Position: Attorney

Kevin A. Moore

Kevin is a partner in the firm’s Employment and Litigation practice groups and chairs the Labor Law Practice Team, helping clients with legal challenges in employment and labor law and working as counsel for businesses in litigation. Kevin is involved with clients at many levels, working with them broadly as general counsel as well as in other areas such as commercial and construction litigation. Kevin and his partners quickly size up the case, identify the goal to be achieved, and provide the roadmap to reach that goal in the litigation process. Whether zealously advocating the client’s position in the courtroom or cogently analyzing the business impact of litigation in the boardroom, Kevin provides the unique blend of trial counsel and business leadership clients need to achieve their strategic goals.

Helping the business community stay up and running, Kevin frequently lectures to businesses and to attorneys on all areas of employment, labor, and commercial and construction litigation. He is an approved EEOC trainer, federal court arbitrator, and guest lecturer at local colleges and universities. Kevin also is a Berks County Court Arbitrator and Discovery Master.

He is a past chairman of the Berks County Bar Association Employment Law Section and is also a member of the Pennsylvania Bar Association Employment and Labor Committee. Kevin volunteers his time as an attorney by serving as the volunteer solicitor to many community and charitable organizations.

Kevin is an active volunteer with the Boy Scouts of America and the IM ABLE Foundation. He sits on numerous school and church related boards and committees. In his spare time, Kevin enjoys musical theatre and is a competitive age group triathlete and cyclist. He resides in Spring Township, Berks County with his family.

EXPERTISE & CERTIFICATIONS
  • Approved EEOC trainer
  • Arbitrator, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Pennsylvania
  • Arbitrator and Discovery Master, Berks County Court of Common Pleas
MEMBERSHIPS
  • Pennsylvania Bar Association Employment and Labor Committee
  • St. Thomas More Society
  • Society of Human Resource Professionals (SHRM) Chapter 179
PRESENTATIONS
  • “Human Resources Contractor Peer Group,” ABC Keystone (February 2024)
  • “Federal Labor Law Changes Regarding Union Organization,” Schuylkill Chamber of Commerce (December 2023)
  • “Labor Law Update,” Greater Reading Chamber Alliance (September 2023)
  • “Employee Handbooks: Avoiding Common Mistakes,” Greater Reading Chamber Alliance (June 2023)
  • “Proactive v. Reactive: How Getting to the Core of Employee Concerns Helps Employers Stay Ahead of Union Activity,” Barley Snyder’s 40th Annual Employment Law Seminar (May 2023)
  • “Workplace Investigations,” Berks County Bar Association (December 2022)
  • “Errors Employers Make When Drafting/Updating Handbooks,” Northeast PA Manufacturers & Employers Association’s HR Roundtable (December 2022)
  • “Labor Unions and Healthcare,” Appalachian Health Care Human Resources Society (November 2022)
  • “U.S. Employment Laws and Regulations,” SHRM Chapter 179 Certification (November 2022)
  • “14th Annual Labor and Employment Law Summit” – Keynote Presenter, Northeast PA Manufacturers & Employers Association (September 2022)
  • “NLRB/Union Activity: What’s New in 2022,” Barley Snyder’s 39th Annual Employment Law Seminar (May 2022)
  • “2022 Reading Business Seminar” – Panelist, Barley Snyder (April 2022)
  • “New Developments In Labor Law-2022,” World Sign Associates Division 9 Semi-Annual Meeting (April 2022)
  • “50th Anniversary Dinner,” Berks County Chapter of the Society For the Human Resource Management (April 2022)

Matthew M. Mayer

As an international/operational law attorney in the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps, then-Capt. Matthew Mayer served as the U.S. Army’s sole legal representative in Europe at numerous planning conferences for military exercises in Poland, Italy, Romania, Israel and the Ukraine. In that position, he negotiated and drafted multimillion-dollar contracts on the Army’s behalf with various other European nations. In a previous position as the command judge advocate for Headquarters, Fifth Signal Command in Mannheim, Germany, Mayer was the sole legal advisor to a two-star general for the entire European Signal Command. Along the way, he advised clients from the lowest-grade private to four-star generals.

Today, Matt is drawing from his JAG experience and applying it as an attorney in Barley Snyder’s Business Practice Group, where he focuses on general corporate and commercial transactions, along with work in the estate planning and business representation fields. He has been admitted to practice before the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, the Virginia Supreme Court, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, and the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri. His diverse military background has prepared him to serve a wide variety of clients, from small family businesses to multimillion-dollar corporations.

An All-Berks soccer player and alumnus of Fleetwood High School, Matt continued his soccer career at Moravian College where he was an all-conference captain of his soccer team and a cum laude graduate. Mayer received his Juris Doctor degree from the T.C. Williams School of Law at the University of Richmond. He currently resides in Sinking Spring and is an avid sports enthusiast and stays active in golf, soccer, running and weightlifting. 

MEMBERSHIPS
  • Berks County Bar Association
  • Pennsylvania Bar Association
  • American Bar Association

Alexandra E. Otto

Alex advises and guides clients through both the estate planning and the estate administration process. She identifies and implements various options and strategies to achieve clients’ objectives and utilizes combinations of different vehicles to achieve such objectives while taking into consideration clients’ unique family dynamics and interpersonal relationships. She also provides guidance and support to clients regarding their obligations and duties when acting in various fiduciary capacities. Additionally, she aids clients in navigating the estate administration process by preparing various state and federal tax returns, creating and executing family settlement agreements, and drafting, filing, and defending formal accountings before county orphans’ courts.

Her practice routinely includes aspects and elements of estate planning including:

  • Transitioning family businesses
  • Portability
  • Gifting
  • Generation skipping transfer tax
  • Inheritance tax
  • Medicaid planning
  • Various state probate processes
  • Step-up basis

Alex also counsels and represents clients in real estate transactions. She assists clients with purchasing and selling real estate by providing guidance throughout the entire process from the negotiation of the terms of the transaction through the execution of the finalized documents. She advises clients about realty transfer tax concerns, like-kind exchanges, preferential tax assessment programs such as Clean & Green, resolving title issues and financing, lending, and leasing arrangements.

Prior to joining the firm, Alex took every opportunity to focus her studies at both Dickinson School of Law and Georgetown University on not only tax, but also the interaction of tax and estate planning. She served as the student coordinator for the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program at Dickinson overseeing the preparation of and helped to prepare hundreds of returns annually. She also interned for the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue briefing issues and drafting opinions on corporate tax and personal income tax cases.

Alex’s background in the areas of tax, real estate and estate planning and administration permits her to provide comprehensive services to her clients as she can preemptively identify a variety of issues that arise in these areas and appreciate the impact that aspects of these areas of law have.

In her free time, Alex enjoys running, traveling, scuba diving and spending time with her pets.

MEMBERSHIPS
  • Cumberland County Inn of the Court, former member
  • Cumberland County Bar Association

Zachary J. Daly

Zach is an associate in the firm’s Intellectual Property Practice Group and is a registered patent attorney. He attended Elizabethtown College and graduated with a degree in physics before attending Santa Clara University School of Law, where he won the Witkin Award for Academic Excellence in 2021. The Witkin Award is presented to a student for attaining the highest grade in a course. Upon graduation, Zach received the High Tech Law Certificate with honors, based on his high level of performance in numerous concentrated technology law courses.

While at Santa Clara, Zach was a member of the Student Intellectual Property Law Association. He also was a student associate at the school’s Entrepreneurs’ Law Clinic, where he was involved in transactions needed to help client entrepreneurs and start-up companies. 

In his spare time, Zach enjoys hiking, snowboarding and collecting vinyl records.

RECOGNITIONS
  • Witkin Award for Academic Excellence at Santa Clara University School of Law
  • High Tech Law Certificate with honors at Santa Clara University School of Law
MEMBERSHIPS
  • U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
  • American Institute of Physics

Charles J. Phillips

Chuck has extensive experience in business transactions, contract negotiations and business succession planning. He offers business advice to clients in addition to developing long-term business strategies. Whether a client is buying or selling a business, restructuring its financial affairs or putting important contracts in place with customers, suppliers, or other owners, Chuck provides the strategic guidance and counsel that separates him from other business attorneys. He has guided his clients through general corporate law, tax resolution cases and commercial litigation.

In his mergers & acquisitions practice, Chuck has worked on hundreds of transactions, both small and large. He regularly assists clients with due diligence, structuring transactions, deal negotiations and drafting acquisition agreements. He also advises on asset purchases, stock purchases, and management and leveraged buyouts. His ability to create solutions to problems that arise amid transactions and to identify important deal trends remains an invaluable asset to his clients.

Chuck is a magna cum laude graduate of Albright College, where he formerly served as a member of its board of trustees. He received his Juris Doctor degree from Villanova Law School. He is a member of the Pennsylvania and American Bar associations, the American Bankruptcy Institute and the Eastern District of Pennsylvania Bankruptcy Committee. He is also a past president of the Berks County Bar Association.

MEMBERSHIPS
  • Pennsylvania Bar Association
  • American Bar Association
  • American Bankruptcy Institute
  • Eastern District of Pennsylvania Bankruptcy Committee
  • Berks County Bar Association

Benjamin A. Leisawitz

Ben is a member of the firm’s Trusts & Estates and Business practice groups. Whether Ben is formulating an estate plan, structuring a business deal or negotiating a real estate transaction, his style is client-centric and results-driven.

In his trusts and estates practice, Ben assists clients with crafting comprehensive estate plans that meet their needs and wishes, including the preparation of wills, financial and healthcare powers of attorney and trusts. He also assists clients with more complex estate planning matters such as special needs trusts, supplemental needs trusts and asset protection planning. Additionally, Ben has experience assisting families with succession plans and administering both trusts and estates.

In his business practice, Ben handles a broad range of corporate and transactional matters. He assists clients with entity selection and business formations, serves as general counsel to business clients, drafts and negotiates a wide array of commercial contracts, and handles a variety of commercial transactions including asset purchase agreements as well as stock (and membership interest) purchase agreements. Additionally, Ben guides clients through real estate matters including agreements of sale as well as leases for both commercial and residential real estate clients. This work dovetails with his contract review and negotiation experience. He also helps clients navigate title issues.

Ben received his juris doctor degree from Widener University Delaware Law School where he ranked 4th in his class of 195 students, graduated magna cum laude and served as managing editor on the nationally ranked Delaware Journal of Corporate Law. During law school, Ben served as a judicial clerk for Berks County’s then-president judge, now U.S. District Judge for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, the Honorable Jeffrey L. Schmehl. Additionally, Ben worked as a summer law clerk for a large law firm headquartered in Reading.

A Berks County native, Ben is a 1998 alumnus of Reading Senior High School where he was selected to the first team All Lancaster-Lebanon League in football and was the co-captain and most valuable player of the baseball team. Ben went on to be a four-year varsity letter winner at Muhlenberg College and the 2002 recipient of the “Player’s Player Award” – the team’s most valuable player – on the most successful baseball team in school history. After graduating from Muhlenberg College with a Bachelor of Arts in business administration/entrepreneurial studies, Ben gained seven years of business experience, having worked for both a large corporation and a small, family-held business. His vast job responsibilities included sales, marketing, purchasing and management. While working, Ben earned his master’s degree in business from Alvernia University.

Ben is proud to assist individuals, families and businesses in the community in which he was raised. He volunteers in many roles including serving as the assistant coach for the Wyomissing Area Youth Baseball and Basketball teams. Ben resides in Wyomissing with his wife, Michele, their children, Leah and Adam, and their dogs, Siman and Tov.

RECOGNITION
  • Delaware Journal of Corporate Law, former managing editor
MEMBERSHIPS
  • Berks County Bar Association
  • Pennsylvania Bar Association
PUBLICATION
  • “Matrixx Initiatives, Inc. v. Siracusano: Rejection of the Statistically Significant Standard Reopened the Door to Securities Fraud Strike Suits”, Delaware Journal of Corporate Law (2011)
PRESENTATIONS
  •  Estate Planning 101, AFSCME, The Retired Public Employees of Pennsylvania (RPEP) Chapter 13 (September 2022)
  • “Negotiating Physician Employment Contracts”, Tower Health
  • “Estate Planning”, Jewish Federation of Reading, Reform Congregation Oheb Shalom
  • “Business Law for Entrepreneurs”, Penn State University-Berks

Thad M. Gelsinger

As a member of the firm’s Litigation Practice Group, Thad focuses his practice on both personal injury, commercial and fiduciary litigation. With more than a decade of experience, he serves both business and individual clients in successfully resolving their litigation matters. Thad takes a pragmatic approach to his litigation practice and strives to explain complex issues to his clients in an easy-to-understand manner. He is also qualified to serve as a mediator or arbitrator through the Berks County Bar Association’s Alternative Dispute Resolution Program.

Commercial Litigation
Thad holds a broad commercial litigation practice, handling a variety of matters ranging from contract disputes and sophisticated construction issues to partnership dissolution and insurance dispute issues.

Representative cases:

  • Thad represented a financial advisor in a dispute and break-up with a former business partner. He obtained judgment in favor of client awarding, among other damages, reimbursement of previously withheld business buy-in paid by client. James W. Keim v. Andre S. Duffie, et al., Court of Common Pleas of Delaware County, Pennsylvania, August Term, No. 14-6137.
  • Represented lighting fixture supplier in dispute against electrical contractor on a public school project for failure of the contractor to pay for fixtures that the supplier delivered.  MBR Construction Services, Inc. v. Manheim Township School District, Court of Common Pleas of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, No. CI-1303760.
  • Obtained judgment, including an award of counsel fees, against a website development company for failing to provide goods and services as required pursuant to a contract between the parties.  PWE Consultants, LLC v. NetConnect Web, Inc., et al., Court of Common Pleas of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, No. 18-01674.
  • Prevailed at arbitration on behalf of a subcontractor pursuing claims, and defending counterclaims, for payment on a school construction project.  The damages asserted between the parties included the contract amount, loss of efficiency, extended general conditions, loss of home office overhead, liquidated damages, back charges from the owner of the property, and counsel fees and costs. 
  • Prevailed at arbitration on behalf of a license holder over claims brought by a licensee for reimbursement of prepaid guaranteed royalties.  The claimant sought in excess of $7 million in damages in addition to counsel fees and costs of the litigation.  The arbitration panel granted judgment, in full, in favor of the license holder. 
  • Represented a party to a stock purchase agreement that, due to delays of the opposing party, never consummated within the agreement’s time limits.  Obtained an award of a break-up fee penalty together with interest and the costs of the arbitration proceedings.  Lynn Hart v. GDS Link, LLC, American Arbitration Association Case No. 01-18-003-8170

Fiduciary Litigation
Thad regularly helps trust companies, banks and individuals with a variety of fiduciary matters including will contests, heir disputes, trust and power of attorney litigation and more. He frequently handles guardianship cases in Orphans’ Court.  

Representative cases:

  • Represented a son in pursuit of guardianship for his incapacitated mother including an evidentiary hearing before the Orphans’ Court and on appeal to the Pennsylvania Superior Court.
  • Represented a daughter in challenging late modifications to her father’s Last Will and Testament including a multi-day trial in front of the Orphans’ Court and an appeal to the Pennsylvania Superior Court.
  • Represented the Guardian of an Incapacitated Person relative to various Petitions filed on the Guardian’s behalf and those filed by other interested parties.

Personal Injury
Thad brings significant experience in personal injury law, assisting with motor vehicle collisions, premises and products liability, slip and fall, and wrongful death claims. Litigation is often about economic loss, and Thad’s experience and background allow him to understand and evaluate the full extent of his clients’ damages.

Representative cases:

  • Represented the children of a motorcycle driver that was killed by an oncoming vehicle that failed to yield in the lane of travel.  Successfully recovered financial compensation from the responsible party’s insurance carrier as well as multiple layers of underinsured motorists’ coverage. These claims were resolved without the need to incur the costs and expenses of suit. 
  • Resolved claims, without incurring the costs of suit, on behalf of a client injured when his car rolled over and down a roadside embankment following a collision caused by the negligent conduct of the driver of another vehicle.  Guided the client through negotiation with the negligent driver’s insurance company, obtained additional compensation under the client’s underinsured motorist coverage, and negotiated a decrease of the client’s outstanding medical lien to maximize his recovery.  
  • Represented individual injured while in the course and scope of employment but while working at a third-party client’s property. Navigated interaction of workers’ compensation claim and personal injury claim against the grocery store. Workers’ compensation claim was resolved and a federal arbitration panel awarded damages on the personal injury claim.  Yvonne Krick v. Giant Food Stores, LLC, United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, No. 16-1734.
  • Resolved claims brought by an estate for the overdose death of a resident of a community corrections facility arising out of the alleged failure of the facility to implement and execute proper search protocols for residents of the facility.  Elizabeth Feldbaum, Administratrix of the Estate of Matthew L. Feldbaum v. The GEO Group, Inc., et al., Court of Common Pleas of Berks County, No. 18-829.

Thad has served as co-chair of the Civil Litigation Section of the Berks County Bar Association, an officer of the Justice William Strong Inns of Court, a member of the House of Delegates of the Pennsylvania Bar Association, and as a member of the Sedona Conference Working Group 1 on Electronic Document Retention and Production. He has also presented continuing legal education seminars to his colleagues on electronic discovery and issues related to the use of social media in litigation.

Outside the legal profession, Thad is actively involved in his community. He has served on the board of directors and as president of the Greater Reading Young Professionals and on the board of directors for the Berks County Chapter of the Penn State Alumni Association. Thad has also served as a member of the board of directors of the Greater Reading Economic Partnership.

Thad received both his J.D. and M.B.A. from Widener University. In addition, he received his B.S. in marketing from the Pennsylvania State University. Thad graduated from Holy Name High School and is a native of Berks County. Thad resides in West Chester, Pa., with his wife, Sara A. Gelsinger, and enjoys playing tennis and golf.

RECOGNITIONS
  • Lehigh Valley Business Journal (Forty Under 40, 2022)
MEMBERSHIPS
  • Berks County Bar Association
  • Pennsylvania Bar Association
  • Justice William Strong Inns of Court
  • Berks County Bar Association’s Alternative Dispute Resolution Program, panel of arbitrators/mediators
PRESENTATIONS
  • E-Discovery – When and How to Do It, Berks County Bar Association Continuing Legal Education, August 7, 2014
  • Case Management and Courtroom Technology in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of PA, January 25, 2018
  • Defensible Disposition and Information Governance, The Sedona Conference Working Group 1, 2018 Midyear Meeting, May 3, 2018
  • Civil Bench Roundtable with the Berks County Court of Common Pleas, Berks County Bar Association Bench Bar Conference, August 25, 2021
  • Admissibility of Expert Evidence: Overcoming Objections and Motions in Limine, Berks County Bar Association Bench Bar Conference, April 19, 2023
  • Civil Bench Roundtable with the Berks County Court of Common Pleas, Berks County Bar Association Bench Bar Conference, April 19, 2023
PUBLICATIONS
  • The Sedona Conference, Commentary on Information Governance, Second Edition, Drafting Team Member

Susanna M. Fultz

Susanna is a member of the firm’s Employment and Litigation practice groups with more than a decade of experience. She works closely with employers, providing solutions to a myriad of employment issues while helping them to mitigate risk.

As an employment law counselor, Susanna advises clients on matters relating to the American with Disabilities Act, Fair Labor Standards Act, performance and conduct related issues, workplace harassment investigations, state and federal discrimination regulations and more. She helps employers manage their internal operations to ensure best practices in accordance with state and federal employment laws and regulations.

In her employment litigation practice, Susanna represents employers on matters ranging from non-compete agreements, separation and severance agreements, employment contracts and discrimination matters. She has experience practicing before state and federal court, the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

In addition to counseling employers, Susanna is involved with the Berks County Bar Association as chair of its employment law section. She frequently presents on a variety of employment law matters such as wage and hour issues and workplace harassment investigations.

Susanna is a graduate of the University of Delaware and Washington & Lee University School of Law. While in law school, Susanna interned at the United Nations in Vienna, Austria, and participated in several international clinics in Europe and Asia. After graduating from law school, Susanna served as a judicial law clerk to the Hon. A. Joseph Antanavage and then to the Hon. James M. Lillis in the Berks County Court of Common Pleas. She joined private practice in 2018.

An active member of her community, Susanna serves on the board of directors of ReadingFilm. Susanna and her husband reside in Reading. She enjoys sports and hiking and loves to travel.

PRESENTATIONS
  • “Employee Handbooks: Avoiding Common Mistakes,” Greater Reading Chamber Alliance (June 2023)
  • “Effective Workplace Harassment Investigations,” 40th Annual Employment Law Seminar (May 2023)
  • “HR in the COVID World,” Berks Community Television (BCTV) (March 2022)
  • “Wage and Hours Laws Updates,” Berks Community Television (BCTV) (January 2020)
RECOGNITIONS
  • Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch® in America, Labor and Employment Law – Management (2024) Litigation – Labor and Employment (2024)

Eden R. Bucher

Eden is the chair of the firm’s Creditors’ Rights Practice Group. She concentrates most of her practice in the areas of commercial transactions, debtor/creditor law and general and commercial litigation. She considers herself a problem solver, and her MBA degree helps her better understand the business impact of a company’s legal issues.

In her finance practice, Eden helps clients with loan documentation, loan modifications, restructuring plans and more. She is well-versed in assisting banks with vendor contract reviews, work outs, bulk-loan sales and purchases. She is among a dedicated group at the firm that regularly represents lenders in Small Business Administration and other government-guaranteed loans, syndicated loans and loan participations.

In her creditors’ rights practice, Eden assists creditors with mortgage foreclosures and civil actions for the collection of debt obligations. She also represents creditors through the process of bankruptcy including filing motions for relief from stay and objections to reorganization plans. Eden has represented businesses as debtors in bankruptcy and collection proceedings including debtor representation in workouts. She has helped clients with judicial enforcement, lender liability, and managing and disposing of REO real estate. Eden can assist creditors, financial institutions and lenders with confessions of judgment, personal property executions, and actions on notes and guarantees.

Outside of finance and creditors’ rights, Eden advises clients on complex real estate transactions (both commercial and residential), drawing upon her experience in various areas of law to produce amicable solutions. She prepares and negotiates sale/lease-back transactions and sales agreements, conducts due diligence, and reviews and negotiates real estate secured loan documents and settlement-related documents. Eden also has experience handling real estate, municipal and fiduciary litigation matters.

Outside of the firm, Eden remains involved in various associations in the legal field. She is a member of the Berks County Bar Association and is the Berks County Credit Card Arbitration Master. Eden also serves on the Eastern District of Pennsylvania (EDPA) Bankruptcy Court Mediation Panel.

MEMBERSHIPS
  • Berks County Bar Association, member and past president of the board of directors
  • Berks County Credit Card Arbitration Master
  • Berks County Bar Association Client Resolution Dispute Committee
  • Bankruptcy Sections of the Berks County Bar Association
  • Eastern District of Pennsylvania Bankruptcy Court Mediation Panel
  • Eastern District of Pennsylvania Bankruptcy Conference, member
  • Pennsylvania Bar Association

William R. Blumer, CELA (Certified Elder Law Attorney)

Bill is a member of the firm’s Trusts & Estate and Elder Law groups, concentrating his practice in the areas of elder law, estate planning, estate administration and fiduciary litigation. He is one of only approximately 65 attorneys in Pennsylvania certified in elder law by the National Elder Law Foundation. Part problem solver, advocate and family counselor, Bill’s practice combines an understanding of government benefit programs, tax law, business law, debtor/creditor issues, trust and estate law, and litigation. His role is to help families navigate the myriad of legal and emotional obstacles to successfully achieve their long-term care and retirement planning goals. 

Elder Law
Bill’s elder law practice involves advocating for older adults and guiding them through complex government bureaucracies like Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security benefits. He works with a wide variety of clients from those with very limited means to those with substantial wealth. He routinely helps clients protect assets from being depleted by the cost of long-term care. This includes helping clients establish asset protection trusts and utilize Medicaid-compliant immediate annuities. Bill drafts customized family caregiver agreements that help families protect assets and provide superior care to loved ones. He also helps clients successfully apply for Medicaid benefits by walking them through the application process and representing them in administrative appeals when their benefits are denied or reduced improperly. Most importantly, Bill excels in explaining complex issues in ways his clients understand and helps them feel confident in the decisions they make.

Estate Planning
Bill’s estate planning practice includes drafting complex documents like revocable trusts, asset protection trusts, wills, powers of attorney, family limited partnership agreements, charitable remainder trusts, and dynasty trusts for high-net-worth clients. He is thoroughly versed in the tax issues that impact estate plans, including federal estate, gift and generation-skipping transfer taxes, the income taxation of retirement plans and the business taxes that apply to corporations, partnerships and limited liability companies. Business succession planning for family businesses is a common component of Bill’s practice. Early in his career, Bill assisted clients with a variety of corporate matters including business formations, mergers and acquisitions, and business financing. This experience dovetails with his estate planning work.

Estate and Trust Administration
Bill represents executors and trustees and helps them administer estates and trusts properly. For estates, this means he takes a hands-on approach to completing the estate’s work, thereby relieving the executor from most of the estate administration work. This includes preparing the inventory, inheritance tax return, and estate tax return along with all other documents required by the register of wills. He also reviews fiduciary income tax returns and the decedent’s final lifetime tax returns. Bill oversees the preparation of the estate accounting and communicates with beneficiaries to keep them updated on the status of the estate’s administration. Although most estates are closed informally with a family settlement agreement, he also handles formal court adjudications before the Orphans’ Court when it’s necessary to resolve disputes associated with the administration.

When representing trustees, Bill counsels them on all aspects of their position including developing an appropriate investment plan, maintaining financial records, and properly exercising their discretion when making distributions. Occasionally, Bill also represents trust beneficiaries who have concerns about a trustee’s performance and works to develop an amicable resolution of those concerns.

Fiduciary Litigation
Sometimes amicable resolutions are not possible. In those instances, Bill works with the firm’s litigation attorneys to advocate for the rights of beneficiaries and fiduciaries. This includes bringing or defending will contests, surcharge actions against fiduciaries and objections to fiduciary accountings. This work also includes appointing guardians for incapacitated individuals and helping guardians file their annual reports with the court.

 As a Certified Elder Law Attorney, Bill works with compassion and sincerity. He prides himself on being able to relate to his clients and is more “cardigan and corduroy than pinstripes and power ties.” Bill listens empathetically, explains clearly, and helps clients see how legal, medical, and emotional issues converge and intertwine in their lives.

RECOGNITION
  • Pennsylvania Super Lawyers (2010-2012, 2020-2022)
EXPERTISE & CERTIFICATION
  • Certified in Elder Law, National Elder Law Foundation
MEMBERSHIPS
  • National Elder Law Foundation, member
  • Estate Planning and Elder Law section of the Berks County Bar Association, chair
  • Pennsylvania Association of Elder Law Attorneys, board member
  • Berks County Estate Planning Council, past president
PRESENTATIONS
  • “Assessing Client Capacity to Sign Documents”, Berks County Bar Association’s Bench Bar Conference (August 2020)
  • “Simple Planned Giving Strategies Anyone Can Use”, Easterseals Eastern PA Donors (May 2019)
  • “New Guardianship Rules and the GTS Tracking System”, Berks County Bar Association’s Bench Bar Conference (April 2019)
  • “How to Close an Estate”, Pennsylvania Bar Institute (March 2019)
  • “End of Life Medical Decision Making”, Berks County Bar Association (October 2018)
  • “Three Important Legal Documents All Seniors Need”, Berks Encore (October 2018)
  • “What Accountants Need to Know About Long-Term Care and Asset Protection Planning”, Baker Tilley Virchow Krause LLP (May 2018)
  • “Top 10 Orphans’ Court Cases in the Last Year”, Berks County Bar Association’s Bench Bar Conference (April 2018)
  • “Medicaid Planning”, Lancaster County Estate Planning Council (November 2017)
  • “Use of Special and Supplemental Needs Trust for Children with Disabilities”, John Paul II Center (March 2017)
  • “How to Close an Estate”, Pennsylvania Bar Institute (August 2016)
  • “Use of Annuities in Medicaid Planning”, Berks County Bar Association (July 2015)
  • “Asset Protection Planning”, Berks Encore (July 2015)
  • “Powers of Attorney and Living Wills”, Family First Resource Senior Center (April 2015)
  • “Misconceptions About Long-Term Care Planning”, Berks Elder Network (April 2015)
  • “Asset Protection Planning”, Berks County Bar Association’s Bench Bar Conference (April 2013)
  • “Federal Estate Tax Update”, PICPA Winter Conference (December 2011)
  • “Use of Trusts in Estate Planning”, RKL Associates (September 2011)

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