History

In 2014, local trans advocate and activist, Lou Weaver (he/him) brought together 4 attorney friends to find a way to help other trans Texans obtain a legal transition. Weaver had been able to get his own name and gender marker changed in 2011 through a bit of privilege. He knew how daunting it was and knew he had the network to create a pathway to an easier system. Attorneys Ashlee Dunham (she/her), Daney De La O (she/her), Fran Watson (she/her), and Kris Banks (he/him) joined Lou. In 2015, The Trans Legal Aid Clinic of Houston (TLACH) became a certified 501(c) 3 non-profit with Weaver being the first president. It has always been important to be a trans-led organization. As TLACH started helping Houston trans people it was obvious that Harris County’s process was slow and complicated. The attorneys were driving to Austin to file in Travis County. Around the same time, an amazing advocate in Austin, Claire Bow (she/her) was using her time and expertise to educate the judges in Travis County. Our participants are benefitting from Claire’s hard work to this day.

In 2019, Pete Makopoulos-Senftleber (he/him) graduated law school, passed the bar exam, and became the next president. As a trans man and an attorney, Pete was the best suited to lead the clinic forward. The clinic was starting to hit its stride. The processes were becoming streamlined, and a regular schedule was in place. Then, COVID hit. While COVID created challenges it also forced TLACH to be creative and find new ways to engage with the community. Enter virtual clinics! During the summer of 2020, the clinics went completely virtual every other month. The org was able to help more people and people outside of the greater Houston area. TLACH was reaching people as far away as The Valley, El Paso, and Lubbock. In 2021 the organization officially changed the name to the Trans Legal Clinic of Texas (TLACT) to fully reflect the work and distance covered. Also, in 2021 the in-person clinics were started back up and clinics started happening every month to keep up with the volume of trans and non-binary Texans wanting a legal transition.