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Judy Bateman Shepura

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Phone (205)271-9656

Legal Assistant:   Michele G. Deck

Email:  mdeck@dfhlaw.com

Judy Bateman Shepura
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We are now living into our 90’s, and special needs children are living into their 70’s. As a result, people are dealing with legal issues which they and their lawyers have not encountered before. That is the reason Judy recently went back to school and earned an advanced law degree, an LLM in Elder Law, from Stetson University. In the course of her 30+ years as a lawyer, she has seen what can happen when individuals do not adequately plan for family members with disabilities or otherwise do not plan as well as they could have, for themselves. While she assists in resolving such crises, she prefers to help clients minimize emergencies by dealing with them upfront.

Judy’s first husband, Leo Shepura, was at the Jimmie Hale Mission for decades. Years after Leo passed away, she was blessed to meet her current husband, Brian O’Brien, through activities at their church. Because of her own journey in life, she has firsthand appreciation for faith-based values in individual stewardship and in addressing problems in society. She knows what it means to lose your spouse, to balance career with being a single parent, to remarry and participate in a blended family, and to care for an aging parent. She welcomes the opportunity to help individuals and their families address the challenges that accompany disabilities, the aging process, and death.

 

  • AV Peer Review Rating by Martindale-Hubbell®
  • The Best Lawyers in America® – Trusts and Estates – 2015-2022
  • “Lawyer of the Year” Birmingham area by Best Lawyers in America® 2019 – Trusts and Estates
  • Top Attorneys – 2018 – Birmingham Magazine
  • Birmingham Magazine 2020 Top Attorneys- Elder Law
  • B-Metro Top Attorneys – 2017-2020

 

  • Member – Birmingham Bar Association
  • Member – Alabama State Bar
  • Member – National Association of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA)
  • Alabama Family Trust  – Board of Trustees (2012 to present)
  • Member: Estate Planning Council of Birmingham 
  • Frequently speaks at seminars for attorneys, probate judges, trust officers, and clients on topics related to estate planning, special needs trusts, powers of attorney, guardianships, and administering estates and trusts
  • “Design Trusts That Shine In Clients’ Twilight Years” – Estate Planning Magazine – December 2015 issue
  • “Alabama’s New Power of Attorney Law” – seminar – 2016 Probate & Estate Planning Conference for Alabama Attorneys
  • “The Changing Face of Health Care for Older Americans” – Estate Planning Magazine – December 2016 issue
  • “Recent Developments in Special Needs and Elder Law” – seminar – 2017 Probate & Estate Planning Conference for Alabama Attorneys
  • “Helping Clients Successfully Maneuver Life’s Ups and Downs Between Retirement and Death” – seminar for women – WISE Symposium sponsored by Lincoln Financial Advisors – 2017
  • “New Laws Affecting Alabama’s Vulnerable Adults” – 2018 Seminar for attorneys sponsored by Alabama Bar – Elder Law Section
  • “Ethics and Elderly Clients – Helping Clients with Diminished Capacity” – Marshall County Bar Association – Guntersville, Alabama – April 2018
  • “Client Capacity, Confidentiality Issues and Attorney-Client Privilege” (with Ashley Neese) – Live CLE Webinar for Attorneys – Sponsored by Alabama Law Weekly – August 2018
  • “Update on Recent Alabama Probate Cases” – presented to probate judges and chief probate clerks around Alabama, sponsored by Alabama Probate Judges’ Association Conference with Alabama Law Institute – September 2018
  • “Going Deeper – Guardianships and Conservatorships” – seminar – Probate Section of Birmingham Bar Association – December 2018
  • “Special Needs Trusts: The Basics” – seminar – February 22, 2019 Seminar for attorneys sponsored by Alabama Bar – Elder Law Section

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