Name: Derek R Van Gilder
Address: 916 Main St, Bastrop, TX, 78602-3810, US
Telephone: +1 (512) 371-6540
Price range: $ 275-395 per hour
Rating: 4.7

About Derek

Biography

Have you been in a car accident or have problems with construction matters? I can help you.

Are you thinking about a divorce or child custody matters? My experience can help you now.

Do you need an experienced lawyer for your business or civil litigation matters? I can help you.

Do you want to start a business, but do not know how or what to do? Call me for help

Do you have a great idea for an invention, but do not know where to begin? My experience can help.

Have you or a loved one been in a car accident or gotten injured? Call my office for help.

Practice Areas

Business 25%

All business matters, including choice of entity, incorporation and all other general business matters

46 years | 700 cases

25%

Litigation 25%

Civil and Construction litigation involving all matters of business and other general litigation.

46 years | 1,000 cases

25%

Family 20%

Family law matters including Divorce, modifications, child support and custody plus adoptions

46 years | 400 cases

20%

Personal Injury 20%

Motor vehicle accidents, on-the job accidents, dangerous and defective products and other general personal injury or death cases

46 years | 1,000 cases

20%

Construction and Development 5%

You never want surprises in buying, selling or developing commercial real estate. Our experienced Bastrop County real estate lawyers will assist you in the successful completion of your commercial real estate project.

Intellectual Property 5%

Patent and trademark prosecution before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and State of Texas, plus Federal Copyrights

36 years | 100 cases

Fees and Rates

Cost

Hourly Rates

$ 275-395 per hour

Payment Methods

Cash
Check
Credit Card

Awards

2015 2012 2010

Licenses

Licensed in California for 43 years

State: California

Acquired: 1982

Active

Licensed in Texas for 44 years

State: Texas

Acquired: 1981

Eligible to Practice in Texas

Lawyer disciplined by state licensing authority in 2016

Licensed in District of Columbia for 35 years

State: District of Columbia

Acquired: 1990

Inactive

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Location

Law Office Of Derek R Van Gilder

916 Main St, Bastrop, TX, 78602-3810

vangilderlaw.com/

Get Directions

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Gallery

Derek R Van Gilder's Reviews

Avvo Review Score

4.7 /5.0

61 Client Reviews

Showing 1 - 2 of 2 reviews | Landlord & Tenant

Posted by Jennifer | June 04, 2015 | Landlord & Tenant

Need a Evicition?

Mr. Van Gilder, I'm writing this letter to formally thank you for representing me. When I came to you; I was almost a year into eviction case that felt like it would never end. I cannot thank you enough for meeting with me and taking my case over. I quickly learned when you are dealing with tenan...ts that know the system you need a lawyer. You were kind and worked with me on a fee payment that was reasonable. Because of your thorough and relentless advocacy, of taking my case I had fast results that led to the return of our property! I want to thank you for your education, and guidance, for your understanding, your interest our complex case. You worked with us being 18 hours away from Bastrop. You always stayed in contact with me to keep me up to date on the most current information in regards to my case, which is praise for your legal skills. You even went the extra mile in getting us in touch with the right people to remove the left behind items, even hired movers for us. We cannot thank you enough. Sincerely, Henry and Jennifer

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Posted by anonymous | December 17, 2020 | Hired Attorney | Landlord & Tenant

Derek r van gilder law firm they will charge for no work done.

Alan was the lawyer from his firm that I hired he was supposed to send a cease and desist letter that was going to cost me $800 dollars for a property i bought and the guy that sold it to me was trying to take the property back. i have never had a late payment and the roperty taxes were all paid on t...ime. But he was trying to evict me thats where the cease and desist letter come in.. Alan didn't send the letter till about three months later and every time i called he was on vacation it would be days till he got back to me.. in those three months he had never contacted the guy that was trying to evict me.. i had to send them the information of the lawyer i had hired because they didn't even know i had a lawyer representing me. But every month Alan will billed me and billed me. And the one time they sent the letter to the guy trying to evict me went to the wrong address even though they had all the information for those guys but he billed me for sending the certified letter again. I can go on and on but I would have to do a whole page. So no I don't recommend them.

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Derek Van Gilder

Replied last October 06, 2021

This complaint is filled with so many inaccuracies that I am compelled to respond here. First, the client completely misrepresented his legal matter to us when he hired this firm. He told us he had purchased his land under an owner-finance contract and the sellers were threatening to void the contract and take back the land because he moved a second mobile home onto the property. Based upon his description, we quoted him a price for writing a simple cease and desist letter to the sellers. It turned out that was completely inaccurate. He had not purchased the land. He was making payments under a contract for deed that expressly prohibited him from having a second mobile home on the property. In other words, he was the party in breach of the contract. Second, all of this was explained to him on several lengthy phone calls, and it was explained to him that the true facts of the situation made his legal matter more complicated, and more expensive. He then acknowledged those facts to us, and he expressly requested that we continue representing him under that arrangement. He expressly authorized every bit of work performed on his case. For that, he was billed the applicable rate set out in our written contract with him. The client also received our itemized invoice each month, detailing our work and the charges for that work. He never instructed us to stop work until after we had already done what we were hired to do. Third, we drafted a letter to the sellers, addressed to the specific address contained in the contract for delivery of notices related to the contract. That draft letter was provided to him to review and to suggest modifications and/or corrections. He held onto the draft letter for weeks before giving his approval. During that time, he sent emails with additional information he wanted included in the letter. We finalized the letter and sent it to the sellers. He was then informed that the letters were returned to us by the Post Office. It was only at that time that he informed us the sellers had moved and had a new address. Fourth, it appears the letter we sent to the sellers resolved his legal problems. Finally, Allen in my office is not an attorney and he did not represent that to him. Our monthly itemized invoices clearly and expressly show Allen is a litigation paralegal with this firm, and the invoices showed the attorney work performed on his case. Allen has more than 25 years’ experience in contract and real property matters. He spoke to the client when he first called the office, and he was a contact person for the client at the firm. Allen did much of the work on his case—which significantly reduced our charges for work on the client’s case. In summary, I believe his comments do not accurately reflect what occurred. The fact is, we did good work for him, and he was charged a fair price, and it appears our work resolved the issue. He still has had a balance owed,.

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Derek R Van Gilder's Lawyer Endorsements

Endorse Derek

Jacob Dannen

Family lawyer | Jun 08

Relationship: Opposing Counsel on matter

"Derek is an extremely smart attorney and knows his way around a courtroom. I have had several very contested cases against him. In all cases, he did a great job representing his clients and maintaining a high level of professionalism. I would hire Derek if I needed a family attorney."

David Wynne

Family lawyer | Mar 15

Relationship: Worked together on matter

"I was co-counsel on a very high net worth property case with Derek. His expertise and trial skills made the difference in our outcome. I would not hesitate to recommend Derek to friends or family."

David Collins

Litigation lawyer | Jun 18

Relationship: Worked for lawyer

"I worked as Derek’s associate for seven years prior to recently relocating to San Antonio, Texas. During that time I witnessed first hand that he is fair, persuasive, and aggressively pursues his client's interests while treating his clients, other lawyers, and the Court with respect. Derek is an attorney who is knowledgeable about the law and not afraid to use that knowledge. I endorse Derek R. Van Gilder 100%."

Caroline McClimon

Family lawyer | Jun 12

Relationship: Opposing Counsel on matter

"Mr. Van Gilder has been opposing counsel on several family law matters and I have always found him to be professional, honest and easy to work with during the litigation process. I endorse this lawyer as he genuinely cares about his clients and strives to obtain the best possible outcome for each client in every case."

J. Howard

Litigation lawyer | Dec 05

Relationship: Worked together on matter

"I endorse this lawyer. I've known Derek for over 30 years and know him to be a very knowledgable, resourceful attorney and a man of great integrity who is a strong advocate for his clients."

Logan Howard

Litigation lawyer | Nov 16

Relationship: Opposing Counsel on matter

"I have known Derek for several years now. He was opposing counsel in my first trial, and he has been very professional and pleasant to work with. He is a great attorney and I would happily refer business his way. His clients are in good hands."

Steven Urban

Litigation lawyer | Sep 10

Relationship: Opposing Counsel on matter

"Derek has been my opposing counsel on a few different matters over the years and was always courteous and professional. Having a good lawyer as your opposing counsel always makes it easier to get things resolved."

Tracy Willi

Litigation lawyer | Feb 10

Relationship: Worked together on matter

"I have worked with Derek on several matters. He is an excellent trial lawyer and he has obtained outstanding results for his clients. I highly recommend him for complex commercial disputes as well as general litigation."

Aleta Peacock

Litigation lawyer | Jan 28

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I endorse this lawyer's work. Derek is a top-notch litigator in our community and one to whom I personally refer business that is outside the scope of my law practice. I know he'll take excellent care of my clients."

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Jacob Dannen

Family lawyer

David Wynne

Divorce and separation lawyer

Dareld Morris

Tax lawyer

David Collins

Criminal defense lawyer

Caroline McClimon

Family lawyer

J. Howard

Personal injury lawyer

Logan Howard

Employment and labor lawyer

Bryan McDaniel

Family lawyer

Steven Urban

Litigation lawyer

James Willi

Appeals lawyer

Tracy Willi

Appeals lawyer

Aleta Peacock

Divorce and separation lawyer

Experience

Rating: 10.0 (Superb)

Professional misconduct

This lawyer was disciplined by a state licensing authority in 2016.

Public Reprimand issued in TX, 2016

updated on 03/15/2019

Public reprimand means an attorney did something wrong but may still practice law. The State gives the lawyer a public reprimand in hopes that he or she will not repeat the behavior. Details of the infraction are made part of the public record.

Derek’s comment:

“The Reprimand was because the Bar Association believed I had a conflict of interest because I had represented a client, individually, and her solely owned company, and later when asked to modify her Trust of which she was the sole beneficiary . A conflict arose between her daughter (a manager/employee) of her company and my client when it was discovered that the daughter was using personal and company funds without authorization from my client. Due to personal reasons, I could not fight it.”

Honors

2019

AV Preeminent 5.0 out of 5 Peer Review Rated, Martindale-Hubbell

2014

District Foundation Builder Award, Rotary International

2014

Point of Light, Bastrop Chamber of Commerce

2013