Lawyer Limelight Featuring Tom Hartsell, Attorney at Law
Tom Hartsell, one of CPH Insurance’s help line attorneys, has been a practicing attorney in Dallas, Texas since 1980 and has been Board Certified in Family Law since 1985. He has written 3 books for Mental Health Professionals and teaches on those at Southern Methodist University, School of Education and Human Development Dispute Resolution Program & Counseling. He is licensed to serve and has assisted many of our insureds all over the United States. CPH Insurance is proud to work with Tom and share his expertise with their insureds. Read on to learn more about Tom in our Lawyer Limelight blog series Q&A:
Q: What do you find most enjoyable about your job?
A. Teaching, consulting with people from all over the country, helping people through the University’s Mediation Center and my law practice.
Q: Where is your favorite place you have traveled to and why?/ favorite vacation spot.
A. One summer I co-taught a mediation class in Florence, Italy and fell in love with that city and its history.
Q: Tell us about your family
A. I am married to Barbara and we have four boys and two grandchildren. Three of the four boys are married, and we are blessed with three wonderful daughter in laws. My grandparents on my mother’s side came to the U.S. from Spain around 1930. My mother had four sisters, three of whom were born in Spain before my grandparents moved to the U.S. and settled in Detroit, Michigan. My mother was born in Detroit in 1934.
Q: Aside from the job you have now, what sort of work would you like to do?
A. I am fortunate to be able to do a variety of things now professionally that I enjoy. I would like to keep doing all of them in some capacity for as long as I am able.
Q: Do you have any pets?
A. Barbara and I have a dog named Mojo. We have had him for 8 years and got him when our other two dogs were in the late stages of their lives. We wanted a small dog that could travel with us after the older dogs passed. Mojo has been all over the country with us. My mother has always said that after she dies, she wants to come back to earth as my dog. One of my students gave me a sign that reads; “The older I get the more I like dogs better than people.” I have to admit there is some truth to that statement.
Q: How do you stay organized?
A. I have an online calendar that links all of my devices, IPhone, IPad, Laptop, and desktop computers at my various offices that helps keep me organized. This is critical because I have a full-time university faculty position, am the director of a mediation center, have a law office and I move around a lot during the day. For my consulting calls for CPH I have put together a binder where I record scheduled calls and my notes. The binder also contains relevant resource material that helps me answer questions from policy holders. This binder is with me throughout the day.
Q: If you had a free plane ticket, where would you like to go?
A. I would fly to Spain and visit with relatives in the town my grandparents were from.
Q: What is your favorite food/restaurant?
A. My favorite dishes are Spanish recipes that my grandmother would prepare. My favorite all time restaurant is the Columbia Restaurant near Tampa, Florida (Ybor City) that has been family owned and operated, serving authentic Spanish dishes for over 113 years.
