Legal Services

Attorney Magee has over 26 years experience in all areas of her practice. She has extensive experience in civil litigation practice and the Appeals Courts. She has written many legal briefs and memoranda of law, and particularly enjoys handling cases of “first impression” before the Courts. Attorney Magee has a unique skill for oral argument and has taught law at the University and Law School levels since 1996.

Attorney Magee offers the unique service as an appellate counsel sitting in at the trial level. This service helps to ensure the proper preservation of crucial issues for possible appeal - - which, if not properly preserved, may be unfortunately and unintentionally waived by trial counsel and, therefore, lost forever.

Attorney Magee intentionally limits the number of cases she accepts annually in order to ensure she delivers the personal and most comprehensive legal services she believes all clients have a right to expect.

Specific List of Services:

Amicus Brief Writing

Attorney Magee's Amicus Brief Writing services are limited to State and Federal Constitutional Law issues.

Civil Appeals

Appellate practice is the road generally taken when a case fails at trial. The road leads, ultimately, to what is known as the “courts of last resort.”

Attorney Magee has a busy appellate practice in Massachusetts as a private attorney sitting on the Child and Family Law Appellate Panel of the Committee For Public Counsel Services. She is currently lead counsel on a pivotal challenge to the Rhode Island Reproductive Privacy Act - - challenging under the Rhode Island Constitution and the United States Constitution.

Appellate practice requires special skill in reviewing the record from the trial court (evidence, transcripts, etc.), spotting the legal issues ripe for appeal, and preparing and arguing before the different appellate courts. The degree of difficulty is enhanced by the legal standards for review - - generally marked by some “abuse of discretion” or “error of law” by the trial court.

Attorney Magee is also available to write Amicus Briefs, or “Friend of the Court” briefs on issues of first impression and involving Constitutional challenges to the First, Fifth, and Fourteenth Amendments of the United states Constitution and their State counterparts.

United States Constitutional Law (First, Fifth, and Fourteenth Amendments)

In 2022, Attorney Magee completes her tenth (10th) Term/Semester teaching Constitutional Law to LL.M. and J.D. students at Northeastern University School of Law, Boston, Massachusetts. Her particular practice interests are the Establishment and Free Exercise Clauses of the First Amendment and the Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses of the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments.

Civil Litigation

If you really think about it, no injured party really likes to go to court. It is their last hope at getting justice for the wrong he/she believes has been done to him/her.

Litigation is a battle of survival of the fittest - - a marathon not a sprint! It requires a great commitment, by your attorney, to stay the course until justice is served - - which may takes years.

Attorney Magee has spent over 26 years appearing in all levels of the Rhode Island court system, from the District Courts to the Rhode Island Supreme Court.

She has extensive experience in legal research, discovery, drafting, briefing, motion practice, oral argument, trial, and appeals. Attorney Magee intentionally limits the number of cases she takes in this area because she wants to ensure that each case is handled in the meticulous way it deserves.

Elder Law

What Is Elder Law ?

Elder Law encompasses a wide variety of services specific to the older citizens. At its basic core, Elder Law is sometimes viewed as purely estate planning for the elderly. However, estate planning is often limited to protecting an individuals assets upon death. More importantly, Elder Law focuses on lifetime planning.

Lifetime planning includes:

Medicaid planning.
Assistance in filling out your Medicaid applications.
Appeals from denials of Medicare or Medicaid benefits.
Adequacy of Nursing Home Care.
Treatment of elderly patients.
Establishing guidelines for your health care and financial management of your assets should you become disabled.
Financing your Long-Term Care.
Guardianship and Conservatorship and Much More...

Society is recognizing the need for attorneys who concentrate on these issues. Your Elder Law attorney should focus his/her efforts on maximizing your ability to control your future while minimizing the cost of administering and distributing your estate after you're gone. Proper estate planning can ensure that a life's work provides you with the security you hoped for and leaves a legacy for your loved ones.

NOTICE: Attorney Magee is no longer accepting new clients in this area of her practice of law. She will, however, continue to assist her current clients with new legal matters in this area of law. Current clients must, however, call Attorney Magee and enter into a new written legal fee agreement for any new elder law matters.

Estate Planning

Why do Estate Planning?

Estate planning consists of not just planning for our eventual deaths, but preparing for incapacity or infirmity during our lifetime.

A proper estate plan should consider the following:

Whom will take care of my financial matters in the event I become temporarily or permanently incapacitated?
Whom will make medical decisions, including end of life decisions, should I not be able to speak or express my wishes clearly at the time I need to speak?
Whom do I want my assets to go to upon my death? What if they die before me?
Should I make lifetime gifts to those I want to provide for after my death?
What options are available to avoid “probate” of my estate?
Can I provide for the smooth distribution of my assets without interruption or disruptions due to my death?
Do I have exposure to estate and/or gift taxes?
Are there special considerations regarding doing or modifying estate plans very close to the time of my death or a serious illness?
Can I use Will-Substitutes to avoid probate?
How may my estate plan affect any long-term nursing home care I may later need?

Your estate planning attorney should be able to assist you in answering all of these questions.
You can do much preliminary work by giving thought to these questions before evening calling your attorney.
The legal documents for an average effective estate plan include some or all of the following documents:

Durable Power of Attorney For Finances
Health Care Power of Attorney
Living Will
Last Will and Testament
Revocable Living trust
Irrevocable Living Trust
Quit-Claim Deed(s)

Probate Law

Why is “probate” necessary?

The legal theory of probate law is that it provides a vehicle to get the property you had while living to the people you want to have it after your death.

It is a primarily an administrative process that is necessary because you did not use another way to dispose of your property. For instance, if you have an insurance policy and you name a beneficiary that was alive at your death, that money can be claimed and distributed directly to your beneficiary without the need for Probate Court. This kind of asset is commonly known as a “Will Substitute.” Other examples of assets that may avoid probate cost and delay associated with the probate of an estate include:

Bank accounts jointly held (with rights of survivorship) or classified as “Payable on Death”
Individual Retirement Accounts with named beneficiaries
Trusts that have been “funded” with specific assets prior to your death
Real Estate jointly held (with rights of survivorship), or which has a life estate with named remainderman, or Tenants By The Entirety

A proper estate plan will always seek to minimize, if not completely avoid, the need for resort to the Probate Court. In certain cases, however, it may be unavoidable. And, you should seek out an attorney with experience in all areas of probate law: including dealing with estates involving challenges to a Will or other estate plan.

Probate Law also includes guardianships. Guardianships are usually necessary for an incapacitated person who does not have proper durable powers of attorney or other estate planning documents naming someone to take care of their health and financial matters. A court appointed guardian may be granted legal authority to make decisions not just in regards to your finances or health care, but also includes where you live and with whom you may associate.

As a protection for the one whom the guardianship is appointed, the Probate Court mandates annual health and financial status reporting to the Probate Court.

Attorney Magee has many years serving as a court-appointed Guardian Ad Litem, wherein the Probate Court appoints her to render an impartial report as to the necessity of the guardianship and the appropriateness of the individual seeking to be appointed guardian. She continues to appear regularly in various Rhode Island Probate Courts.

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