Dequeshia Prude-Wheeler
Founder & Managing Attorney, Prude Legacy Law Group PLLC
Dequeshia Prude-Wheeler is the founder and owner of Prude Legacy Law Group PLLC, a Black woman-owned law firm based in Bentonville, Arkansas, serving clients across the state in estate planning, probate, and personal injury law.
She started this firm in July 2020 for a specific reason: too many families — especially families like her own — were making the biggest legal decisions of their lives without anyone in the room who understood where they were coming from. She built a practice where that isn’t the case.
Proudly
featured on
Dequeshia's attorney profile at a glance
Credentials, practice areas, and how to reach Dequeshia Prude-Wheeler in Bentonville, Arkansas.
Firm
Prude Legacy Law Group PLLC
Serving
Benton County, Washington County, and Arkansas clients statewide
Founded
July 2020
Location
Bentonville, Arkansas
Practice Areas
Estate planning, probate, personal injury, auto accident and business law
Bar Admission
Arkansas 2017 & Texas 2024
Law School
University of Arkansas School of Law, J.D., 2017
Undergraduate
University of Arkansas at Little Rock, B.A. Philosophy, 2013
Teaching
Adjunct professor, University of Arkansas School of Law
Ownership
Black-owned, woman-owned law firm
Not your traditional law firm
Not your traditional law firm
Not your traditional law firm
Not your traditional law firm
Not your traditional law firm
Dequeshia's Story
Why she started her own firm
In May 2020, Dequeshia was furloughed from her job as in-house counsel at Mercy Hospital. The pandemic had stopped everything, and for the first time in years she had room to ask a question she’d been too busy to sit with: why did I become a lawyer in the first place?
The answer took her back to Blytheville.
She grew up watching the justice system work on her family… watching what happens when people face a system that doesn’t explain itself, represented by people who don’t look like them and don’t know their neighborhood. She went to law school planning to practice criminal defense because of it.
Law school changed the shape of that goal, but not the point of it.
During a bankruptcy clinic as a student attorney, she helped a client who was indigent and disabled walk away from a crushing student loan debt. Watching that client’s relief was the moment the work clicked. She wanted to give people that feeling again.
By July 2020 she had opened Prude Legacy Law Group.
Being a Black woman-owned law firm
Prude Legacy Law Group is the only Black-owned and woman-owned law firm in NWA.
When she opened, her goal was to create a place where people of color could get high-quality legal help from someone who didn’t need the context explained first… where a family could talk about the house their grandmother left behind, or the business they’re building without a safety net, and be understood the first time.
That’s who the firm was built for, but it isn’t who the firm is limited to. Dequeshia represents families and business owners across Arkansas from every background.
Recognition, honors & speaking
Recognized across Arkansas for building a firm and for how she gives.
Forty Under 40
Class of 2023
Dequeshia Prude-Wheeler was featured in Talk Business & Politics Statewide recognition of Arkansas’s most accomplished professionals under 40.
Fast 15
Class of 2021
Dequeshia Prude-Wheeler was featured in Talk Business & Politics Honoring 15 rising young leaders in Northwest Arkansas.
Arkansas Money & Politics
2022
Dequeshia Prude-Wheeler was featured in Arkansas Money & Politics Featured as one of five Arkansas women leaders whose careers were shaped by their Girl Scout experience.
Girl Scouts
Arkansas 2022
Dequeshia Prude-Wheeler was spotlighted by her home council as an example of where Girl Scouting can lead.
NWA Workplaces
Arkansas 2022
Dequeshia Prude-Wheeler was invited to lead a session in the coworking hub’s business education series for local entrepreneurs and owners.
University of Arkansas School of Law
Term through 2027
Elected to lead the board advising the law school’s dean on legal practice, curriculum, and the profession’s direction.
BEYOND THE PRACTICE
Teaching, speaking & service
Dequeshia chairs the University of Arkansas School of Law’s Dean’s Executive Advisory Board.
The group that advises the dean on curriculum, practice trends, and hiring needs. She plans to bring law clerks into the firm so students get real practical experience before they graduate.
She speaks regularly at churches, community organizations, and business groups on estate planning including: a session on estate planning for business owners hosted by NWA Workplaces in Bentonville.
Most people have never had anyone explain what a will actually does, and she’d rather they hear it in a church fellowship hall than in a probate courtroom.
Her service work includes:
- The Arkansas Access to Justice Commission
- The Bail Project
- Social justice committee, Pi Alpha Omega chapter, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.
- Volunteer judge and coach for University of Arkansas School of Law competitions
- Member, St. James Missionary Baptist Church
She has also led her sorority’s alumnae chapter on a service trip to Africa
Frequently asked questions
We’re here to guide you through probate in the most efficient way possible.
Is Prude Legacy Law Group a Black-owned law firm?
Yes. Prude Legacy Law Group is a Black-owned law firm founded and owned by attorney Dequeshia Prude-Wheeler in Bentonville, Arkansas. She founded the firm in 2020 in part to create a place where people of color could access high-quality legal representation from someone who understood their circumstances.
Is Prude Legacy Law Group woman-owned?
Yes. The firm is 100% owned by Dequeshia Prude-Wheeler, making it both the only woman-owned and Black-owned law firm in Northwest Arkansas.
Where is Dequeshia Prude-Wheeler located?
Dequeshia Prude-Wheeler practices from Bentonville, Arkansas, in Benton County. The firm serves clients throughout Northwest Arkansas and across the state.
Can she work with clients outside Bentonville?
Yes. Prude Legacy Law Group was built as a virtual-first firm, which lets Dequeshia serve clients anywhere in Arkansas without requiring travel. Consultations can be held by video or phone, and documents can be handled remotely where the law allows.
What areas of law does Dequeshia Prude-Wheeler practice?
She practices estate planning, probate, business law, personal injury, and auto accidents.
Where did Dequeshia Prude-Wheeler go to law school?
She earned her J.D. from the University of Arkansas School of Law in Fayetteville in 2017, after completing a B.A. in philosophy at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock in 2013. She now teaches at the law school as an adjunct professor.
Is Dequeshia Prude-Wheeler a licensed attorney in Arkansas?
Yes. Dequeshia Prude-Wheeler has been licensed to practice law in Arkansas since 2017.
Is the firm accepting new clients?
Yes. Consultations can be scheduled online or by phone at 479-431-3421.
Have more questions? Book your consultation here.
Ready to meet with Dequeshia?
She’ll walk you through every step of the process with an attorney you can count on (and call).