Attorney Profiles

Patricia Nellenbach Carter, has over ten years of dedicated Family Law litigation experience and is board certified in Family Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. Texas Monthly magazine has named her as a Super Lawyer for two years and a "Rising Star" among Texas attorneys four years in a row.

Patricia was born in Heidelberg, Germany, to a German mother and career-serviceman father. After spending much of her childhood moving between Europe and the United States, her family settled in Texarkana, Texas, where she graduated from East Texas State University with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration. She obtained her law degree from Texas Tech University School of Law in 1997.

While at Texas Tech, Patricia was a member of the 1996 and 1997 TYLA National Mock Trial and 1996 AAJ Tournament of Champions Mock Trial teams. In 1997, she was an advocate on the first team from Tech to win the TYLA State Moot Court Competition. Patricia also received the Jurisprudence Award for Trial Advocacy and was inducted as a member of the Texas Tech Board of Barristers and the National Order of the Barristers.

After graduation, Patricia served a Judicial Clerkship with Justice Ben Z. Grant of the Sixth District Court of Appeals. In 1998, Patricia married, moved to Houston, and joined a local law firm, becoming a partner in 2001. She joined Short Jenkins Kamin in 2004 and formed Short Carter Morris in 2008. Patricia has authored and presented numerous continuing legal education articles. She is a member of the State Bar of Texas, the Houston Bar Association, the State Bar College, Burta Rhodes Raborn Family Law Inns of Court, the Texas Association of Family Law Specialists and the Gulf Coast Family Law Specialists. Patricia is also trained in Collaborative Law, a member of the Collaborative Law Institute of Texas, and chair-elect of the Collaborative Law Section of the Houston Bar Association.

In addition to practicing law, Patricia enjoys spending time with her husband and three children, and reading just about any book she can find.