Nancy Forbis Carnahan – nancy@carnahanlegal.com 817-552-2800 www.northtexasmediators.com
Nancy was born and raised in Decatur, Wise County, Texas, where she graduated from Decatur High School as its valedictorian in 1982. She received her B.A degree from the University of Texas at Austin, with highest honors in 1986, and her J.D. from The University of Texas School of Law, with honors in 1989. While at UT Law School, she was a member and later an associate editor of The Texas Law Review, the school’s pre-eminent legal publication, where she published her Note, and later served as an associate editor. As a high school and college student, Nancy became interest in the Spanish language and culture of Mexico, spending several weeks during each summer in Mexico, honing her Spanish speaking skills. Today, she employs those skills as a Spanish-speaking mediator.
Nancy’s 27 year legal practice has been devoted to litigation, including everything from commercial litigation, to all manner of personal and professional liability litigation, property disputes, employer liability, product liability, and more recently, family law and alternative dispute resolution. Nancy began her practice with the commercial litigation firm of Figari & Davenport (1989-1991), and later practiced with the Dallas firm of Cowles & Thompson (1991-2000), where she became a partner in 1994. In 2000, she left to form the Hermes, Sargent, Bates law firm where she was a partner until her departure to form her own firm in Southlake, Texas. Nancy has been with the Carnahan Thomas law firm since 2003, where her practice remained focused on litigation of all kinds.
From 1996 to 2015, as part of her practice, Nancy acted as national coordinating products liability counsel for The Brinkmann Corporation, managing the company’s litigation nationwide, assisting with the defense and resolution of their suits, as well as with a number of product recalls which were undertaken by the company in cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission.
More recently, Nancy has added family law as a more prominent area of her practice and is now focusing her efforts on developing a full-time mediation practice in all areas of litigation and pre-litigation matters, including family law. Nancy has received her basic mediation certification, as well as her Advanced Family Law Mediator certification, and her CPS Mediator certification. She regularly volunteers as a mediator for Tarrant County’s Dispute Resolution Services, where she focuses on mediating family law cases. She travels throughout Texas to bring mediation services throughout the state, and does not charge for reasonable travel in the North and Central Texas area.
Nancy is AV rated by Martindale-Hubble, its highest rating for ethics and excellence, and has held that rating for over 16 years. She has also been named to Martindale-Hubbell’s Bar Registry for Preeminent Lawyers publication.
Licensing, Membership, Personal
Nancy is licensed to practice in all Texas state courts as well as the Federal District Courts for the Northern, Eastern, and Southern Districts of Texas. She is a member of the Dallas Bar Association, the Northeast Tarrant County Bar Association, the Texas Association of Mediators, and is a featured mediator on www.mediation.com. Though her primary locations are in Tarrant and Dallas County, Nancy mediates throughout the state, and does not charge for reasonable travel in the North and Central Texas area.
Nancy has been married to attorney and mediator Mike Carnahan for 24 years, and they are raising four sons. She is a member of Whites Chapel United Methodist Church, and in her spare time, she enjoys amateur carpentry and home improvement projects including laying wooden flooring, tiling, and electrical and plumbing upgrades, as well as website design and learning to write software code.
Mediation Locations and Contact Information
Nancy is available to mediate in Dallas at the office of Gilbert Mediation Groupin the CBS Tower, at 12001 N. Central Expy., Suite 650, Dallas, Texas or in Tarrant County the offices of Carnahan Thomas, 1190 N. Carroll Ave., Southlake, Texas, or by appointment, in Decatur, Wise County, Texas on the courthouse square (offices on N. Trinity Street coming soon). Other locations by appointment.
To schedule mediations in Southlake or Decatur, contact us at 817-552-2800 or ncarnahan@carnahanthomas.com.
To schedule mediations in Dallas, contact Debbie Adest at Gilbert Mediation Group at 214-303-4500 or debbie@gmgtexas.com.