René C. Flores was born in 1964 in Corpus Christi, Texas, and, but for his time away for school and for his career, has been a lifelong resident of that beautiful city. His parents, Armando R. Flores and Hortensia C. Flores, were born and reared in Montemoreles, Nuevo Leon, Mexico, and emigrated to the United States in the 1950s, and have dual Mexican and United States citizenship. René has four brothers, Armando, Jr., Cesar, and Alan. Armando, Jr., lives in Round Rock, Texas with is wife, Mary, and children, and Cesar and Alan live in Corpus Christi with their wives Toni and Angie, respectively, and children.
René 's father was a master bricklayer by trade. René 's father worked for Reynolds Aluminum in Ingleside, Texas for 20 years before his retirement. René 's mother was a hardworking homemaker and 
paraprofessional teacher. René 's parents celebrated their 50th Wedding Anniversary on July 1st, 2006. René credits his parents with setting an example of marriage commitment, for pushing him to excel in school, teaching him to work hard, to embrace his Mexican heritage, and to never forget or deny his humble roots.
René 's first language was, and he remains very fluent in, Spanish. Most of his relatives remain in Mexico, where he has traveled extensively. René grew up in a working-class barrio known as Molina (of Selena fame), and attended K thru 12 at the West Oso Independent School district.
René is a 1987 graduate of Princeton University with a Bachelor of Arts Degree, focusing his studies on History and Latin American Studies. René worked as a research aide in the Texas Legislature, with U.S. Congressman Solomon P. Ortiz and with U.S. Senator Lloyd Bentsen before going on to law school and earning his Doctor of Law degree from the University of California at Berkeley in 1992, where he was Editor-in-Chief of La Raza Law Journal. That same year, René received his law license from the 
Supreme Court of Texas and began to practice at Gardere & Wynne in Dallas, Texas, focusing researching and writing about various legal issues, and learning the art of court advocacy.
In 1994, René worked for Mathews & Branscomb in Corpus Christi in the employment litigation department.
In 1995, René opened his own practice, where he was successfully involved in some high-profile cases, such as defending the mayor of Robstown from a criminal charge, enjoining his alma mata, West Oso, from closing the Hall of Fame, and from paying the resigning Superintendent a $500,000 severance. René practiced in criminal, employment, personal injury, family, probate, and general civil litigation law. René was inducted to the West Oso Hall of Fame in 1995.
In May 2002, René accepted a position as Chief of Litigation of Nueces County, where he supervised the Child Protective Services cases and defended the county against employment and civil rights lawsuits. In June 2004, René accepted a position as an Assistant Federal Public Defender, where he represented hundreds of defendants, who could not afford a lawyer, against criminal prosecutions brought 
by the federal government. René resigned from that position and reopened his private practice in June 2006. René is licensed in federal trial and appellate courts and has tried both civil and criminal cases to juries in state and federal courts, as well as argued before the Texas Thirteenth Court of Appeals.
René attends Bay Area Fellowship, a nondenominational church, and has served at Solid Rock Worship Center as an usher and an actor in the Easter passion play, The Whip, the Hammer and the Cross. René attended the Walk to Emmaus in 2004, and has also served as President of the Neighborhood Centers of Corpus Christi, Chairman of the West Oso School Improvement Committee, which proposed the new high school and led passage of the historic bond package in an election to build a new school. René has also been involved in various political campaigns, mostly supporting Democratic candidates. In 2008, René headed the Barack Obama Campaign for the Corpus Christi and Laredo, Texas areas.
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