THOMAS N. JONES in association with DAVID M. JONES
The attorneys of Thomas N. Jones & Associates bring more than 58 years of combined experience to the practice of law. Each attorney maintains his own practice within our shared offices at 357 Riverside Drive Suite 1002, conveniently located near I-65 in Franklin, Tennessee.
Mission Statement:
Thomas N. Jones & Associates is dedicated to be skilled in effectively and efficiently representing clients in the many aspects of real estate, banking law, estates, and numerous other areas of law and legal services. All attorneys work with each client from beginning through the end of each practice area to meet and exceed each client’s goals.
REAL ESTATE
Purchasing and Selling real estate is usually the largest transaction made by most people and involves legal matters of which the parties need to have an understanding. Therefore, having expert representation concerning selling, purchasing, and loan finance of the transaction is so important. We are not a title company, but an established law firm which provides real estate closing services as part of our daily practice. We have been facilitating real estate closings, both residential and commercial, since 1986. We have been an agent for Chicago Title Insurance Company since 1987. We have a superior rating by the Legal Board of Professional Conduct for the State of Tennessee. Unlike title companies, we have an attorney who does almost all of the closings; the ones that are not closed by an attorney are closed by an experienced paralegal. Upon receipt of each real estate closing, the file is assigned to a legal assistant who is responsible for that file from the opening of the file until the final title policy is issued. Each client, agent, and lender knows from the beginning who is working on the file and is provided with contact information for the assigned legal assistant. Each file is closely supervised by an attorney who is on-site each day and available to answer any questions that may arise. All documents, including the title commitment and title policy, are produced on-site by the legal assistant working the file, well in advance of the closing.
We do not have any financial or marketing arrangements with any real estate companies or lenders, see the CFPB Compliance Bulletin 2015-05, and therefore do not run the risk of being in violation of either State or Federal Laws. This ensures there are no issues as to violations of RESPA which could affect the Lender in the closing transaction. As a law firm, we are regulated by the Tennessee Supreme Court and are held to a much stricter and higher standard, both ethically and educationally, than any title company. Failure by us to maintain those standards could result in the loss of our license to practice law in the State of Tennessee.
Our attorneys are also experienced in the area of commercial and business transactions and understand the specialized needs of commercial clients and commercial lenders. We are experienced in drafting complicated contracts, as well as loan documents. We also handle 1031 tax transfers as the intermediary.
Our job is and has been to do our best to represent our clients to the best of our ability. For additional information on purchasing a home go to www.consumerfinance.gov/know-before-you-owe/ (or click on the web address) and feel free to contact our office for professional assistance. You can also open the Home Loan Toolkit provided by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau by simply clicking here .
PROBATE
Probate in Tennessee is not that difficult, nor is it as expensive as some would like for you to believe. It involves filing a Petition with the Probate Court in the county where the Decedent resided at the time of his/her death for the purpose of paying bills of the Decedent, acquiring and distributing the assets of the Estate according to the Decedent’s Will or according to the Laws of Intestate Succession if no Will exists. By probating an Estate, you can limit the timespan that creditors have in collecting debts from the Deceased. Additionally, by law you must file with the Department of TennCare to request a TennCare Release whether the Deceased was on Medicaid or not. Another advantage of probating an Estate is establishing the basis in property of the Decedent for income tax purposes, which should also be considered in your Estate Planning process.
ESTATE PLANNING & WILLS
Estate Planning is much more than about tax planning. Beginning 2016 there will no longer be an estate tax collected by the State of Tennessee and the Federal tax will only apply if the estate is over $5,000,000.00 per person. However, there could be income tax consequences such as capital gains, which could be substantial. Estate planning can help in this area. Also, one needs to have a Power of Attorney for financial matters and one for health care matters in the event you are unable to handle your affairs. The one you get at the hospital is the bare minimum, and I would not recommend them to you. With the Power of Attorney you are able to direct and name who takes charge if you are unable to do so. You can even name a conservator if one becomes needed because of mental incompetency, and usually the court will listen to your wishes in the matter. Also, you can use a Will to divide your assets the way you would like for them to be distributed at your death. This becomes even more important in today’s world with so many blended families. You can also make plans for your minor children and grandchildren as well by creating trusts either during your life or to go into effect upon your death. We can help you in making these plans.
DOMESTIC
Families, parties and individuals involved in a Family Law Case often encounter a wide range of emotions, primarily as a result of not knowing what to anticipate or expect. Divorce, child custody, division of assets, and parent relocation are complex areas of the law and can be difficult to understand. An experienced Lawyer can help clients understand what is involved in the divorce process such as the grounds for divorce, primary parent determination, the types and kinds of alimony, the division of marital assets, and the division of marital debts. Furthermore, post-divorce matters such as child support modification, parenting time modification and parental relocation can be just as emotional and misunderstood as the divorce process.
Lawyers in our office can assist you in knowing what your rights are in these areas and can assist you in navigating the divorce or post-divorce process.
BUSINESS LAW
The area of business law covers many directions. There are several questions one needs to ask in forming a business entity. What are you trying to accomplish with your business structure? Who are the parties? What is the nature of the business? Will there be employees? Will you operate in more than one state? What happens if one of the parties dies or wants out? What form of management do you want? The majority of the type of business arrangements are sole propriety, joint venture, general partnership, limited partnership, corporation, LLC, and professional entity, but there are more, even within these categories. In setting up a business entity, one needs to consider the tax consequences and liability of the business structure.
The most important thing about entering into any form of business arrangement is to have it in writing, no matter if it’s family and/or friend. This will greatly decrease the chances of issues down the road.
Once the business structure is set up then there is the day-to-day operation of the business that one must consider. Who does what? How do you work with a Bank, customers, contractors, etc.? Contracts in many forms, leases, purchase contracts, notes, mortgages, sales contract become part of the day-to-day operation of the business. These contracts should always be in writing, signed by the parties involved, and be detailed as to what is expected of each party involved.
The need for a good lawyer and accountant is a must for a successful business. We are experienced in the legal area of business law.
JUVENILE
The area of Juvenile Law in Tennessee covers many areas similar to both civil and criminal law in the State of Tennessee. The main areas of Juvenile Tennessee Law consist of delinquent offenses, status offenses, dependency and neglect proceedings, termination of parental rights proceedings, permanent guardianship, and matters regarding paternity, custody and child support.
Whenever a petition is brought forth alleging that a child has committed an act that would be classified as a crime if they were an adult, a delinquent petition is filed and taken out against the minor child. Status offenses are offenses that only apply to minor children such as truancy or in-state runaway. These status offenses are not offenses that would apply to adults. The great thing about our Tennessee Juvenile Court system is that the main goal is rehabilitation as opposed to punishment. That is why it is necessary if your child has been charged with a Juvenile offense, that you retain the services of an experienced Tennessee Juvenile Court Attorney to represent your child.
The next main area is dependent and neglect proceedings and termination of parental right proceedings. With both, there are several grounds that can be defined under Tennessee law as to whether a child is dependent and neglected, or whether there are grounds for parental rights to be terminated. There are few matters that carry more gravity or weight than cases involving a parent’s superior rights, or cases in which a determination is made with regards to a child’s best interest. Regardless of which party you may be, all parties need an experienced Tennessee Juvenile Attorney to represent their interests in any of these types of proceedings.
The Juvenile Court in Tennessee also has concurrent jurisdiction with the Circuit and Chancery Court to hear matters with regards to paternity, custody and child support matters. This could involve an action to establish paternity; an action to establish a parenting residential schedule; or an action to establish or enforce a child support order.
Juvenile Court deals with so many important issues that affect the most important matters of our lives, our children. We offer experienced and caring Tennessee Juvenile Attorneys to help you through these trying times in your life.
CONSERVATORSHIPS
A Conservatorship is a proceeding in which a Court removes the decision-making powers, in whole or in part, in a least restrictive manner, from an adult person with a disability who lacks capacity to make decisions in one or more important areas, and places responsibility for one or more of those decisions in a conservator or co-conservators.
A Petition for the appointment of a conservator may be filed by any person having knowledge of the circumstances necessitating the appointment of a conservator for someone, but is usually a family member. This is done when an individual fails to have a power of attorney created while he or she is mentally competent.
A Conservatorship can last the duration of a person’s life, or it can be a temporary measure to help care for a person until he or she recovers from the state of incompetency.
A Conservatorship can be over “the person,” when the individual needs someone to make health care, housing, residential placement, and other similar decisions.
It can also be over “the estate,” which allows a fiduciary to manage and protect the person’s assets and pay his or her bills.
In Tennessee, the conservator, the person appointed by the Court, must file a sworn accounting of all expenses and income of the Conservatorship with the Court within thirty (30) days after the six-month anniversary of the conservator’s date of appointment, and annually thereafter. The purpose of the accounting is to protect the assets of the individual.
Conservatorships can help care for our aging relatives who are no longer able to care for themselves, as well as our younger relatives over the age of eighteen who have permanent physical or intellectual disabilities and have not created Powers of Attorney for themselves. They can also assist people who are temporarily unable to make decisions and/or care for themselves due to an injury, illness or accident.
We can assist you with the legal portion of this matter.
