About Trent
Trent Kelly began his professional path outside the courtroom. After earning a B.A. from Hendrix College, he worked in asset management as a portfolio manager at Regions Morgan Keegan. That early career in finance preceded a shift to law. He earned a J.D. from the University of Arkansas – Fayetteville and moved into litigation work soon after.
Kelly’s legal career shows steady movement through private practice. He joined a Florida civil litigation office as an associate in 2007. Two years later he was practicing in Austin as an associate in civil litigation. In 2012 he became a partner at Terry & Kelly, PLLC. The sequence reflects a transition from associate roles into firm leadership over a five-year span.
He is admitted to practice in Arkansas, Florida and Texas, and he holds active memberships in those bars. He also belongs to the Texas Trial Lawyers Association and the Capital Area Trial Lawyers Association. His professional affiliations extend to the Austin Bar Association and the American Bar Association. On the academic side, he remains connected to the University of Arkansas School of Law’s Board of Advocates and to Hendrix College through its alumni association.
Kelly’s practice draws on both his litigation background and his early financial work. His time in asset management gave him familiarity with financial documents and investment matters, and his subsequent years in civil litigation exposed him to contested disputes and courtroom procedure. Those combined experiences inform the cases he accepts and the positions he advances for clients.
Colleagues describe Kelly as methodical in preparing cases and pragmatic in advising clients. He has handled matters arising in multiple jurisdictions, which requires attention to differing procedural rules and strategic adjustments. His record in private practice includes handling discovery, motion practice and trials in state courts.
Beyond his law practice, Kelly has maintained ties to legal and civic groups in Arkansas and Texas. He served briefly on a leadership committee tied to Hendrix College earlier in his career and continues to participate in local bar activities in Austin.
He is a partner at Terry & Kelly, PLLC, where he continues to represent clients in civil litigation and related disputes.
