Tiffany Branson shows how to balance a demanding law career with family and service to the community while helping neglected kids in Parker County .
our heroes : LEGAL EAGLES
The Defense Rests —
Very Little
Tiffany Branson shows how to balance a demanding law career with family and service to the community while helping neglected kids in Parker County .
BY MISTY BROWNING AND MARSHA BROWN
Tiffany Branson is not from Parker
County , but she loves it and has been calling it home since 2006 after working in the Arlington / Crowley area and living in Fort Worth . A graduate of the University of North Texas with a BBA in Finance earned in 2000 , and a Juris Doctorate from Southern Methodist University received in 2003 , she now owns her own firm where she advocates for children who have been removed from their families due to abuse or neglect .
“ I do mostly CPS and criminal cases . My first job out of law school was at a DA ’ s office in Johnson County . That is where my background comes from ,” explained Branson .
What she finds most gratifying about her work with Child Protective Services is representing the children who desperately need her help . Children who are abused or neglected and removed from their families are required to have an attorney represent them . Even though it ’ s not an easy role , Branson enjoys it and giving those children a voice . She loves working with the children that she represents , no matter how hard it is .
Most of Branson ’ s cases have a Court Appointed Special Advocate ( CASA ). In Parker County , a CASA is a friend or mentor who the child can confide in during the difficult process . In outlying areas , the CASA serves as the foster . Either way , the attorney and CASA stay with the child throughout the case duration , no matter how long it takes .
“ It ’ s never easy , but it ’ s always different ,” Branson explained . “ At the end of the day , you hope that the kids have permanency or a happy ending , whether it ’ s returning them to the family , which you hope for , or foster parents that have a relationship with that child . It ’ s interesting because your clients range from newborn to 17 . I even have some who are 19 who choose to stay in the system . A newborn can ’ t discuss their judgment , and a 16-year-old sometimes does not know what ’ s best for them . But my job is to make sure that they have a voice and that they have an advocate .”
Branson is also on the Weatherford ISD Board of Trustees after being elected to a first term in 2014 , and being elected Board Vice President in 2016 . She loves being on the board and is proud of how far
the school district has come since her first term .
“ I ’ m super proud of the new Hall Middle School and getting the community behind it . I also love serving the kids . They are our future and that ’ s why I do all that I do . If we don ’ t do a good job of taking care of them , they won ’ t take care of us . I ’ m a firm believer in community . I believe that community should serve community .”
The most important job for her , though , is as mother of son Owen and daughter Caroline . She works fervently to balance her time between her work and their school and activities . For her , being a mother is her most important role .
“ I want to be a great lawyer and do the best I can . As a school board member , I want to give back to the community and serve them . At the end of the day , mother is the most important job I have because they are the legacy that I will leave behind .”
SEPTEMBER 2017 PARKER COUNTY TODAY
19