Hector De Leon
Ben De Leon is the President of De Leon Washburn & Ward, P.C., where he first started as a law clerk in 2004. His legal focus includes serving as outside general counsel to various small to mid-size companies in the areas of corporate organization, corporate governance, compliance, operational transactions, administrative and regulatory law, litigation, labor and employment, insurance law, real estate and construction matters, and technology law.
Ben’s service-minded nature extends beyond his legal practice to his passion for improving the community. Since he was a Texas Law School student, where he received a Texas Law Fellowship for work in public interest and served as a student attorney in the Juvenile Justice Clinic, Ben has used his skills as an attorney to help others. A native Austinite, Ben is fluent in Spanish, and has represented Spanish-speaking clients pro bono through Volunteer Legal Services of Central Texas since 2005. Through Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Texas, Ben was a Big Brother to his Little Brother, Anthony, for nearly 7 years. Ben was named the 2009 National Big Brother of the Year by Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, out of more than 250,000 mentors nationwide.
Ben is married to Shannon Lee De Leon; they are the proud parents of daughters, Anna and Winnie, and son, Henry.
Education
- University of Texas at Austin, B.S. and B.A., 2001, Corporate Communication and Spanish, Phi Kappa Phi and Phi Beta Kappa
- University of Texas School of Law, JD 2004
Practice Areas
- Real Estate & Construction
- Administrative Law
- Business Transactions
- Insurance Law
Community Involvement
- Board Member, Communities In Schools of Central Texas, 2015-present; Secretary, 2016-present
- Board Member, A Legacy of Giving, 2016-present; President, 2017-present
- Executive Committee Member, Texas Law Alumni Association, 2013-present
- Board Member, PeopleFund, 2013-2016; Vice Chair, 2015-2016
- Board Member, Volunteer Legal Services of Central Texas, 2012-2014
- Board Member, Texas Exes 2011-2014; Scholarship Committee Chair, 2011-2014
- Texas Exes Scholarship Foundation Board President, 2013-2014
- Board Member, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Texas, 2010-2013
- City of Austin Planning Commissioner, 2009-2010
- Member, State Bar of Texas Texas Bar Foundation Fellow
Awards
- Super Lawyers “Texas Rising Star” (2011-2018)
- UT Ex-Students’ Association Outstanding Young Texas Ex Award Recipient (2012)
- Austin Under 40 Award Winner, Youth & Education Category (2011)
- National Big Brother of the Year, BBBS of America (2009)
- Judge Suzanne Covington Pro Bono Service Award (2007-2009, 2015)
Publications
- Rendering a Taxing New Tide on I.R.C. Section 501(c)(3): The Constitutional Implications of H.R. 2357 and Alternatives for Increased Political Freedom in Houses of Worship, The Texas Review of Litigation, Vol. 23, No. 3 (2004)
- Time for a Change: An Analysis of the Substantial Evidence Rule in the Context of Contested Licensee Hearings and the Case for Amending Tex. Gov’t Code § 2001.174, Texas Tech Administrative Law Journal, Vol. 15, No. 2 (2014) – co-authored with Athena Ponce and Chelsea A. Walker
- New Award
- Super Lawyer, Administrative Law, 2004-2012
- U.S. News Best Lawyer in America, Insurance Law 2007-2012
- University of Texas Ex-Students’ Association “Distinguished Alumnus,” 2010
- University of Texas Presidential Citation Recipient for Exemplary Service to the University, 2007
Austin, Texas 78746