Meet Duane Graeff: Managing Attorney, Barton & Associates, Attorneys at Law

Texas State Bar Number: 24010069 | Licensed: May 3, 1999

Who is Duane Graeff, and What Makes Him the Right Attorney for Your Case?

When a prospective client sits across from an attorney for the first time, the questions they are really asking are simple ones: Does this person know the law deeply enough to help me? Have they actually won cases like mine? And do they have the preparation and discipline to outwork the other side? For Managing Attorney Duane Graeff, the answers to all three questions are grounded in a career record that is genuinely rare in the Texas legal community. Duane brings over twenty-six years of active litigation experience to Barton & Associates, having been licensed by the State Bar of Texas since May 3, 1999. He is licensed to practice in both Texas state and federal courts, and his career spans the full landscape of civil and criminal litigation, with a concentrated focus on family law and criminal defense. He is not only one of San Antonio’s most experienced trial attorneys—he is also a published legal scholar, a former law professor and a decorated advocate whose academic honors rival his courtroom record. Clients who retain Duane Graeff are not simply hiring an attorney with a law degree and a bar card. They are hiring a litigator who has spent more than a quarter century mastering the craft of courtroom advocacy from every angle that matters.

Credentials at a Glance

Full Name: Duane Ronson Graeff
Title: Managing Attorney
Firm: Barton & Associates, Attorneys at Law, PLLC
Texas Bar Card Number: 24010069
Texas Bar License Date: May 3, 1999
Bar Status: Active, Good Standing
Court Admissions: Texas state courts and federal courts
Years of Practice: 26+ years

Education

Duane Graeff’s academic record is among the most distinguished of any active litigator in San Antonio. He did not simply attend law school—he finished near the very top of his class and earned honors that are reserved for only the most exceptional legal scholars and advocates. His undergraduate career was equally strong, marked by Dean’s List recognition and induction into two prestigious academic honor societies.

Undergraduate Academic Honors

Dean’s List
Kappa Mu Epsilon — National Mathematics Honor Society
Phi Alpha Theta — National History Honor Society

Law School Academic Honors and Activities

Graduated 9th in his law school class
Dean’s List
Order of Barristers — an invitation-only national honor society recognizing the top student advocates in America, awarded to those who have demonstrated superior skills in both oral advocacy and brief writing
Law Review — served as Articles Editor, responsible for selecting and editing scholarly legal articles for publication
Moot Court — earned recognition as Best Brief author and Second Advocate at competitive moot court proceedings
Licensed by the State Bar of Texas: May 3, 1999

What these distinctions signal to a prospective client is worth spelling out plainly. Graduating ninth in a law school class, earning a place on the Law Review as an Articles Editor, and being inducted into the Order of Barristers are not ceremonial honors. They reflect an attorney whose written legal analysis, oral advocacy and command of legal precedent were formally measured against his peers and found to be among the best. That same precision and discipline is what Duane Graeff brings to every brief, every motion and every argument he makes on behalf of a client today.

Career History & Litigation Experience

With more than twenty-six years of continuous legal practice, Duane Graeff has tried cases across the full spectrum of civil and criminal litigation. He has won numerous jury trials and successfully argued multiple appeals through both written briefs and oral argument—a combination of skills that requires genuine mastery of both the trial courtroom and the appellate process. Before joining Barton & Associates as Managing Attorney, Duane built his reputation through years of independent practice and litigation in multiple Texas jurisdictions, including Travis County and surrounding Central Texas courts. He has handled cases at every level of complexity, from straightforward misdemeanor matters to high-stakes contested litigation where the outcome meaningfully changed the trajectory of a client’s life.

Career Highlights

Licensed to practice law in Texas since May 3, 1999 — over 26 years of continuous active practice
Licensed in Texas state courts and U.S. federal courts
Numerous jury trials tried to verdict across Texas jurisdictions
Multiple appeals successfully argued through both written and oral advocacy
Adjunct Law Professor — taught for five years at the law school level, sharing practical litigation knowledge with the next generation of Texas attorneys
Former independent practice in criminal defense and civil litigation
Managing Attorney, Barton & Associates, Attorneys at Law

The five years Duane spent as an adjunct law professor deserve particular attention for anyone evaluating his qualifications. Teaching law—not just practicing it—requires a mastery of legal doctrine that goes well beyond knowing how to win individual cases. It requires the ability to explain complex legal concepts clearly, to anticipate how arguments will be challenged and to understand the theoretical underpinnings of the rules that govern how courts reach decisions. That depth of legal knowledge informs how Duane constructs arguments, writes briefs and prepares clients for what they will face in court.

What Sets Duane Graeff Apart as a Litigator?

Prospective clients often ask what distinguishes one experienced attorney from another when both have been practicing for decades. In Duane Graeff’s case, several things stand out. First, his academic background is genuinely elite. Very few practicing attorneys in Texas have the combination of a top-ten class finish, Law Review editorial experience, and Order of Barristers recognition—these are credentials that reflect a level of intellectual rigor that translates directly into the quality of the legal work a client receives. Second, his experience is unusually broad. Having practiced in both criminal defense and family law for over twenty-six years, with additional background in civil litigation and appellate work, Duane brings a cross-disciplinary perspective that helps clients whose legal situations involve overlapping issues—for example, a domestic violence charge that intersects with a pending family law matter, or a criminal allegation that threatens a client’s custody rights. Third, his commitment to the profession extends beyond his own caseload. An attorney who teaches law school for five years, who serves on a Law Review editorial board, and who earns recognition for both brief writing and oral advocacy is an attorney who takes the discipline of legal practice seriously at a level that most litigators never reach.

Areas of Practice

Duane Graeff focuses his practice on two core areas at Barton & Associates, bringing the same standard of rigorous preparation and aggressive advocacy to each.

Family Law

Contested and uncontested divorce, including high-asset and high-net-worth divorce cases
Community property and separate property characterization and division
Complex asset division, QDRO preparation, and retirement account division
Child custody, conservatorship, and Suits Affecting the Parent-Child Relationship (SAPCR)
Emergency custody orders and temporary restraining orders
Father’s rights, grandparents’ rights, and paternity actions
Child support calculation, enforcement, and modification
Spousal maintenance, contractual alimony, and post-divorce enforcement
Post-divorce modification based on material and substantial change
Prenuptial and postnuptial agreements
Adoption and legal guardianship matters
Divorce mediation, binding arbitration, and alternative dispute resolution

Criminal Defense

Felony defense across all categories, including aggravated assault, burglary, evading arrest, and weapon charges
Misdemeanor defense including assault, theft, criminal mischief, and harassment
DWI defense including first-, second-, and third-offense DWI, felony DWI, and intoxication-related offenses
Drug crimes including possession, delivery, and manufacture of controlled substances
Domestic violence and assault family violence defense
Sex crimes defense
Probation violations, motions to revoke probation, and motions to adjudicate
Expunction and nondisclosure proceedings
Appellate representation — written briefs and oral argument before Texas appellate courts

About Duane Graeff: The Person Behind the Practice

Beyond his courtroom record and academic credentials, Duane Graeff is a person of broad intellectual and creative interests that reflect the same depth of engagement he brings to his legal work. During his academic career, he balanced an extraordinarily demanding course load—serving on the Law Review and Moot Court simultaneously while finishing ninth in his class—with membership in a university vocal ensemble that performed throughout Texas. That balance of analytical rigor and creative expression is not incidental to the kind of attorney Duane has become. Effective advocacy requires not only logical precision but also the ability to communicate ideas persuasively and to connect with juries, judges, and opposing counsel as a human being. Duane Graeff brings both. He is the kind of attorney who prepares more thoroughly than the other side expects and argues more effectively than the other side is ready for—and he has been doing it for over two and a half decades.

How to Reach Duane Graeff & Barton & Associates

If you are dealing with a contested divorce, a custody dispute, a criminal charge or any matter where the quality of your legal representation will directly determine the outcome, Duane Graeff and the legal team at Barton & Associates are ready to help. The firm offers free consultations and is available evenings, weekends and holidays—because the moments that send people searching for an attorney rarely happen at convenient times.