Inspiring Conversations with Jamie Weese of Weese Law Firm

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jamie Weese.

Hi Jamie, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
What a great question! I don’t think anyone has ever said, “I want to be a probate attorney when I grow up!”. I am no exception – so of course it makes sense that I went to law school with a degree in Criminology and plans to become a prosecutor. However, I had several experiences in law school that changed my path and taught me I wanted to help people and develop lasting relationships with my clients; estate planning and probate offer both of those.

I also never planned to have my own firm – or own my own business of any kind. I worked for Commerce Trust Company fresh out of law school and eventually decided I wanted to stay home with my (then) 10-month old daughter. A year later I had a son, and soon after that I craved the ability to have a conversation with other human beings that did not involve Paw Patrol or ABCs. I opened my law firm as a way to flex my intellectual muscles but worked very-part-time, nights and weekends only, so I could have the best of both worlds.

Fast forward ten years and I now work very-full-time and have an assistant and paralegal. I believe I have created a reputation as someone who cares about my clients and is passionate about helping them to navigate the legal minefields of estate planning and probate. I strive to provide comfort and peace at a time of deep grief and confusion for many clients. I deal with tense, awkward, and sad situations on a daily basis but in every conversation I try to make my clients smile and put them at ease.

I am so blessed that my life did not work out the way I had planned; I wake up every morning knowing I am where I am supposed to be.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way.
When I finally discovered that criminal law and being a prosecutor were not in my future I almost dropped out of law school. I felt lost. I felt like a failure. I went into mourning for my dream that would never come true. Thankfully I had a conversation with a few friends that helped me to stay the course, and soon a new dream involving tax and estate law began to take shape.

I loved working for Commerce Trust Company, but I never felt completely present. At work, I thought about my baby and at home, I thought about my work. The first few months of being a stay-at-home mom were blissful, but no one warns you how lonely it can be. I had a child (and soon had two children) completely dependent upon me and around me at all times, yet I felt so isolated. Opening my firm was a great idea, but one I was woefully unprepared for – I had the legal knowledge but no business training and knew nothing about running my own firm.

I worried that no one would trust a stay-at-home mom with something as serious as their estate plan. It turned out to be the exact opposite: people loved having an estate planning attorney focused on her family. If I put my family first, I was more likely to care about the intricacies and needs that come with every complex family. This was an obstacle entirely created in my own head which was, in actuality, a benefit. I think that can be said about a lot of things in life.

That said, it has not been all sunshine and roses. I did not take the Missouri bar until six years after I graduated from law school. At that point, I had a baby law firm and two human babies to nurture and grow. I had no time to study for the bar but felt like I needed to put myself through law school all over again because I had forgotten everything not related to estate law. It was hard in many different ways, but perhaps the emotional toll was the toughest.

What if I spent all of that time away from my family studying for the bar and it wasn’t enough?

What if I spent all of our money on bar review courses and it wasn’t enough?

What if I gave it everything I had and it wasn’t enough?

What if *I* wasn’t enough?

And yet, I knew taking the Missouri bar was an important step to growing my firm so I kept pushing forward. I sent my 3 & 5 years old to spend most of the summer with their grandparents. I felt guilty, but this guilt was an obstacle completely in my head – my kids did not get unlimited chocolate milk and sugar at our house like they did at their grandparent’s house. They were living their best lives!

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Weese Law Firm, LLC? What sets you apart from others?
What sets me apart is also what attracts my tribe – I enjoy life. I try to find the silver lining whenever possible. It doesn’t matter if I am hanging with friends or having a client consultation, I try to find something that makes me smile. When you are talking about something as heavy as who will be the guardian for your children, a laugh is often the last thing that you think about. But I have a gift for finding humor in every situation and keeping the mood light; I have had countless clients tell me that they had no idea “the talk” would be so enjoyable. This approach provides a necessary distraction while still completing the task at hand. Certainly, my personality and approach to life – and estate matters – is not a good match for everyone, but it seems to make me a perfect match for my clients. I even post a daily dad joke on my Facebook page in an attempt to remind people that these difficult conversations don’t have to be painful.

Additionally, I strive to teach everyone that estate planning and probate doesn’t just impact the rich. I handle the only area of law we are all absolutely, unequivocally, no exceptions, guaranteed to need at some point. Financial and health care power of attorneys dictate the person(s) who will make financial and health care decisions, respectively, for you while you are still alive. You are quite literally living with the decisions these people make, don’t leave it up to a judge to determine the person who will make these decisions. For the sake of your family, don’t think estate planning won’t matter because you don’t have a ton of money. None of us escape probate without planning – if you have $5,000 or $5,000,000 in assets, the law does not discriminate.

We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
I think taking a risk is important because without risk you cannot have growth. That said, I don’t consider myself to be a huge risk-taker. I have back-up plans for my back-up plans and schedule my entire week in 15 minute intervals.

Given that, you won’t be surprised to hear that I don’t have stories of jumping out of airplanes just for funsies – in fact, that sounds absolutely dreadful – but some might say I have taken risks. It was risky to leave my well-paying job at Commerce Trust Company after I worked so hard to get my degree. It was risky to open my own firm with no business knowledge. It was risky to take the bar 6 years after law school.

Those examples would be considered low-risk to most people, and I am comfortable being labeled a low-risk-taker. I think that complements my job where I try to mitigate risk for my clients by creating solutions for problems that don’t even exist yet. I hope everyone takes a little risk now and then, just not with their estate plan. 🙂

Pricing:

• Trust package for individual – $1,980
• Trust package for married couple – $2,950
• Will package for individual – $1,150
• Will package for married couple – $1,750
• Probate – $275/hour

Contact Info:

• Email: jamie@weeselawfirm.com
• Website: www.weeselawfirm.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/weeselawfirm

Image Credits:
RPeters Photography