Code Title 3 and require clear and convincing evidence that a proposed ward is substantially unable to care for themselves or manage their property before a guardian will be appointed. None of this is legal advice; a specific probate or guardianship dispute should be evaluated by a licensed Texas attorney based on the actual facts and county involved.

Awesome Attorneys Assessment

Ford + Bergner’s specific differentiator is structural: separating uncontested-matters attorneys from litigation attorneys within the same firm, backed by a managing partner who holds both TBLS board certification and a formal mediation credential — a combination that covers a client whether a probate matter stays cooperative or turns contested. The honest trade-offs are two-fold: the firm is Houston-headquartered, so an Austin client is working with the Austin office of a larger multi-city practice rather than an Austin-native boutique, and Awesome Attorneys did identify at least one substantive negative review alleging scope and billing concerns, which is worth asking about directly during an initial consultation. For a genuinely contested probate or guardianship fight where litigation experience matters as much as estate-planning credentials, that combination is a reasonable basis for inclusion on a shortlist. For a simple, uncontested will or trust, a smaller Austin-only boutique may offer more personal attention at a lower overhead cost.

Methodology and Sourcing

This profile was researched from Ford + Bergner LLP’s official website (fordbergner.com), including its Austin-specific practice pages and Don D. Ford III’s individual attorney bio, Don Ford’s Super Lawyers profile, the firm’s published review archive, an independently located negative review not featured on the firm’s own site, and the Texas Board of Legal Specialization’s public certification standards.

Publisher Disclosure and Independence Notice

Awesome Attorneys is an independent legal directory and editorial publication. This profile was not paid for, commissioned, or reviewed by Ford + Bergner LLP or its attorneys prior to publication. Awesome Attorneys may in the future offer sponsored placement products to attorneys and firms, including this one, but sponsorship has no bearing on the editorial content, inclusion, or findings of this profile.