Eric Reis
Biography
Eric Reis consults on novel and unusually complex trust, estate, and family office matters.
Eric is a full-time law professor at UNT Dallas College of Law, where he teaches Wills, Trusts, and Estates, Family Law, and Tax courses. He is also a past chair of the Real Estate, Probate & Trust Law section of the State Bar of Texas and a Fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel.
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- American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC), Legal Education Committee, 2025; Fellow, 2010-Present
- Southern Methodist University (SMU) Dedman School of Law, Adjunct Professor, 2020-2021
- Texas A&M University School of Law, Adjunct Professor, 2019-2021
- State Bar of Texas, Real Estate, Probate & Trust Law Section, Chair, 2019-2020; previously Secretary, Treasurer and Council member, and Chair of the section's Decedents' Estates Committee
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- The Best Lawyers in America guide, Trusts and Estates, 2010-2026; Dallas Trusts and Estates Lawyer of the Year, 2018
- Texas Super Lawyers magazine, 2003-2004, 2012-2023, 2025
- Board Certified in Estate Planning & Probate Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, 2001-2026
- Board Certified in Tax Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, 2002-2027
- Martindale-Hubbell AV Preeminent Peer Review Rated, 2010-2025
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Publications
- Building Grantor Trusts Back Better, 60 Tulsa L. Rev. 275 (2025)
- Guaranteed Wealth? A New Way of Thinking About the Gift Tax Treatment of Loan Guarantees, 27 Fla. Tax Rev. 304 (2023)
- Transfer of Proceedings in Statutory Probate Courts, The Advocate, December 2007, at 20
- Mr. Soros Goes to Washington: The Case for Reform of the Estate and Gift Tax Treatment of Political Contributions, 41 Real Prop., Prob. & Tr. J. 299 (2007)
- The Funding Dilemma, Trusts & Estates, May 2005, at 32
- New Opportunities, New Limitations in Planning with Charitable Remainder Trusts, Probate & Property, May/June 2000, at 41
Speaking Engagements
- I (Don’t) Guarantee It: Potential Problems with the Use of Personal Guarantees to Back Loans to Family Trusts, Houston Business and Estate Planning Council, Houston, Texas, October 16, 2025
- Basic Principles and Strategies in Estate Planning, 59th Annual Program: Short Course on Estate Planning, The Center for American and International Law, Plano, Texas, June 24, 2025
- Guaranteed Wealth: A New Way of Thinking About the Gift Tax Treatment of Guarantees, Fiduciary Income Tax Committee of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, 2025 Annual Meeting, Palm Springs, California, March 22, 2025
- I (Don’t) Guarantee It: Potential Problems with the Use of Personal Guarantees to Back Loans to Family Trusts, Estate Planning Council of North Texas, Plano, Texas, February 19, 2025
- Guaranteed Wealth: A New Way of Thinking About the Gift Tax Treatment of Guarantees, Legal Education Committee of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, 2024 Fall Meeting, Chicago, Illinois, September 21, 2024
- I (Don’t) Guarantee It: Potential Problems with the Use of Personal Guarantees to Back Loans to Family Trusts, State Bar of Texas Advanced Estate Planning & Probate Course, Houston, Texas, June 13, 2024
- A Quick Trust Tax Tutorial, 20th Annual Changes and Trends Affecting Special Needs Trusts, The University of Texas School of Law Continuing Legal Education, Austin, Texas, February 16, 2024
- Basic Principles and Strategies in Estate Planning, 58th Annual Program: Short Course on Estate Planning, The Center for American and International Law, Plano, Texas, January 25, 2023
- Planning for Individuals with Diminished Life Expectancy, San Antonio Estate Planners Council, San Antonio, Texas, May 17, 2022
- Guaranteed Wealth: A New Way of Thinking About the Gift Tax Treatment of Guarantees, Oklahoma City University School of Law Regional Junior Faculty Colloquium, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, March 26, 2022
- Hold on to Your Land, Texas Small Farmers & Ranchers Community Based Organization, Dallas, Texas, January 13, 2022
- Planning for Individuals with Diminished Life Expectancy, Texas Society of CPAs Summit 2021, San Antonio, Texas, November 8, 2021
- Planning for Individuals with Diminished Life Expectancy, Texas Bankers Association, October 12, 2021
- A Guide to Executing Estate Planning Documents in Uncertain Times, Collin County Bar Association Probate Section, May 8, 2020
- Modifying Irrevocable Trusts, Dallas Estate Planning Council, Dallas, Texas, February 6, 2020
- Cutting Edge Planning Ideas, Including Ideas to Avoid the Estate Tax for Those Who Will Surely Pay (panel with David Handler, Lester Law, and Steve Akers), State Bar of Texas Advanced Estate Planning Strategies Course, San Diego, California, April 26, 2019
- Irrevocable or Not? Modifications to Trusts, North Texas Estate Planning Council, September 20, 2017
- Trust Accounting Issues, State Bar of Texas Advanced Estate Planning & Probate Course, June 9, 2017
- Planning for Individuals with Diminished Life Expectancy, North Texas Estate Planning Council, Plano, Texas, September 16, 2015
- Planning for Individuals with Diminished Life Expectancy, Collin County Bar Association Probate Section, Allen, Texas, September 10, 2010
- Planning for Individuals with Diminished Life Expectancy, Estate Planning and Probate Section of the Austin Bar Association, February 19, 2010
- Irrevocable or Not? Modifications to Trusts, State Bar of Texas Advanced Estate Planning and Probate Course, June 2009
- Estate Planning for Political Contributions, State Bar of Texas Advanced Estate Planning and Probate Course, June 2008
- Gifting Assets without Tax Consequences, State Bar of Texas Annual Meeting, June 2008
- The Low Down on From High: Current Developments in Exempt Organizations Law, State Bar of Texas Governance of Nonprofit Course, August 2007
- Blended Family Issues in a Wills and Probate Practice, University of Houston Law Center Continuing Legal Education Program, July 2005
- Blended Family Issues in a Wills and Probate Practice, Estate Planning Section of the Collin County Bar Association, July 2004
- Blended Family Issues in a Wills and Probate Practice, University of Houston Law Center Continuing Legal Education Program, May 2004
- Will Drafting and Multiple Marriage Issues, University of Houston Law Center Continuing Legal Education Program, June 2001
- Will Drafting and Multiple Marriage Issues, University of Houston Law Center Continuing Legal Education Program, May 2001
- Raising Money Legally: Selected Issues in Fund Raising, The Center for Nonprofit Management Presentation, June 2000
- Creative Uses for Roth IRAs, Lone Star Planners Conference, November 2000
- Administration Expenses and the Marital Deduction, Brazos Valley Estate and Financial Planning Council Presentation, October 1999
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Education
- J.D., The University of Texas School of Law,
with honors; Texas Law Review Associate Editor; Legal Research Board Chairman; Order of the Coif
- A.B., Harvard University, cum laude
Admissions
- Texas
Court Admissions
- J.D., The University of Texas School of Law,
News/Insights
Explore all news and insights
Press Release
Haynes Boone Adds 6 Attorneys in Dallas to Expand Family Office and Employment Capabilities
November 24, 2025