2009-02-05

Billy Walker certified in residential real estate

By Stephanie Parker

The State Bar of Texas Board of Legal Specialization recognized Bandera attorney Billy Walker for special competency in residential real estate law in January. Walker is one of only 8,000 state-certified attorneys out of 83,000 attorneys in the State of Texas.

Walker is now certified in three areas – farm and ranch real estate law, oil, gas and mineral law and residential real estate law. He has practiced law in Bandera County for 30 years and has owned Moore Title Company for 18 years.

“I am proud of my profession,” Walker said. “This certification lets my clients know that I have been recognized for special competency in these areas. It gives them a higher level of confidence in me because I have taken the time and expense to become board certified.”

Walker said he chose his career as an attorney because of the “supportability within the profession. It allowed me to return to Bandera County to live.”

By advertising on the Internet, Walker also obtains clients from other states. “I’m not sure what standards people use when choosing an attorney, but this lets them know that I have distinguished myself and am recognized as an authority in these areas.”

There are only 101 board certified attorneys in Texas for farm and ranch real estate, 331 in residential real estate law, and 265 for oil, gas and mineral law.

Walker concentrates on transitional real estate representation and preparation of all real estate documents, as well as probate and preparation of wills. When someone bequeaths $1,000 or more to the Bandera County Library, Walker writes their will for free. He has been on the library board since it was founded, and twice served as president. He is currently the secretary.

A graduate of Bandera High School, the fourth-generation resident is familiar with Bandera County and its people. His said his grasp of local real estate developments is enhanced by his role of title examiner at Moore Title Company.

Active in the community as well as law, Walker is past-president of the Bandera Boys and Girls Club and the Chamber of Commerce. He is a director of the Hill Country Land Trust and previously served as director on the boards of the Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Cowboy Capital Rodeo Association and the Bandera County Junior Livestock Show Association.

A Master Naturalist, he speaks at the Medina Garden Club, the Bandera Garden Club, the Native Plant Society and the Hill Country Master Naturalist Chapter and at library events. His expertise ranges from bluebird and purple martin cultivation to butterfly gardening with native plants.

Walker’s hobbies include fence work on his family’s ranch, which was founded in 1899; jogging on ranch roads with his half-basset hound; reading legal and recreational books; raising flowering perennials; and spending time with his wife and two children.