Alumni Spotlight: Carlos Benavides

Class of 2009

Degree:

Philosophy and English

Current Role:

Attorney

Carlos Y. Benavides IV is a Texas attorney working in the city of Austin at Ikard Law PC, where he represents clients in matters related to fiduciary law. Carlos dual majored in Philosophy and English at Marymount University and graduated with a Bachelor of English in 2009. In 2013, Carlos earned his Juris Doctor from St. Mary’s University School of Law and was later admitted to practice law by the State Bar of Texas. While attending Marymount, Carlos was elected President of Sigma Delta Pi and he was made Editor of Marymount University’s Literary Arts Magazine, Blueink. 

In law school, Carlos participated in and was a member of the Hispanic American Lawyer’s Association, Health Law Society and American Constitutional Law Society. Carlos began his legal career in Hidalgo County, Texas as a state prosecutor. During his time as a prosecutor, Carlos helped to establish and then serve as prosecutor for the first Domestic Violence Specialty Court in South Texas to rehabilitate domestic violence offenders, reduce potential recidivism and improve upon victim safety. Carlos served on the Texas Council on Family Violence Prosecutor’s Leadership Core to provide advice on legislative amendments and bills relating to domestic violence submitted for consideration in the Texas Senate, formulating prosecutorial continuing legal education modules to assist prosecutors addressing domestic violence crimes and to help assist with the awareness campaign of domestic violence issues across Texas. Subsequently, Carlos went on to help establish and serve as the first labor trafficking specialty state prosecutor in the State of Texas which originated as a joint project between the Buffett-McCain Institute Initiative to Combat Modern Slavery and the Hidalgo County District Attorney’s Office. In 2019, Texas Governor Greg Abbott appointed Carlos to serve a six-year term on the Specialty Courts Advisory Council as a gubernatorial appointee. As a member of the advisory council, Carlos evaluates applications from specialty courts across the state for grant funding from the Governor’s Office and makes recommendations to the office’s criminal justice division regarding best practices for these courts. In addition, Carlos is presently a member of the Texas Bar College, the American Bar Association, the Travis County Young Lawyer’s Association, the Hidalgo County Young Lawyer’s Association, the Austin Bar Association and the Real Estate, Probate and Trust Section of the State Bar of Texas. 

What advice do you have for current students? 

Many people struggle with imposter syndrome, in which an individual doubts their skills, talents or accomplishment and has an internalized fear of being exposed as a fraud. Do not allow yourself to be paralyzed by indecision if you find yourself feeling like an imposter. I am of the firm belief that those suffering from this syndrome are usually the best practitioners in their respective disciplines for the simple reason that that fear of inadequacy spurs them on to keep improving and reaching higher and higher than others, to ensure that not only do they not fail but rather succeed beyond expectations. In that vein, I recommend honing critical thinking skills above all else. Lastly, and I cannot stress this enough: start reading all sorts of books and then keeping reading for the rest of your life.