Brotherton Law Firm

Over 40 years ago, William J. Brotherton was working as a railroad brakeman and conductor for Burlington Northern Railroad in North Dakota and throughout the West, including the Dakotas, Wyoming, Montana, Nebraska, and Minnesota. He was promoted to trainmaster and served with the Colorado & Southern Railway in Denver from where he took a buyout. He went on to become an environmental consultant and ultimately went back to school and secured a law degree. The firm he started over 25 years ago as a solo has grown into a dynamic firm with four attorneys.

The Brotherton Law Firm practices in the areas of civil litigation, business and corporate matters, energy, transportation, insurance, personal injury, environmental issues, land use, administrative law, real estate, estate planning, family law and probate. The Firm has handled complex civil litigation, for both individuals and companies. The Firm’s corporate base includes international energy companies, appraisal districts, insurance carriers and companies that seek Texas counsel for a variety of litigation. William Brotherton’s eclectic background also spurs the Firm’s growth; in addition to his railroading, he taught environmental law for 12 years at Texas Christian University, served on his community’s Planning & Zoning Commission for six years helping to guide Flower Mound’s rapid growth, and has worked as a volunteer at the 14th hole at the Masters for the last 15 years. He plays at Augusta National every year, a benefit of working at the Masters each year. In 2018 he started working as a volunteer at the British Open.

Many of the Firm’s cases are unique. Brotherton has traveled to London, the Bahamas, and Toronto to represent clients, and he was hired to spend two weeks in the rain forests of Costa Rica to locate land to build Eco-Tourist lodging. He’s been involved in presidential politics as part of legal teams – he worked in New Hampshire for the 2012 election, and prior elections sent him to Colorado and Florida. In 2016 he served in Miami and in 2020, he worked in Texas.

The Firm successfully defended the Museum of the American Railroad when it was accused of trespassing -- for 50 years, and now William Brotherton serves as its general counsel. He writes frequently on railroad issues, and his book, Burlington Northern Adventures: Railroading in the Days of the Caboose, is in its second printing and sells all over the world. His next book is about growing up in small town Atlanta.

Brotherton is a proud member of the Abenaki Nation of Missisquoi in Vermont, where his mother grew up, and was elected to a four-year term on tribal council in October of 2016. He represented the tribe as a council member in the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant sale and decommissioning, as there were Abenaki sacred sites nearby. Active in Native American matters, he worked to resolve the Dakota Access protest, and traveled throughout the Standing Rock reservation to meet with tribal leadership, organizations, and members. He is licensed in North Dakota as well as Texas, and in the summer of 2016, he became an adopted member of the Spirit Lake Sioux Nation in North Dakota, and was given the Sioux name of Tasunka Masa, which translates from the Sioux as Iron Horse. He is a proud graduate of the University of North Dakota and a Fighting Sioux forever. The Brotherton Law Firm is a certified minority business enterprise.

Brotherton attributes the Firm’s growth to a rock solid client base and good old-fashioned customer service. We always have a friendly live person answer our phone – none of that "Press one for William Brotherton." We make sure we keep our clients informed. A native of South Carolina, and raised in Atlanta, Brotherton also believes in being collegial to fellow attorneys. “It’s amazing to me how rude an unfortunate number of attorneys can be – it’s just not necessary to be an effective attorney”, he said. As a result, the Firm gets referrals from other attorneys, even former opposing counsel. “Our business thrives on referrals, and many of our clients have been with us from the very beginning over 25 years ago”, he added.

For additional information about the Firm, contact Shannon at 972-317-8700.