We are proud of our alumni community at Texas Wesleyan University School of Law. This year we have decided to create an alumni spotlight for our community to see. We want to publicize the good that we are doing in our respective communities and enhance our outreach efforts. Our first alumni spotlight will be centered around our alumni who are civil servants of our legal community (District Judges, District Attorneys, State Representatives, and other elected officials). We salute your hard work, dedication and effort to preserve justice. The office of alumni relations & external affairs has asked each alumnus in these positions to provide us with a picture and a short biography. We are going to post these items on our web site and display this information in the law school on the first floor. If you are in a position of civil service, please send your information to Casey Dyer at cdyer@law.txwes.edu. We would like to have this information prepared for display for our entire law school community to see by the end of this month. 

Read about our previously featured alumni civil servants here.

The Honorable Nancy L. Berger '94

Nancy L. Berger was elected in 2006 to serve as the State District Judge of the 322nd District Court (Family Court) in Tarrant County, Texas. She is the first graduate of the Texas Wesleyan University School of Law to serve as a State District Judge in Tarrant County, and has served in that capacity since Jan. 1, 2007. Before becoming a judge, Nancy Berger practiced primarily family law, probate, civil, and other family-related areas of the law for 12 years.

Judge Berger received her Bachelor of Science degree magna cum laude from the University of Central Oklahoma in Edmond, Okla. She received her J.D from Texas Wesleyan University School of Law and was a member of the first class of the school. While pursuing the law degree in the night program, Nancy worked full time in Plano with Electronic Data Systems, Inc.

Nancy is a certified public accountant and has also been a certified fraud examiner. Her background includes serving on many community boards and her church as finance chairman and treasurer, as well as auditing for a major national CPA firm, and as financial director of the Arts Council of Fort Worth and Tarrant County.

With her commitment to youth and families, Judge Berger's interests provide a natural catalyst for her work, legal studies and law practice in the family law arena. She received the lifetime PTA award and organized and presided over the Fort Worth Music Association, an organization formed to work with the Fort Worth ISD in the choral and instrumental music integration of high schools and junior high schools. She is a member of the First United Methodist Church as well as a number of civic and professional organizations.

Judge Berger is currently a member and officer of the Texas Wesleyan School of Law Alumni Board of Directors, serves as a charter member of the Burger Society (Chief Justice Warren E. Burger), and is a supporter of the Pro Bono Clinic of the school. She and her husband of 36 years, Art, have five grown children and eight grandchildren.

The Honorable Craig Watkins

Craig Watkins '94, a Dallas native, was inaugurated on Jan. 1, 2007, as the Criminal District Attorney (DA) for Dallas County, Texas. He is the first African-American elected to that position in Texas. As DA for Dallas County, his “smart on crime” philosophy engages innovative strategies throughout the prosecutorial process and seeks to address the root causes of why offenders commit crime.  DA Watkins’ interest in conviction integrity led to partnering with the Innocence Project of Texas to aid the wrongfully convicted.

District Attorney Watkins was educated in the local public school system, received a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from Prairie View A&M University and a Juris Doctorate degree from Texas Wesleyan University School of Law. He is a member of Friendship-West Baptist Church, Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Inc., Prairie View A & M University Alumni Association and is affiliated with several professional and civic organizations. Mr. Watkins has received numerous honors and awards for his outstanding accomplishments in the community from an array of organizations and groups:

• Dallas Urban League Torch Award
• District Attorney Watkins was featured in the May 2008 and May 2007 issues of Ebony Magazine as one of The Ebony Power 150 as the next generation of African-American leaders
• One of Eclipse Magazine’s “Super Lawyers” January 2007
• District Attorney Watkins was featured in the March 5, 2007 issue of JET
• Featured in the September 2007 issue of Texas Monthly  
• District Attorney Watkins’ innovative strategies as the new DA in Dallas County have garnered him local, national and international attention from CNN, ABC’s “Good Morning America,” German TV, the Dallas Morning News, the New York Times, the Washington Post, the L. A. Times and the Chicago Tribune, to name a few.  Mr. Watkins was also featured in the May 4, 2008, broadcast of CBS News’ 60 Minutes in a segment titled, “Exonerated.”

DA Watkins and wife Tanya have three children — Chad, Cale and Taryn.

State Representative Phil King '94

As State Representative for the 61st District, Phil King represents the people of Parker and Wise counties in the Texas Legislature. He has earned a reputation as a principle-driven conservative who consistently provides key leadership in passing some of Texas’ most sweeping public policy legislation.

 

King serves as Chairman of the Regulated Industries Committee, one of the key committees in the Texas House, where he has worked to promote competition in the electricity and telecommunications markets. King co-chairs the Electric Utility Restructuring Legislative Oversight Committee, a joint committee of the Texas House and Senate, and serves on the Select Committee on Electric Generation Capacity and Environmental Effects. King also serves on the Civil Practices Committee, the Redistricting Committee, and the Select Committee on Property Tax Relief and Appraisal Reform.  Additionally, he is on the board of directors for the Tower Institute for Strategic Analysis and Action in Public Policy and the Texas Conservative Coalition, organizations that encourage the principles of economic liberty, limited government, and personal responsibility.

 

Since his election in 1998, King has made an impact on Texas public policy. In 1999, he was named “Freshman Legislator of the Year” by his colleagues, “Rookie Legislator of the Year” by Texas Monthly, and “Crime Fighter of the Year” by the Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Texas. In his second term, he was named a “Fighter for Free Enterprise” by the Texas Association of Business for his work on pro-business issues, and was honored by the Texas State Rifle Association for legislation implementing a firearms safety program in public schools.

 

During the 78th Legislature and the following Special Sessions, King authored the congressional redistricting legislation. King was also recognized as “Legislator of the Year” by the Texas Association of Builders for his work on HB 730. This bill was designed to reduce litigation costs for homebuilders and buyers, and has been utilized as model legislation in other states.

 

In 2005, King was the House sponsor of Senate Bill 5, which modernized Texas’ telecommunications laws. SB 5 has been hailed nationally for its groundbreaking provisions in opening the cable television market to greater competition, and has also been the subject of wide praise for its impact on technology investment in Texas. For his leadership on SB 5, King was named a “Legislator of the Year” by the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), a bi-partisan organization of over 2,400 state legislators committed to Jeffersonian principles of limited government, free enterprise, federalism, and individual liberty. ALEC adopted the principles of SB 5 as “model legislation” to be considered in other states.

 

A strong voice for faith and families, King has been a driving force in passing key pro-life legislation such as parental notification and parental consent. In 2008, he was given the “Defender of the American Dream” award from Americans for Prosperity.  He was named “Outstanding Legislator of the Year” by the Texas Alliance for Life and in 2006 received the “Defender of Life” award from The Justice Foundation. He has also been awarded the “Freedom and Family Award” by Texas Eagle Forum and has been recognized by the Free Market Foundation for his support of pro-family legislation.

 

King serves as a Major in the Texas State Guard, one of three branches of the Military Forces of the State of Texas. The Guard assists and augments the Texas National Guard and Texas civil authorities during state emergencies and in homeland security.

 

Prior to serving in the legislature, King served as a Captain in the Fort Worth Police Department, an instructor at Dallas Baptist University and a Parker County Justice of the Peace. He received a BA and MBA from Dallas Baptist University and a law degree from Texas Wesleyan University. In 2001, King received the Outstanding Alumni award from Dallas Baptist University, and in 2006, Texas Wesleyan University awarded King with the Distinguished Alumni award. King is a frequent speaker on telecommunications and energy policy. 

 

 Currently, he is a practicing attorney in Weatherford with the firm of Eggleston, Flowers & King. Representative King and his family are active members of Trinity Bible Church. Phil and his wife Terry are the proud parents of six children and one granddaughter and two grandsons.