Best Lawyers in Alabama, United States for Trusts and Estates
Select a city from the list below to find the best legal talent for your needs.
Cities
Debby graduated from Auburn University with high honors in 1988. She received her J.D. and an LL.M. in taxation, with high honors, from the University of Alabama. She was an editor of the Alabama Law Review, a member of the Jessup International Moot Court Team, a member of the Moot Court Board, and a finalist in the John A. Campbell Moot Court Competition. Debby has practiced with the law firm of Capell & Howard, P.C., in Montgomery since her admittance to the Bar in 1991. She specializes...
Tanya Shunnara is a shareholder in Dentons Sirote’s Birmingham, Alabama office. She is a member of the Trusts, Estates and Wealth Preservation practice group and is one of the youngest shareholders to be named to Dentons Sirote’s board of directors. Tanya focuses her practice on counseling families, family offices, business owners, executives and individuals on all aspects of estate and gift planning, estate and trust administration, wealth transfer issues, charitable planned givi...
Melinda Mathews is a shareholder in Dentons Sirote’s Birmingham, Alabama office. She serves as the co-chair of the Trusts, Estates and Wealth Preservation practice group. Melinda helps clients navigate complex trust and estate matters to manage and preserve their wealth. She focuses on business and succession planning, estate planning for individuals and families, and prenuptial and postnuptial agreements, as well as probates and trusts. Melinda also taught estate planning as an adjunct...
A senior tax and corporate lawyer, Robert’s trusts and estates practice includes estate and gift planning and taxation, charitable planning and estate and trust administration. His corporate practice includes general corporate representation, entity selection and formation issues, corporate business and tax planning, and corporate transactions.
Mr. Mayhew serves clients with his expertise in a variety of matters including: mergers and acquisitions, business reorganizations, business structure and capitalization, business and commercial transactions, financial services, commercial lending, real estate law, estate administration, estate and trust planning, corporate and partnership taxation, and aviation law.
Howard Neiswender is a shareholder in the Firm's Birmingham, Alabama office, where he leads the Dentons Sirote Family Business team. Howard is also a member of the Trusts, Estates and Wealth Preservation practice group. He provides comprehensive wealth planning for individuals and business owners. His representative work includes the use of innovation tax-planning strategies and working with business owners to coordinate their business and personal planning. In addition, Howard works in all a...
April D. Wise is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Elder Law and Trusts and Estates. April D., who practices law in Montgomery, Alabama, has been recognized since 2020. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which April D. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Shirley Justice is a shareholder in Dentons Sirote’s Mobile, Alabama office. She is a member of the Trusts, Estates and Wealth Preservation practice. Shirley counsels professionals, business owners and their businesses in contracts, entity structuring, individual, corporate, transactional and personal tax planning and also provides estate planning and wealth preservation advise and services for them and others, to minimize taxes and family and business disputes. She represents clients i...
Brian Williams’ practice includes estate planning, estate and trust litigation, estate and trust administration, federal and state tax, and corporate and business transactions and issues. He practiced for 6 years as an in house counsel for a publicly traded corporation before entering private practice with his present firm in 1986. Brian graduated cum laude from the University of Alabama in 1976, B.S. degree/accounting major. He obtained his J.D. degree in 1979 from Cumberland School of...
Peter Wright is a shareholder in Dentons Sirote’s Birmingham, Alabama office, where he is a member of the Trusts, Estates and Wealth Preservation practice group. Peter's practice focuses on trust and estate litigation matters, with particular emphasis on will contests, estate and trust administration matters, joint account or joint ownership of property disputes, power of attorney litigation, and general representation of fiduciaries (including trust institutions or corporate trustees) ...
J. Gregory Carwie is a shareholder in Dentons Sirote’s Mobile, Alabama office, where he is a member of the Trusts, Estates & Wealth Preservation practice group. Greg represents numerous individuals in handling probate estate administrations. His practice focuses on estate administration, probate, corporate and real estate matters for various clients. Greg is a frequent speaker at probate seminars, sharing and passing on his experiential knowledge to colleagues and young lawyers. As ...
Brad is a member of the Firm’s Trusts and Estates Practice Group. Brad’s practice primarily involves estate and trust planning and administration, with an emphasis on the related income, estate, gift and generation-skipping transfer tax issues. In addition, Brad is actively engaged in representing individual and corporate fiduciaries (executors and trustees) in administrating and litigating estate and trust matters. Brad has more than 15 years experience in advising clients in an ...
Nancy Ball practices in the areas of trusts and estates, including estate planning and estate administration, taxation, real estate and corporate law. Nancy is a member of the Estate Planning Council of Birmingham, Inc. and the Alabama Planned Giving Council, and serves as the secretary of the Probate Section of the Birmingham Bar Association. She is also a Fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC). Nancy is the author of Navigating Estate Planning Before, During and ...
Ralph Yeilding is Chair of the firm's Trusts and Estates Practice Group. His primary areas of practice include estate and gift tax planning, estate and trust administration, IRS estate and gift tax audits and litigation, and state court probate and trust litigation. Ralph regularly advises individuals and fiduciaries on a broad range of estate, trust and probate matters, including rendering advice concerning estate and gift tax planning, and drafting wills, trusts, family LLC's, limited partn...
The focus of Mr. Wynn’s practice is business transactions and estate and business planning for individual and corporate clients. As part of his corporate practice, Mr. Wynn advises clients regarding mergers and acquisitions, sale contracts, employment agreements, covenants not to compete, nondisclosure covenants, loan agreements, security agreements, leases, securities registration statements, private placement memorandums, stock-option plans, and shareholder agreements. Mr. Wynn also a...
Douglas L. McWhorter was graduated with a B.A. from Samford University in 1967. He also holds an MBA from Samford University from 1978. In addition, he was graduated from law school at Cumberland School of Law, Samford University, in 1973. He also holds an LL.M. degree from the University of Mississippi from 1976. He is a veteran of the U.S. Army. He has been a member of the Alabama Bar Association since 1973. He practices with the firm of Dominick, Feld, Hyde P.C. in Birmingham, Alabama, in ...
Our Methodology
Recognition by Best Lawyers is based entirely on peer review. Our methodology is designed to capture, as accurately as possible, the consensus opinion of leading lawyers about the professional abilities of their colleagues within the same geographical area and legal practice area.
The Process
Best Lawyers employs a sophisticated, conscientious, rational, and transparent survey process designed to elicit meaningful and substantive evaluations of the quality of legal services. Our belief has always been that the quality of a peer review survey is directly related to the quality of the voters.