Catherine E. Blackburn graduated with High Distinction from the University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy in 1978 and practiced pharmacy before entering law school. She graduated with Honors from The Ohio State University College of Law in 1982 and practiced in Columbus, Ohio before joining the faculty of the University of Louisville College of Law in 1987. While a law professor, Ms. Blackburn taught courses in basic legal skills, evidence, remedies, and coached the mock trial teams. In 1992, she moved to the Tampa Bay area and practiced catastrophic personal injury law until 2011.
After decades of litigation practice, Ms. Blackburn turned her attention to legal life planning with a focus on ensuring that singles, couples, and persons with specific concerns, such as seniors needing long term and nursing home care and LGBT persons, receive legal advice and services directed to their needs and circumstances. For the past 20 years, Ms. Blackburn has worked to coordinate health care and health care reimbursement from Medicare, Medicaid, VA, insurance, and private pay.
We believe your life is constantly changing, and it is critical that your estate plan change along with it.
If you work for yourself or employ others, proper business structure is important.
LGBT people face challenges that heterosexual people, especially married heterosexual people, do not face. And, this requires using the same planning documents in different ways.
At Blackburn Law Firm, Cathy focuses on assisting clients to live life fully especially as we grow older.
Lawyers are required to have a college degree and a law degree; non-lawyers have no legal or other educational requirements.
Lawyers are required to pass a stringent admittance examination to attest to their competency of the law and a thorough character and fitness investigation before being admitted to practice law; non-lawyers have no such requirements.
Lawyers are required to maintain current legal education and take ethics courses periodically; non-lawyers have no continuing education requirement.
Lawyers are subject to comprehensive and stringent ethical rules; non-lawyers have no written ethical standards.
Lawyers accused of ethical misbehavior are investigated by The Florida Bar which can lead to losing their license to practice law; non-lawyers are not professionally accountable to any authority although they can be investigated and prosecuted for engaging in the unlicensed practice of law.
Lawyers are required to maintain client confidences; communications of confidential information with non-lawyers are not protected by attorney-client confidentiality.
Many lawyers maintain professional liability insurance which is available to pay potential claims made against an attorney; many non-lawyers cannot obtain professional insurance as they may not be considered to be a “professional” and therefore, it could be difficult to get your money back if they do not provide the services they promised.
Cathy understands that legal planning can be an emotional undertaking for you and your family and that professional legal advice, prompt attention, and public benefits qualification are of primary importance to families facing these issues. To that end, our law office can provide the following services:
In depth discussion of your goals and options to potentially achieve your goals including the pros and cons of the various choices;
Thorough examination of assets for public benefits qualification and/or estate planing purposes;
. Gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered people use the same planning documents as anyone. In that sense, nothing is different about Life Planning for LGBT people. However, LGBT people face challenges that heterosexual people, especially married heterosexual people, do not face. And, this requires using the same planning documents in different ways.
Thorough explanation of the available estate planning options available for your specific situation, whether you desire to avoid probate, to protect special needs beneficiaries, or to protect assets;
Including preparation of forms and follow-through. My office will deal directly with Medicaid on your behalf throughout the completion of the application process;