1995 - present: Private practice of law in Traverse City, Michigan. Primarily areas of concentration: estate planning consultation and drafting of documents, administration of decedent's estates and trusts, interpretation and construction of wills and trusts, foundations, probate litigation matters, elder law, and real estate transactions.
1983-1995 Shareholder and Director of the former Deming, Hughey, Lewis, Allen and Chapman, P.C., Attorneys at Law, Kalamazoo, Michigan. Head of the Probate and Estate Planning Section of that firm, and as such responsible for guiding firm practice in these areas. Conceived and jointly implemented firm's Basic In-house Legal Literacy program. Primary areas of concentration: consultation with clients regarding estate planning, conceptualizing of plans and drafting of documents with particular emphasis on Federal Estate Tax, Gift Tax, and Generation Skipping Transfer Tax considerations together with allocation and distribution schemes of considerable complexity; planning and implementation of computerized template estate planning documents program; consultation with other firm attorneys with respect to drafting and tax matters; legal representation regarding fiduciary responsibilities and discretion in connection with the probating of decedents' estates and administration of trusts; legal representation in connection with guardianships and conservatorships, appellate representation of fiduciaries in connection with fee questions, consultation with and research and opinions for other firm attorneys with respect to probate procedures; creation and qualification of foundations under state and federal laws; representation and counsel to foundations on operational matters; representation in Probate Court involving contested claims, contests of the validity of wills and trusts, and construction and interpretation of trusts and wills, and cy-pres questions; drafting and negotiating of contracts for the sale, purchase, and mortgage of residential, industrial and commercial real estate and businesses, preparation of documents and closing statements regarding same, review of abstracts, surveys, title documents and title insurance commitments and policies, preparation of commercial leases; counsel to clients regarding environmental matters associated with acquisition and ownership of property, representation of clients at closings of transactions; Circuit Court and District Court litigation involving real estate matters including partition, quiet title and adverse possession actions; practice before the Michigan Workers Disability Compensation Bureau representing both employers and employees;
1964 -1983 Shareholder and Director/ Vice president of Adams, Burgie, Scott, Ritter & Brenton, P.C., Kalamazoo, Michigan (dissolved). Employed by this firm and its predecessor firms and a partner in predecessor firms.
Undergraduate School: University of Michigan, College of Literature, Science and the Arts, Bachelor of Arts, 1961.
Law School: University of Michigan, Juris Doctor, 1963.
Kalamazoo County Bar Association, Member 1964 - 1995, Chairman Probate Practice Committee, 1983-1987, Co-chairman, 1988-1989.
Michigan State Bar Association Member, 1964- Present. Member of Probate and Estate Planning and Real Property Law Sections.
Colorado Bar Association, Member 1993 - Present.
American Bar Association Member, 1969 - Present. Member of Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section and Tax Section.
American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, Fellow 1992 - Present.
National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys, Member 1993 - Present.
Grand Traverse, Leelanau, Antrim County Bar Association, Member 1995 - Present. Member of Continuing Legal Education and Library Committees
Elected to Council of Probate and Estate Planning Section of State Bar of Michigan 1990, reelected 1991 & 1994. Elected as Treasurer, Secretary, Vice Chairperson and Chairperson Elect. Chairperson (2001- 2002). Presently Ex Officio Member of Council.
Member of Committee on Special Projects of the Probate and Estate Planning Section of the Michigan State Bar Association, active in committee work involving review and recommendations regarding proposed legislation and rules, including the proposed Estate Settlement Act (the Michigan revision of the Uniform Probate Code). Chairperson of the same from 1994 to 1996.
Speaker, 2000 on subject of Estate Planning for the Serial Marrier.
Speaker, 1995 Michigan State Bar Association Probate and Estate Planning Section/ Institute of Continuing Legal Education Annual Probate Seminar. Subject: " Protecting the Fiduciary Through Accountings, What to Tell and How to Say It."
Planner, moderator and speaker, Institute of Continuing Legal Education annual Seminars on "Drafting Estate Planning Documents" 1991 through 2002.
Speaker, Institute of Continuing Legal Education program on Real Property Litigation. Subject: "Boundary Line Disputes", March 1995.
Speaker, 1992 Michigan State Bar Association Probate and Estate Planning Section/ Institute of Continuing Legal Education Annual Probate Seminar. Subject: "Estate Planning for the Non-citizen Surviving Spouse".
Speaker, Institute of Continuing Legal Education program on Drafting Real Estate Documents. Subject: "Understanding Real Estate Descriptions", September 1992.
Speaker, Institute of Continuing Legal Education program on Estate Planning for Estates of Less Than $600,000, February 1990.
Speaker 1989 Michigan State Bar Association Probate and Estate Planning Section/
Institute of Continuing Legal Education Annual Probate Seminar. Subject: "Probate
Litigation Involving Contesting the Validity of Wills, Trusts and Durable Powers of
Attorney".
"Will Contests, Litigating the Failure of Great Expectations," Probate and Estate Planning Journal, State Bar of Michigan, Fall 1989.
"Probate Litigation Involving The Validity of Trusts and Durable Powers of Attorney," Probate and Estate Planning Journal, State Bar of Michigan, Winter 1990.
"Piercing the Trust Veil," Probate and Estate Planning Journal, State Bar of Michigan, Spring 1993.
Public Comment to the United States Department of Treasury regarding proposed Generation Skipping Transfer Tax Transitional Rules relating to limited powers of appointment held by persons becoming incompetent.
Traverse City Michigan Rotary Club, senior active.
National Ski Patrol System, National Appointment # 7094; senior Nordic patroller and past Patrol Director-West Michigan Nordic Ski Patrol, Grand Rapids, MI; West Michigan Regional Nordic and Legal Advisor; National Ski Mountaineering Instructor; alpine patroller and former shift hill leader, Crystal Mountain Ski Patrol, Thompsonville, MI; Winter Emergency Care certified instructor and tester.
Kalamazoo Valley Community College, Trustee. Elected 1985, reelected 1987 (resigned March 1990 to through-hike the Appalachian Trail).
Kalamazoo County Guardianship Task force, an interdisciplinary professional group working towards adoption by the community of a single entry approach to coordinating the needs of persons requiring the services of another as guardian, conservator or agent. 1990 to 1995.
© John A. Scott, P.C.