An accomplished and versatile litigator, Sarah Toraason brings more than a decade of experience in complex commercial disputes — including securities, contract, business tort, insurance coverage, ERISA, and intellectual property matters in state and federal courts and arbitration — to her current practice representing clients in estate, trust, and guardianship litigation.
Sarah approaches every matter with a single goal: a successful, efficient resolution that genuinely serves her client's interests. As a strong and tenacious advocate, she leverages her deep bench of commercial litigation skill to navigate even the most complicated probate and guardianship disputes. Sarah holds dual Texas and California bar admissions and has clerked for two distinguished federal judges — experience that gives her a unique understanding of how courts think and decide.
Representative Experience
- Obtained favorable jury verdict and award of nearly $3 million for breach of contract and breach of fiduciary duties in a hotly contested family dispute involving the sale of oil and gas interests
- Obtained favorable jury verdict for lack of testamentary capacity and undue influence in a contested will contest, and a separate favorable verdict for lack of contractual capacity and breach of fiduciary duty in the same lawsuit
- Successfully defended a former CFO of a national home-building company in a securities fraud class action in the Southern District of Florida and on appeal to the Eleventh Circuit
- Obtained denial of class certification on behalf of a Fortune 500 media company and its officers and directors in a securities class action in the Northern District of Texas and on appeal to the Fifth Circuit
- Won dismissal of claims challenging the design and administration of an ERISA-governed severance plan; defended judgment on appeal to the Fifth Circuit
- Defended the CEO of an oil and natural gas company in a series of ten shareholder and derivative suits in state and federal court
- Obtained dismissal of claims brought against an insurance company and former claims adjuster in Texas state court
Publications & Speaking Engagements
- Co-Author: "Drafting for Multiple Executors, Trustees, and Agents" (October 2022)
- Co-Presenter: "Jury Selection in Probate Disputes: Avoiding the Minefield and Winning the Case" – Clear Law Institute National Webinar (2019)
- Co-Author/Presenter: "A Road Increasingly Traveled: Multistate Probate Issues" – National College of Probate Judges (2019)
- Co-Author: "Not Your Typical Voir Dire: Selecting a Jury in a Will Contest Case" – Dallas Bar Association, Headnotes (December 2018)
- Co-Author/Presenter: "Constitutional Considerations When Restricting Access to the Proposed Ward in Contested Guardianship Proceedings" – National College of Probate Judges (2017)
Education
- B.A., magna cum laude, University of Richmond, Richmond, Virginia (1996)
- M.B.A., University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio (1998)
- M.A., University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio (1998)
- J.D., Order of the Coif, William & Mary School of Law, Williamsburg, Virginia (2002)
- Law Clerk, Hon. Henry Coke Morgan, Jr., U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Virginia
- Law Clerk, Hon. Fortunato P. Benavides, U.S. Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit, Austin, Texas
Community & Bar Involvement
- Dallas Bar Association – Probate, Trust & Estates Section Member
- State Bar of Texas
- The William 'Mac' Taylor Inn of Court, Barrister
- Attorneys Serving the Community
- Assistant Chancellor, Episcopal Diocese of Dallas
- Admitted to practice: California (2003) and Texas (2004)
