Charlotte Hopkins is a Texas family law attorney best known to the public as the third wife of former NFL quarterback Terry Bradshaw. But her own career, built over nearly four decades, is the bigger part of her story. Today, she practices law under the name Charla Bradshaw, and her professional record includes national recognition in family law. This article looks closely at her education, her legal career, her marriages, and the confusion around her name that many other articles get wrong.
Who Is Charlotte Hopkins?
Charlotte Hopkins was born in Denton, Texas, and has spent most of her adult life in the same area. She trained as a lawyer, focused her practice on family law, and later became a shareholder at a respected Texas law firm. Her marriage to Terry Bradshaw in the 1980s brought her public attention, but her legal career is the reason her name still appears in professional directories and legal publications today.
Quick Facts About Charlotte Hopkins
| Category | Details |
|---|---|
| Full Name | Charla Hopkins Bradshaw (professionally known as Charla Bradshaw) |
| Also Known As | Charlotte Hopkins, Charla Hopkins |
| Born | April 17, 1962, in Texas, USA |
| Age (2026) | 64 |
| Profession | Family law attorney, author |
| Known For | Family law career; former wife of Terry Bradshaw |
| Education | Denton High School; Texas Woman’s University (B.S.); Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law (J.D.) |
| Law Firm | KoonsFuller, P.C. (Denton, Texas) |
| Spouse | Rick Hagen (married 2012); previously married to Terry Bradshaw (divorced 1999) |
| Children | Two daughters with Terry Bradshaw: Rachel and Erin Bradshaw |
| Net Worth | Estimated at around $2 million as of 2026 (unconfirmed) |
| Nationality | American |
Early Life and Education
Charlotte Hopkins grew up in Denton, Texas. Several sources say her father, Charles Hopkins, served on the Denton City Council, though this detail is not confirmed by an official record, so it should be treated carefully. She graduated from Denton High School in 1980.
She then went on to Texas Woman’s University, where her law firm’s biography credits her with a summa cum laude degree. From there, she attended Southern Methodist University’s Dedman School of Law, earning her law degree and beginning her legal career soon after. Some older articles claim she finished law school in the “late 1980s,” but the timeline listed on her current professional profile points to the early 1990s. Since her firm’s own records are the more reliable source here, that timeline is the one this article follows.
Building a Career in Family Law
After law school, Charlotte Hopkins joined KoonsFuller, P.C., a Texas firm that focuses entirely on family law. Over time, she became a shareholder and one of the firm’s most recognized attorneys. Her work covers divorce, child custody, property division, paternity cases, and prenuptial agreements.
Her professional record shows a steady pattern of recognition. She earned board certification in family law from the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, a credential that only a small share of Texas attorneys hold. She has also appeared on the Texas Super Lawyers list for many years running and has been listed among The Best Lawyers in America since 2011.
Beyond casework, she has taken on leadership roles in the legal community. She has served as a chair of the Texas Academy of Family Law Specialists and as chair of the State Bar of Texas District 14 Grievance Committee. She has also worked with the Texas Family Law Council Legislative Committee, which deals with proposed changes to family law in the state.
She is a certified mediator and a member of the Collaborative Law Institute of Texas, which means she also helps couples settle disputes without going through a courtroom trial. Media outlets have called on her for comment on family law topics, and she has appeared on local television and radio to discuss issues like international custody disputes and co-parenting arrangements. She has also co-authored legal guides for the general public, including a book on protecting assets during a Texas divorce.
Marriage to Terry Bradshaw
Charlotte Hopkins became Terry Bradshaw’s third wife after the two met and dated for several years. Reports differ slightly on the exact wedding date, with some placing it in 1982 and others in 1983, so the precise year is not fully confirmed. What is well documented is that the marriage lasted close to two decades and produced two daughters, Rachel Bradshaw, born in 1987, and Erin Bradshaw, born in 1992.
The couple divorced in 1999. Neither side has spoken in detail publicly about the reasons behind the split. After the divorce, Charlotte largely stepped back from the spotlight and focused on her law practice, while Terry Bradshaw went on to build a long career as a television sports commentator.
Life After the Divorce: Marriage to Rick Hagen
Charlotte Hopkins remarried in 2012. Her husband, Rick Hagen, is a criminal defense attorney who leads his own firm in Denton, Texas. The couple has kept their life together mostly private, and there is little public detail about their relationship beyond the fact that they have now been married for over a decade.
She isn’t the only ex-wife of a major American sports figure to build a full, independent life well beyond a famous marriage. Latane Brown, the first wife of NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt Sr., followed a similar path, raising her family and shaping her own story long after her marriage ended.
Charlotte Hopkins or Charla Bradshaw? Clearing Up the Name Confusion
This is one point where a lot of existing articles get things wrong. Many older biography posts claim that Charlotte removed the Bradshaw name after her divorce. But her current law firm profile, her listing with the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, and her professional social media accounts all identify her as Charla Bradshaw, not Charlotte Hopkins.
In other words, she appears to have kept a version of the Bradshaw name for her professional identity, even though the marriage ended more than two decades ago. Older articles and gossip sites tend to use “Charlotte Hopkins,” which may be a birth or maiden-adjacent name, while her active legal career runs under “Charla Bradshaw.” This mismatch explains why searches for either name can turn up overlapping but slightly different results, and why some details online should be read with caution.
Awards and Recognition
Over her career, Charlotte Hopkins has picked up a long list of professional honors. These include repeated placement on the Texas Super Lawyers list going back to 2003, inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America since 2011, and a “Lawyer of the Year” recognition in family law arbitration for the Dallas-Fort Worth area. She has also received the AV Preeminent rating from Martindale-Hubbell, which is considered one of the highest peer-review ratings a lawyer can earn. Locally, Denton County named her Best Divorce Attorney in 2019.
Charlotte Hopkins’ Net Worth
Charlotte Hopkins has not shared her exact income or assets publicly. Several unofficial sources estimate her net worth at around $2 million as of 2026, based mainly on her decades-long legal career. This figure is not confirmed by any official source, so it should be treated as a rough estimate rather than a verified fact.
How This Was Researched
I researched this biography using Charlotte Hopkins’ current law firm profile, professional legal directories, peer-review sites like Super Lawyers and Martindale-Hubbell, and a wide range of existing news and biography coverage. Where sources disagreed, such as on her exact wedding date or law school graduation year, I noted the disagreement instead of picking one version to present as fact. One gap I tried to close is the confusion between “Charlotte Hopkins” and her actual professional name, “Charla Bradshaw,” which many existing articles do not explain clearly.
Accuracy Note
This biography is based on publicly available information, including professional legal profiles and verified news coverage. Some personal details, such as exact marriage dates and net worth, remain unconfirmed and are labeled as such. If you spot anything outdated or incorrect, please let us know so we can update it.
Written and researched by Hassan, contributor at ntx magazine.
Written by Hassan, founder and editor of NTX Magazine — an independent news and biography publication. Every article is researched and cross-checked against multiple public sources before publishing; see our Sourcing Standards page for details.
[…] Kisty has also maintained a much lower public profile than Williams. While his NBA career made him famous among basketball fans, she has generally stayed away from celebrity media and has appeared publicly mainly in connection with family and sports. Her story is somewhat similar to other people connected to major sports stars who also built identities of their own, such as Charlotte Hopkins, the attorney formerly married to NFL legend Terry Bradshaw. […]