Since 1973, I have litigated many kinds of both criminal and civil cases. Throughout that time I litigated estate, trust and real property cases. These include will contests, improper handling of estate or trust funds, disputes relating to distributions from estates and trusts, boundary disputes and title issues at both the trial and appellate level. Routine probate, wills, trusts and estate planning are also a substantial part of my experience and practice. My practice also includes civil litigation in a variety of fields.
My practice is based in Prince Frederick, the county seat for Calvert County, Maryland and from there I travel as necessary to other counties including Prince George's, Montgomery, Howard, Anne Arundel, Charles and St. Mary's.
As a teenager I got very interested in all things electronic. I educated myself as much as I could and then took a course from the DeVry Technical Institute in Chicago in Radio & TV Servicing. I got a degree from there in 1963. That interest started a lifelong quest for knowledge and a particular appreciation for the smallest details and intricately technical things.
Back in the 1960s with Goddard Space Flight Center nearby, there was much interest in the space science field. The engineering department at Catholic University in DC established the Department of Space Science and Applied Physics to meet the increasing demand for engineers for the field. I was one of the first graduates from the program in 1967 when I received a Bachelor of Science in Engineering degree from the Department of Space Science and Applied Physics.
At the time there was also an increasing interest in computers. In my last year, a graduate computer programming course was offered. I held the highest grade for the class from the course. Had I already not been on track to work for Westinghouse, I probably would have ended up in the computer field.
Upon graduation, I started work for Westinghouse as a Field Engineer and then as senior engineering staff assistant. With Westinghouse, I worked with the Navy on the radar and weapons control system for the Phantom F4-J aircraft. I was deployed as a civilian aboard the USS Independence in 1968 and the USS Enterprise in 1969. With the Enterprise, we were in combat operations off the coast of Vietnam. After that service, I returned to Westinghouse headquarters in Baltimore.
While working full time for Westinghouse, 120 miles round trip each day to Cockeysville, I attended law school at Catholic University in the evenings and graduated after three and a half years with a Juris Doctor in 1973 in the top ten percent of my class. I was selected for the Law Review for my second year and in my third year was Comment Editor - a distinction held only once before by a night student.
My legal career began when, in 1972, I was asked by Alfred L. Scanlan, who had just been appointed to the Maryland Court of Special Appeals to be his first law clerk. It was through that clerkship that I became familiar with the handling of appeals and the workings of Maryland's appellate courts.
In 1973 I was admitted the the Maryland bar and joined the law firm of Pitrof & Starkey as an associate. There I did a general practice that included auto accidents, divorce and custody work, wills, estates and trusts and criminal work.
In 1979, I decided to try practice on my own. I did so with much success, but after 4 years and wanting more association with other lawyers, I and three other lawyers formed Greenan, Walker, Steuart & Meng.
From 1973 to 1990, along with a continuing estate and trust practice, a significant part of my focus was in family law (mostly divorce and custody) litigation.
In 1990, I was asked by State Farm to take on a significant amount of jury trial work defending people insured by them and being sued in Maryland courts. The number of cases they sent to me dramatically increased in the Summer of 1991 and as a result I transitioned completely out of my practice of family law. By early 1992, in addition to estate and trust and real property work, my primary focus was on personal injury litigation.
My work on State Farm cases gave me significant jury trial experience. That is important because jury trials in the estate and trust field are rare. As a result, there are a limited number of lawyers who have the necessary experience.
Because of dramatic shifts in the insurance industry in the 1990s, I decided again to transform my practice and to get away from the State Farm work. I started the transformation in 1998 so that my primary focus would be estate, trust and real property litigation. This was a natural shift as handling family members, who have significant emotional issues related to a person who has died or setting up the trust of other family members, posed a professional and personal dynamic similar to family law. And, there was also a need for lawyers to have jury trial experience to handle some of the issues that arise from wills and trusts.
I enjoy the personal contact and representing individuals. I've had my share of difficult times. These life lessons have made dealing with the realities of death and dying comfortable for me. They have also lead me to be quite tolerant and understanding. The personal disputes that arise in the field of estates and trusts and to a lesser degree in the real property field require a lawyer with interpersonal skills that can be learned only through life experience.
For many years, I have been dedicated to upholding the integrity of the legal profession. In the 1970s, I was the co-founder of a formal bar organization to assist lawyers in need of assistance due to emotional, substance abuse and other practice problems. It was one of the first such organizations in the United States. Since early in my practice, I have been involved with ethical matters, first as a member of the county bar ethics committee, then the state bar and then as a member of the Inquiry Panel for Maryland's Attorney Grievance Commission, which handles the discipline of lawyers. I started that work in 1982. I continued as a member of the Inquiry Panel until 1989 when I was appointed to a 3-year term as a member of the Review Board. After that, I went back to the Inquiry Panel until 2001. There was then a reorganization of the system. The Inquiry Panels and the Review Board ceased to exist. Peer Review Panels handle work similar but different from what was done by the Inquiry Panels. Cases then go to the full Attorney Grievance Commission. During the transition period, I was a member of both Inquiry Panels and Peer Review Panels. As to both Inquiry Panels and Peer Review Panels, I often served as Chairman. In 2007 I was appointed by the Court of Appeals to a 3-year term as a Commissioner for the Attorney Grievance Commission. I was reappointed for another 3 years. My term ended in 2013 in anticipation of an eventual move to Kentucky.
In 1987, Martindale Hubbell informed me that my rating had increased from a BV to an AV. An AV is the highest available peer rating from Martindale Hubbell. Since 1988, I have continuously carried that rating and am listed in their publication of Preeminent Lawyers in the United States. I've also been selected by Super Lawyers in the field of estate and trust litigation.
In conjunction with my legal expertise, I have notable technological experience. My first computer programming was done in 1965. While at Westinghouse, in 1970, I received an award for computerizing a process that previously was done by hand. In the early 1980s, I was one of the first lawyers to implement computers into the law practice. I was the first lawyer in Maryland to use Lexis - Nexis CDROM research and the first lawyer in Maryland to electronically transmit a court pleading to a State court.
Essentially, this technological proficiency translates into lower costs to the client as the time I expend is significantly decreased.
With a wealth of hands-on litigation and probate experience, I offer to my clients the rare and valuable combination of a lawyer who not only prepares wills and trust documents but who also knows first hand how these plans play out in real life. Added to this, I have many years of practical small business experience.
I hold my integrity as most important. My ability to communicate in an honest, straightforward and complete way is a close second.
My vast and broad knowledge of many different areas of the law, as well as my many diverse life experiences, allow me to speak relevantly and act effectively and successfully in the legal matters I handle for my clients.
Practice areas
My litigation practice is 75% for estate and trust related matters; 20% for real property related matters (no foreclosure litigation); and 5% for miscellaneous civil matters. Much of this litigation ultimately is resolved by settlement, arbitration or mediation
49 years, 1,000 cases
Much of this work is complicated probate work
49 years, 500 cases
See litigation explanation
36 years, 300 cases
Although my focus is primarily litigation, I also do estate planning work but do not emphasize that part of my practice.
49 years, 1,500 cases
I also handle appellate work in Maryland Courts and personal injury litigation and other general practice areas - no family law (divorce or custody) & no criminal.
49 years, 1,000 cases
See litigation explanation
36 years, 100 cases
Languages spoken
English
State | Status | Acquired | Updated |
---|---|---|---|
KY | Authorized to Practice Law | 2013 | 03/12/2022 |
MD | Active | 1973 | 03/30/2022 |
Legal answers | 234 |
Legal guides | 0 |
Award name | Grantor | Date Granted |
---|---|---|
Certificate of Meritorious Service | Court of Appeals, Maryland - Attorney Greivance Commission | 2013 |
The Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyers - Continuous Since 1988 | LexisNexis | 2009 |
AV Rating - Continuous since 1988 | Martindale-Hubbell | 2009 |
The Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyers | LexisNexis | 2008 |
AV Rated | Martindale-Hubbell | 2008 |
AV Rated | Martindale-Hubbell | 2007 |
AV Rated | Martindale-Hubbell | 2006 |
Certificate of Appreciation | Court of Appeals, Maryland - Peer Review Committee | 2005 |
High Legal Standards And Ethics | Bar Register of Preminent Lawyers 1997 to Present | 1997 |
Certificate of Appreciation | Pastoral Counseling & Consultation Centers of Greater Washington | 1992 |
Certificate of Appreciation | Court of Appeals, Maryalnd - Review Board | 1992 |
President's Award | Prince George's County Bar Association | 1991 |
Certificate of Appreciation | Court of Appeals, Maryland - Inquiry Committee | 1989 |
Outstanding Service Award | Prince George's County Parks & Recreation Foundation | 1987 |
Award of Merit | Consul, Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Washington | 1982 |
Who's Who in American Law | Marquis | 1978 |
Title | Company name | Duration |
---|---|---|
Owner | Meng Law | 2010 - Present |
Partner | Meng & Alpert, LLC | 2004 - 2010 |
Owner | Law Offices of George E. Meng | 2001 - 2004 |
Partner | Meng & Urey | 1993 - 2001 |
Owner | Law Offices of George E. Meng | 1990 - 1993 |
Partner | Greenan,Walker, Steuart & Meng | 1983 - 1990 |
Owner | Law Office of George E. Meng | 1979 - 1983 |
Associate | Pitrof & Starkey | 1973 - 1979 |
Law Clerk | Court of Special Appeals, Maryland | 1972 - 1973 |
Association name | Position name | Duration |
---|---|---|
Kentucky Bar Association | Lifetime Member | 2013 - Present |
Maryland Bar Foundation | Fellow | 2003 - Present |
Arbitration Forums, Inc. | Mediator | 1992 - Present |
Maryland State Bar Association | Member | 1973 - Present |
American Bar Association | Member | 1973 - Present |
Calvert County Bar Association | Member | 1973 - Present |
Green Mountain Repeater Association | Founder and Life Member | 1972 - Present |
Maryland Commission on Professionalism - Replaced by Maryland Professionalism Center | Member - Commission Replaced 9/12/2012 | 2010 - 2012 |
Attorney Grievance Commission | Commissioner | 2007 - 2013 |
St. Mark's Episcopal Hill, Capitol Hill | Senior Warden | 2001 - 2003 |
Attorney Grievance Commission | Member, Peer Review Panel | 2001 - 2007 |
Attorney Grievance Commission | Member, Inquiry Panel | 1992 - 2003 |
Attorney Grievance Commission | Member, Review Board | 1989 - 1992 |
Pastoral Counseling & Consultation Centers | Board Member and Treasurer | 1986 - 1993 |
Prince George's County Parks & Recreation Foundation, Inc. | Board Member | 1986 - 1987 |
St. Mark's Episcopal Church, Capitol Hill | Vestry Member | 1985 - 1988 |
Calvert County Historic District Commission | Member and Vice Chairman | 1984 - 1990 |
Attorney Grievance Commisssion | Member Inquiry Panel | 1982 - 1989 |
Lawyers In Need Committee, Prince George's County Bar Association | Co-Chairman | 1977 - 1991 |
Ethics Committee, Prince George's County Bar Association | Chairman and Member | 1977 - 1990 |
Brandywine Country Homeowner's Association | Board Member | 1976 - 1977 |
Brandywine Country Homeowner's Association | Board Member | 1976 - 1977 |
Citizen's Association of Marlton | President and Board Member | 1975 - 1977 |
Prince George's County Bar Association | Member | 1973 - 2012 |
Publication name | Title | Date |
---|---|---|
MSBA Elderlaw Section News | Realistic Estate Planning | 2009 |
Catholic University Law Review | Television: The Public Interest in License Renewals | 1970 |
School name | Degree | Graduated |
---|---|---|
Catholic University of America, School of Law | JD - Juris Doctor | 1973 |
Catholic University of America | BS - Bachelor of Science | 1967 |
Conference name | Title | Date |
---|---|---|
Co-Lecturer to Orphans' Court Judges | Probate Fundamentals | 2014 |
Professionalism Course, New Admitees 11/26-29/2012 | Professionalism | 2012 |
Meeting of Estates & Trusts Law Section | Ten Traps for The Unwary Estate Planner | 2012 |
Annual Estates & Trusts Committee Seminar | Nuts & Bolts of Estates & Trusts in the 21st Century | 2012 |
Co-Lecturer to 50 Judges from Around the State | Evidence: Probate Emphasis | 2011 |
Co-Lecturer to 50 Judges from Around the State | Probate 101 - Litigation Issues | 2011 |
Joint Meeting of Bar Associations | Mandatory CLE Proposal for Maryland Lawyers | 2010 |
Meeting of Maryland Registers of Wills | Fiduciary and Other Fraud | 2010 |
Estate Planning Seminar | Modern Estate Planning | 2007 |
Estate Planning Seminar | Modern Estate Planning | 2005 |
Case name | Outcome |
---|---|
Solis v. Schuenenman | Plaintiff Won |
Lipiano v. Lipiano | Affirmed on Appeal |
Globe American v. Chung | Plaintiff Won Through Appeal |
Washabaugh v. Washabaugh | Plaintiff Prevailed - The Long Way |
Tri-County Federal S & L of Waldorf v. Lyle | Plaintiff Won |
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Alexander Ripps, Probate Attorney on Nov 30, 2016
Relationship: Worked together on matter
I endorse this lawyer. I recently consulted with Mr. Meng on a very complex case. Mr. Meng was extremely generous with his time, and immediately grasped the issues involved. I would recommend him highly.
Justin Sasser, Litigation Attorney on Oct 8, 2013
Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community
I have been acquainted with Mr. Meng for over twenty years during which time I have had dealings with him as a colleague, as opposing counsel in contested trial matters, and as my own personal counsel. He is without a doubt a consummate trial attorney, being possessed of both an encompassing knowledge of the law and the practical wisdom required to assist his client's in determining whether it is best to proceed to trial or negotiate settlement. I addition, he is quite a decent fellow.
Alexander Ripps, Probate Attorney on Nov 30, 2016
Relationship: Worked together on matter
I endorse this lawyer. I recently consulted with Mr. Meng on a very complex case. Mr. Meng was extremely generous with his time, and immediately grasped the issues involved. I would recommend him highly.
Justin Sasser, Litigation Attorney on Oct 8, 2013
Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community
I have been acquainted with Mr. Meng for over twenty years during which time I have had dealings with him as a colleague, as opposing counsel in contested trial matters, and as my own personal counsel. He is without a doubt a consummate trial attorney, being possessed of both an encompassing knowledge of the law and the practical wisdom required to assist his client's in determining whether it is best to proceed to trial or negotiate settlement. I addition, he is quite a decent fellow.
Neveen Kurtom, Litigation Attorney on Jul 11, 2012
Relationship: Worked together on matter
I endorse Mr. Meng's work. He is very intelligent and handles complex estate cases with great ease. I worked with him on a complex estate matter and I personally saw his skills in action. He is very personable and kept me informed of every step throughout the case. I highly recommend him.
Michael Schreyer, Litigation Attorney on Jun 10, 2009
Relationship: Worked together on matter
I have worked with and against George Meng, and I can say without hesitation that he is a very sharp lawyer with a great amount of experience and outstanding judgment. When I have a difficult legal question that needs a thoughtful answer, I call George.
Wendy Cartwright, Probate Attorney on Apr 24, 2009
Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community
George Meng is one of the premier attorneys in Prince George's County and the State of Maryland in the area of Estates, Trusts and Probate law. His experience in dealing with the most complicated legal matters is a testimony to his skill in working with clients from all backgrounds, and with experienced and young attorneys alike.
Laurence Cumberland, Estate planning Attorney on Apr 8, 2009
Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community
I endorse this lawyer's work. George is a superior attorney, and very well respected by the bench and the bar. He is a true lawyer's lawyer.
Daniel Bendt, Probate Attorney on Apr 6, 2009
Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community
I endorse this lawyer's work.
Ronald Miller, Estate planning Attorney on Aug 25, 2008
Relationship: Worked together on matter
We have sent our complex trusts and estates work to a number of Maryland lawyers. I think George Meng has a better understand of these issues than any other Maryland lawyer that we have worked with in resolving complex T&E problems associated with personal injury cases. I recommend him highly.
Cash, Check