Mary Lois Spain-Sipes
Attorney
Mary Lois Spain Sipes is a hometown girl, with deep roots in the agriculture industry, having grown up on a dairy farm in Decatur. Mary Lois and her family call Wise County home. She is married to Joe Sipes, who grew up in Decatur as well. Mary Lois understands the strains of our modern culture and the toll that takes on families, as she is a working mother to two young children.
Mary Lois focuses her legal practice in the areas of Wills, Trusts & Estate Planning, Probate, Guardianship, Real Estate, and Family Law. In 2016
Mary Lois established the first Wise County National Adoption Day, whereby our local courts joined the national collective effort to raise awareness of children waiting to be adopted from foster care. She is also on the appointment list for Child Protection Cases in Wise, Jack, and Montague Counties. She is a member of the Real Estate, Probate & Trust Law Section and Family Law Section of the Texas Bar. Mary Lois is a founding member, as well as the treasurer, of the Wise, Montague & Jack Counties Women’s Bar Association. Additionally, Mary Lois is a certified guardian ad litem for guardianship cases.
After graduating from Decatur High School in 2001, Mary Lois attended Texas Tech University. In December 2004 Mary Lois graduated cum laude, earning herself two undergraduate degrees: a Bachelor of Business Administration and a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture and Applied Economics.
Through Texas Tech University, Mary Lois had the opportunity to live in Washington, D.C. and work as a Presidential Congressional Intern for Congressman Lamar Smith, Texas District 21. She was then asked to be an intern for the White House Office of Media Affairs.
Prior to making the decision to attend law school, Mary Lois enjoyed researching land records as an independent landman for oil and gas companies. It was her close work with title attorneys that influenced her to make the decision to attend law school. Mary Lois attended Florida Coastal School of Law where she obtained a Juris Doctorate in 2010. Mary Lois has been licensed to practice law in the State of Texas Since 2010.
After becoming a licensed attorney, Mary Lois put her practical knowledge of real property to good use as a title attorney issuing title opinions primarily for oil and gas companies drilling in the Barnett Shale geological formation. In 2013, as Mary Lois began to see a decline in drilling, she made the decision to “hang a shingle” in her hometown of Decatur.
Mary Lois jumped into a solo law practice taking on new clients and court appointments. Shortly after starting her own practice, she joined The Reeves Law Firm as an associate and in 2014 formed the partnership of Reeves Spain-Sipes Law, LLP. In 2018, Mary Lois moved her law practice to the historic Decatur Town Square where she began to work closely with the attorneys at Woodruff & Wren, L.L.P. It was such a match that Mary Lois joined Mason L. Woodruff and Jennifer Wren as a partner attorney in January 2019, forming Woodruff, Wren & Spain-Sipes, L.L.P.
Upon the retirement of Mason L. Woodruff and the departure of Jennifer Wren from private practice in December 2019, Mary Lois began the New Year joining forces with J. Michael Carrillo and Charles R. Tibbels. In January 2020 the three attorneys formed the law firm known as Carrillo|Sipes|Tibbels, PLLC. Mary Lois is proud of the legacy entrusted to her and the opportunity to fashion a legacy of her own. She is excited for our community’s future and to share in what awaits Decatur, Wise County, and our surrounding areas.
Mary Lois Spain Sipes* Licensed to Practice In All Areas of Law By The State Bar of Texas Since 2010
*Not Certified By The Texas Board of Legal Specialization