About The Village Law Firm

Creating a lasting Legacy that reflects your values.

The Village Law Firm™: Creating a Lasting Legacy That Reflects Your Values

Our Philosophy

Nothing is more sacred to us than the people we care about and the values we hold. We recognize that, at its essence, estate planning is not about legal documents; it is about honoring our responsibility to protect and care for children or other loved ones and creating a lasting legacy that reflects our values. The documents are simply a means to that end.

We consider it a privilege to help our clients with this process. We'd love to help you protect your loved ones and design your legacy.

Our Approach

We believe YOU should be in charge of your own legacy. Our job is to educate you about the different tools and protections that might benefit your family and help you decide on the solution that is best for you.

In addition to legal guidance, we provide you with tools to help with the non-legal aspects of planning - templates for drafting a letter to your child's guardian or to your trustee, tips for managing digital assets, and checklists to make sure your documents and other important information are organized and shared with a trusted person.

Legal planning isn't once-in-a-lifetime event, and it's important to make adjustments as your circumstances change. We keep in touch, answering any questions that might come up - often long after your documents have been signed. And as your family changes and grows, we're right there to make sure your legal planning doesn't fall out of date (although major changes are seldom necessary since substantial flexibility is built into your plan).

At the Village Law Firm™, our Team is guided by four overriding principles.

Honesty & Transparency

You deserve a lawyer who will be honest with you – about the good, the bad, and the ugly. You might not always like what we tell you, but we will always be forthright about what your needs are and what we can – and can’t – do to help.

For our planning services, you will know how much a service will cost before we get started, so there are no surprises about what the bill will be in the end. For estate administration services, we charge on an hourly basis. For these services, it is much more difficult to predict how much work will be involved, but we will keep you abreast of the financial status of the case and how much additional work we expect as things develop.

Highest Quality Legal Solutions

We are committed to providing the highest quality legal solutions for our clients. With decades of experience in the field of estate planning and administration, our attorneys bring knowledge of the technical details that can save millions of dollars in taxes, protect your loved ones from creditors, and avoid fruitless administration proceedings.

Compassion

We are committed to providing the highest quality legal solutions for our clients. With decades of experience in the field of estate planning and administration, our attorneys bring knowledge of the technical details that can save millions of dollars in taxes, protect your loved ones from creditors, and avoid fruitless administration proceedings.

Premium Service

Our clients are busy professionals in New York City. They are not looking to take on added burdens of paperwork or dealing with bureaucratic financial institutions. We provide a white-glove service that makes the process as simple and painless as possible for you.

At the Village Law Firm™, we're committed to providing you with a comprehensive service that leaves no i's undotted or t's uncrossed. Below is an overview of our planning process.

Discovery Meeting

At our first meeting, we will review your family and financial situation and discuss your goals and concerns. We will explain the challenges that your loved ones may face and present a blueprint for a plan that will make things as easy as possible for them. We will also evaluate your estate tax exposure and make recommendations to minimize or eliminate those taxes altogether. Prior to this meeting, you will be asked to fill out a questionnaire so that we can prepare for our discussion ahead of time.

Plan Questionnaire

Once you’ve decided on a plan, you will fill out another questionnaire with information about the individuals you would like to serve in various roles, such as your children’s guardian and your executor.

Plan Review Meeting

At our next meeting, we will review how your plan will work and go over the individuals you have chosen for each role in your plan. This is also the time where we can guide you if you’re having trouble deciding on the best fit for a certain role. After this meeting, we will begin drafting your documents.

Document Review Meeting

At this meeting, we will review your legal documents with you so that you understand what each document does and make any final changes before the Document Execution Meeting.

Document Execution Meeting

At this point, you have reviewed your final documents and are ready to sign them. Estate planning documents have strict execution requirements, so we recommend signing them in our office if at all possible. (This is the only meeting that requires you to come to our office.) We will provide a notary and two impartial witnesses and ensure that your documents are validly executed.

Plan Implementation

No estate plan is complete without updating beneficiary designations and, in some cases, retitling accounts. Our services do not end when you have sign your documents. We assist you in filling out the forms necessary to retitle accounts and update beneficiary designations, serving as a liaison with your financial institution or financial advisor.

Final Confirmation Meeting

At the final meeting we’ll confirm that all outstanding items are complete and answer any final questions.

Partnership Service

You will have the opportunity for us to serve as an ongoing partner to you and your loved ones. Our partnership service maintains the complete information and documentation that your loved ones will need in the event of an emergency, so all they need to do is simply call our office and we will walk them through exactly what they need to do. The partnership service includes an annual review meeting to keep your plan up to date and ensure that our records are accurate.

Meet Our Team

Our Team Is here to support you every step of the way.

Our team understands the importance of protecting your family and providing compassionate guidance following the loss of a loved one. Our years of experience enable us to provide you with the best legal and practical solutions and client service that is second to none.

Trusted by New York Families

We’re honored to support individuals and families through some of life’s most important decisions. Here’s what our clients have to say about their experience with The Village Law Firm.

Shannon, Ly, and team. Thank you so much for giving, us the biggest gift of all this year: peace of mind.

N & B

Exactly what I was looking for – smooth, efficient and painless. I have already recommended Shannon’s services to a number of others.

Chris M.

I really appreciated the way you helped me in a speedy, understanding and compassionate way.

Hardy H.

We very much enjoyed working with you. You were available, responsive, on time and asked important questions that went beyond our expectations in to help us plan better. I already recommended you to one of the moms in my group.

Jaylon B.

I wanted to thank you from the bottom of my heart for all of your kind attention to this matter. You did the most outstanding job, going beyond what I thought an attorney would ever do for us!

Fran S.

Shannon and her team were incredible at setting up our will and trust. They were very hands-on as we organized our materials and super patient with all of our questions.

Petrushka L

Shannon was wonderful to work with, incredibly knowledgeable and patient in answering my many questions. I feel like I got great advice and the process was smooth and easy. I highly recommend her.

Leigh G.

We’re very lucky to have had the chance to work with you on our estate planning. It felt stressful before we started and quickly became painless.

Mary M.

Shannon is an amazing lawyer and advocate. Highly recommend for anyone looking for help with their estate planning.

Dillon K.

Shannon was great! And so was her entire team. Everyone was very professional and helpful.

Kathy C.

Shannon is wonderful to work with. She has a great process from start to finish, and was happy to walk me through step by step, and answer any questions along the way. I highly recommend Shannon to those in NY and surrounding areas who are looking to complete their estate planning documents.

Kaitlin N.

Shannon is professional, efficient and responsive. I couldn’t be happier to have found her to do our estate planning during this trying times. I highly recommend her services.

Ronna R.

Very professional, helpful and the whole process was very collaborative. My wife and I are pleased with the services we got from Shannon and her team despite Covid.

Ravi R.

Shannon was very patient with us and explained the documents so that we could understand them.

Debra M.

Personalized. Thoughtful. Ongoing.

We’re Here for What Matters Most

Estate planning isn’t a one-time event — it’s an ongoing relationship. As your life and family circumstances evolve, we’re here to help you adapt your plan and keep it aligned with what matters most.