It is with profound sadness that the law school learned of the passing of Elaine A. Carlson ’79, professor of law emeritus and alumna, South Texas College of Law Houston, on July 11, 2026. Her obituary is reproduced below. For those who may be interested, the end of the obituary contains a link to the Professor Elaine A. Carlson Scholarship for Texas Judicial Clerkships. Our thoughts and prayers are with the Carlson family at this very difficult time.
Elaine Allison Grafton Carlson was born April 26, 1954, in St. Charles, Missouri, to Thomas and Elaine Grafton. She spent most of her childhood in Mt. Prospect, Illinois, and in 1973 at age 19, received her Bachelor of Science degree cum laude in political science from Southern Illinois University.
In 1974, she married her college sweetheart, Robert (“Bob”) Joseph Carlson. In 1975, at age 21 she earned a master’s degree in economics from McMaster’s University in Ontario, Canada. The newlyweds then moved to Texas, residing in Galveston, Clear Lake, and the Spring area before moving to The Woodlands. In 1979, she achieved her lifelong dream, and graduated summa cum laude from South Texas College of Law Houston. In the 1970s, Elaine and Bob both obtained their pilot licenses and, on a nice day, you could find them flying out of Scholes Field in Galveston followed by enjoying fresh seafood at Gaido’s.
Professor Elaine Carlson was a highly recognized and respected expert in Texas Civil Procedure and civil litigation. Over her 42-year career at STCL Houston, she established herself as an authority in civil trial and appellate practice. After receiving her law degree, she was honored to become the briefing attorney for Justice James Wallace at the First Court of Appeals in Houston and then joined the Corporate Litigation Department at Gulf Oil, where she made lifelong friendships.
Professor Carlson joined the STCL Houston faculty full-time in 1982 and was among the institution’s first three women to earn tenure. She went on to receive the prestigious Stanley J. Krist Distinguished Professor of Texas Law title. In 1987, she served as a Visiting Professor of Law at the University of Texas at Austin. In 2008, Professor Carlson received the Texas Lawyer Extraordinary Women in Texas Law Award, was honored as Alumni of the Year from STCL Houston, and was the recipient of the Texas Bar Association Foundation’s Outstanding Law Review Award, as well as receiving the Vinson and Elkins Faculty Excellence Award.
She co-authored the authoritative six-volume McDonald and Carlson, Texas Civil Practice, the definitive treatise used frequently by practicing attorneys and Judges to interpret the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure. Professor Carlson also authored Texas Civil Procedure: Pretrial Litigation Law casebook, as well as Texas Civil Procedure: Trial and Appellate Practice casebook. In her introduction as the Keynote Speaker delivering the Commencement Address for STCL Houston’s Class of 2024, it was noted by the dean that she literally wrote the book on Texas Civil Procedure!
Over her legal career, Professor Carlson published more than 50 law review articles, legal treatises, and texts, as well as presenting at more than 75 CLE conferences, and presented 10 papers to Legislative Commissions, Appellate Courts and the Texas Judiciary. Professor Carlson’s community and Bar Service was extraordinary, spanning five decades highlighted by her appointment to the Texas Supreme Court Advisory Committee, serving from 1986 to her passing in 2026. In 2003, she was elected to membership of the American Law Institute.
Above all else, she loved teaching and helping students reach their full potential. Her family can attest that on almost every family vacation or outing, a former student spotted her, and all were eager to say hello! And whether it was spending time with her daughter as a room parent, seeing musicals together, serving the community together in National Charity League or with her sisters-in-service at Cypress-Woodlands Junior Forum, DAR, HBAA, or the Symphony Guild, Elaine’s motto that her parents instilled in her was “Always leave this world better than you found it.” And she did!
Professor Emeritus Carlson retired in 2024 and loved seeing the world with her husband and best friends on Crystal Cruises. She is survived by her loving husband of 52 years, Bob, her beloved daughter, attorney Courtney Taylor Carlson Siegmund and spouse Dr. Brandon Siegmund, as well as her precious grandson Anderson Robert Siegmund, sister Professor Carolyn Grafton Davis and husband Professor Byron Preston Davis, sister Merry Jo Grafton Gonzalez and spouse Fernando Gonzalez, brother Edwin Grafton, eight nieces and nephews, and 12 great nieces and nephews. Elaine, known as Gram-E, loved to bake and cook with Anderson. Their crowning achievement was a Beef Wellington, made to perfection!
Elaine could literally “hold court” anywhere at any time with her great wit and personality. She treasured celebrating life to the fullest and is remembered for loving her big extended family, the law, teaching, the U.S. Constitution, comedy shows, musicals, her time at their Michigan lake house with dear friends, playing any table games, matchmaking, music, dancing, flowers, and anything French from fine wines to the Fine Arts. She was truly a woman of substance and there is absolutely no doubt that she left the legal field better than she found it!
Elaine passed away Saturday, July 11, 2026, after a brief illness. A private service will be held at a later date. In accordance with Professor Carlson’s wishes, there will be no public service. In lieu of flowers, it is requested that contributions be made to the Professor Elaine A. Carlson Scholarship for Texas Judicial Clerkships, established for the benefit of South Texas College of Law Houston students. A donation can be made via this link: https://my.stcl.edu/elainecarlson
https://my.stcl.edu/elainecarlson
