Carissa Beene graduated Cum Laude in 2009 from William Mitchell College of Law in Saint Paul, Minnesota. While attending law school, she worked as a student certified attorney at the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office, assigned to the Violent Crimes and Narcotics felony prosecution divisions.

Upon graduating, Carissa and her family relocated to Austin, Texas, a wonderful city renowned for its strong sense of community and active participation in the arts. Carissa has been actively serving the people in Williamson and Travis counties since 2010. Carissa’s practice and philosophy is founded upon client involvement – assuring clients’ understanding of and full participation in the legal process and all of the options available.

Bar Membership:
State of California – January, 2010
State of Texas – May, 2010

Education:
Juris Doctorate, William Mitchell College of Law 2009
Bachelor of Arts, University of Minnesota 2004

Experience:
Bloomberg Law (2010-2011)
Legal Analyst

William Mitchell Intellectual Property Clinic (2009)
Student Certified Attorney

Hennepin County Attorney’s Office (2008 – 2009)
Law Clerk – Violent Crimes and Community Prosecution

Intellectual Property:
While attending law school, she worked as a student certified attorney with the William Mitchell Intellectual Property Clinic, a pilot program through the United States Patent and Trademark Office (U.S.P.T.O). Carissa has worked with a variety of clients with unique copyright, trademark and patent issues, working diligently to register and reserve their intellectual property rights. Carissa is one of the few attorneys in Texas to focus on book publishing. She works closely with authors to obtain copyright permissions for republication and use in derivative works. In addition, she advocates (contract negotiation and drafting) for authors to achieve favorable publishing contracts.

Areas of Practice:
Publishing/Literary:
- Publishing contract review
- Contract negotiation
- Permissions
- Licenses
- Copyright protection
- Interview release

Copyrights:
- Copyright registration
- Copyright infringement
- Licensing
- Permissions

Trademarks:
- Trademark registration
- Trademark infringement
- Appeals for denial of trademark
- Cease and desist letters
- Texas trademark registration

Trade Secrets:
- Non-disclosure agreements
- Non-compete agreements
- Trade secret misappropriation
- Franchise agreements
- Cease and desist

Entertainment Law:
- Music permissions
- Recording contracts
- Licensing
- Invasion of privacy
- Defamation


Criminal Defense:
As a former student certified prosecutor, Carissa performed extensive work in violent crimes and narcotics felony prosecutions. She learned how prosecutors build their cases and fight legal battles. Carissa uses this experience to establish strong criminal defense and to advocate for you.

Carissa has worked as a court appointed attorney for indigent clients in Williamson County since 2010. With integrity and compassion, she strives to defend clients charged with a variety of offenses including DWI, Theft, Possession of Controlled Substances, Possession of Marijuana, Driving Without a Valid License, Assault and Failure to ID. In addition, Carissa works with clients to obtain occupational driver’s licenses, challenge driver license suspensions and expunge criminal records.

Carissa is committed to providing you with personalized service including:
    Contact the firm today at 512.919.2599 to schedule a free consultation to discuss your situation and your next steps. Payment plans are available by request.



    Offices are located at:

    3000 Joe Dimaggio Blvd. Suite 44 - Round Rock Texas, 78665 - Phone: 512.919.2599 - FAX 512.354.7416