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Donald Mc Innes
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Donald Mc Innes
Mullane Michel & Mc Innes
6 Bennett St.
Cambridge, MA 02138-5708
Phone: (617) 661-9000 | Fax: (617) 661-3000
Building Relationships to Handle Life's Challenges
Legal Topic
Wills, Trusts & Estates
Preferred New Clients
I handle wills, trusts, estates, prenuptial and postnuptial agreements, elder law and Medicaid planning, and several kinds of taxes, including Estate taxes, Gift taxes, and income taxes of Estates and Trusts; and residential real estate cases.
Sub-Categories
Taxes
- Estate Taxes & Gift Taxes
- Tax Planning
- Charitable Giving
- Charitable Trusts
- Drafting Trusts
- Drafting Wills
- Estate Administration
- Estate Planning
- Living Trusts
- Living Wills
- Probate
- Asset Protection
- Power of Attorney
- Business Succession Planning
- Special Needs Trust
- Supplemental Needs Trust
- Revocable Trust & Irrevocable Trust
Bar Admissions
MA, Nov 1961
Bar Number: 335600
Other Court Admissions
Massachusetts State Courts.
Association Memberships
The Massachusetts Bar Association; NAELA (National Association of Elder Law Attorneys); and Solo/Small Firm Estate Planning and Probate Practitioners Group.
Continuing Education
Even though Massachusetts has no continuing legal education requirement for lawyers, I want to stay current and therefore attend at least three continuing legal education seminars per year, mostly on estate planning topics such as trusts, forms of business entities, Medicaid and the like.
Example Cases
My most typical case is estate planning for a married couple with older children, estate tax minimization often being one of the goals. I also have many single individuals as clients, and many clients whose assets are limited and for whom Medicaid planning may be more important than estate taxes. I provide continuing advice for family trusts, and I prepare estate tax returns and income tax returns for estates and trusts. I sometimes find myself representing two or even three generations of the same family.
Education
Degree:
J.D.
School:
Harvard Law School
City:
Cambridge
State:
MA
Year:
1961
Focus and Accomplishments:
Law; Moot Court.
Degree:
B.A.
School:
Grinnell College
City:
Grinnell
State:
IA
Year:
1951
Focus and Accomplishments:
Major: Sociology; Exchange student at Hampton Institute, all black college in Virginia; President of residence hall; President of Friars, men's honorary society; President of Grinnell Chapter, NAACP.
Degree:
M.B.A.
School:
Northwestern University
City:
Evanston
State:
IL
Year:
1953
Focus and Accomplishments:
Marketing.
Number of Attorneys
3
State Licensed In
Massachusetts and Minnesota
Firm Focus and History
Established 1988 in Harvard Square, Cambridge, Massachusetts, where it remains to this day. Many of our clients walk to our office from their residence or place of business, but also many come a distance, from surrounding towns and the City of Boston.
Small and medium-sized businesses; commercial and residential real estate; civil litigation; estate planning and estates.
Previous Employment Summary
I started in a large downtown Boston law firm, where most of my practice was in real estate. I then moved to the Boston Redevelopment Authority, where I initially was a member of the legal staff, but moved into project directorship, and ultimately became the Executive Assistant to the Director of the Authority. I later worked for the University of Minnesota in campus planning and construction, and then for a private real state development firm in Minneapolis, and later returned to the Boston area and went into private practice with the current firm in 1988.
Activities and Awards
Considerable pro-bono work, especially for start-up non-profits, whom I assist in becoming incorporated and then recognized by the IRS as tax-exempt organizations under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, and for whom I tend to become the de facto general counsel. I am also a Board member of Cambridge Forum, which sponsors speakers and panelists (many of national or even international stature) on a wide range of topics affecting the human condition; Treasurer and Board member of the Gaza Mental Health Foundation, Inc; and President and Board member of Unitarian Universalists for Justice in the Middle East. Licensed SCUBA diver.
What is your opinion regarding clients educating themselves on legal issues?
I tend to be skeptical for most clients, but a few are good at it.
Are you willing to review documents prepared by clients?
I'm willing to do it, but in practice very few clients request this. Furthermore, I usually can prepare a document more rapidly and at less cost than review one with which I am unfamiliar.
Are you willing to coach clients who want to represent themselves?
I'm willing to do it for situations where I think a client can effectively represent himself or herself, but in my practice this rarely comes up.
Why did you decide to be a lawyer?
My wife made me do it. Fortunately, both my marriage and my legal career have turned out very well.
What work experience and education helps you be a better lawyer?
I have been fortunate to lead a very rich life, which in turn provides highly relevant and helpful experience useful in dealing with and assisting my clients, perhaps most especially in developing mutually satisfactory and constructive relationships. I have experience in large and small law firms, and in senior positions in private business, the public sector, and non-profit entities. I have a large network of friends and neighbors, and colleagues in the practice of law. (I am proud that many of my neighbors are also my clients.) I belong to a group of lawyers who are solo and small firm practitioners in the field of estate planning and estates who meet monthly to discuss new developments in the field and to exchange information about current matters and issues they are facing. I have learned much through this group, whose members constitute a supportive network of highly talented and knowledgeable colleagues, whose practices are similar to mine. Finally, my wife, head of the behavioral health division of a large agency in Boston, provides support and even insightful comments about dealing with people and about human behavior.
Why did you decide on your primary area of practice?
It was totally accidental. The first family who came to me after I started private practice with the current firm in 1988 needed an estate plan. They were my neighbors and friends. They turned out to be quite a bit wealthier than I had known. Using another, more experienced attorney as a consultant, I developed an appropriate plan for them and the documents were executed. I enjoyed that experience very much, and began to focus on that field, and gradually build up my practice in that area. One aspect that I particularly like is that I usually get to know the client and the family very well.
What do you like best about your career?
I like the balance between intellectual work in the office, and relationships with a wonderful group of clients who seem to like what I do for them and who provide lots of positive reinforcement.
Tell us about your law firm:
Our office manager is highly effective in assisting clients, and is respected and admired by them. He has a near photographic memory. He is extremely accurate, with the written word and with numbers. The three lawyers in the firm are very collegial and are always available to help each other. Each has a different principal area of focus, including business law, commercial and residential real estate, civil litigation, and estate planning and estates.
What are your strengths and style?
My greatest strength is my ability to develop mutually constructive relationships with and to command the respect of a wide variety of people. I try to stay in close touch with my clients while working on their tasks and problems. My biggest source of new business is referrals from current or former clients. I seem to have the ability to write well, and I have a talent for working with numbers.
Personal Interests:
Physical fitness (tennis, running, working out); travel; working for peace in the Israeli/Palestinian conflict.
Office Manager/Assistant
James E. Bernier
Fax
(617) 661-3000
Office Hours
Monday through Friday
9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Other times by appointment
Emergency After Hours
Yes
Foreign Languages
Yo hablo pequito de español.
Fixed-Price Services and Fees
For estate plan work I provide an estimate of the fee after I have conferred with the client and have gained a reasonably clear idea of the extent and nature of the work involved. This is an estimate, not a fixed fee, but I try to stick to it. My fee for a husband and wife with an estate not likely to be subject to estate tax, with no requirement for a trust, but including wills, powers of attorney, and health care proxies, would typically be about $1,200. For a married couple with a larger estate, requiring more study, a pair of trusts, and possibly assistance with re-arranging the ownership of assets, it would typically be in the range of $3,000 - $4,500.
Hourly Rates
$250 normally; but significantly less for residential real estate.
Free Initial Consultation?
I am willing to consult by telephone for a few minutes free of charge. Also, if after 30 - 45 minutes of meeting with a new client he or she decides not to engage me I usually wouldn't charge anything.
Typical Retainer
For estate planning work I require a retainer of ½ the estimated total fee. For other work it depends on the circumstances.
Nolo's Licensing Check
Attorneys have passed a licensing check. Nolo has confirmed that every member attorney has a valid license and is in good standing with the applicable bar associations upon joining the directory.
Directory lawyers are required to notify Nolo immediately if they become the subject of any disciplinary action by any bar association.
