James D. "Jim" Funnell , Jr.

JAMES D. FUNNELL, JR. is a principal of Brody Wilkinson and a member of the firm’s Trusts & Estates Group.  His practice is limited to trusts and estates planning, special needs planning for family members with disabilities, and trusts and estates administration.  Mr. Funnell is a Martindale-Hubbell AV-rated attorney. Mr. Funnell is admitted to practice in Connecticut and has practiced in Fairfield County for over thirty years.  He is also admitted to practice in Texas.  Prior to joining the firm, he was a partner at the former law firm of Hermenze & Marcantonio LLC in Westport, Connecticut. 

Mr. Funnell is a fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel.  He is also a member of the Executive Committee of the Connecticut Bar Association’s Estates and Probate Section, and for over twenty years served as the editor in chief of the Estates and Probate Section Notes & Commentary, a continuing legal education publication for Connecticut attorneys.  

Mr. Funnell has been selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America© in the field of trusts and estates since 2018.  He has also been recognized as a “Connecticut Super Lawyer” in the areas of estate planning and probate tax since 2006.   Mr. Funnell has written widely on special needs trust planning, including the “Special Needs Trusts” chapter in Irrevocable Trusts 4th  published by Thompson Reuters.  He has also spoken on special needs planning to audiences that include Connecticut Probate Court judges and clerks, Connecticut Bar Association, Fairfield County Bar Association, National Alliance for the Mentally Ill, PLAN of CT, Giant Steps, Knights of Columbus, and the Fairfield School District.  

Mr. Funnell received his B.S. from Oklahoma State University in 1983; J.D. from Oklahoma City University School of Law in 1986; and LL.M. in Business and Taxation from McGeorge School of Law, Sacramento, California, in 1987. Mr. Funnell serves on the Board of Directors of PLAN of Connecticut, a charitable organization that acts as trustee of special needs trusts for individuals with disabilities.