Find a Lawyer Iowa Coralville Estate Planning
Melvin O. Shaw

PRO

Melvin O. Shaw

4.8
114 reviews
This is an aggregated review score of Avvo and Lawyers.com reviews.
Rating: 9.2

Licensed for 19 years

Real estate Lawyer at Coralville, IA
Practice Areas: Real Estate, Wills & Living Wills, Business ... +2 more

1303 5th Street, Suite 104, Coralville, IA

Virtual Consultation Available

Call for a consultation (319) 313-5584

Message
Melvin O. Shaw's Website
Overview Reviews Experience Activity
Overview Reviews Experience Activity
Call for a consultation (319) 313-5584

About Melvin

Practice Areas

5

Practice Areas

Business 20%

Limited liability company (LLC) and corporation formation, governance, buy-sell agreements, and asset purchases succession planning, homeowner association representation, commercial real estate sales and leasing, owner investments

19 years

20%
Estate Planning 20%

Draft last will and testaments for clients, advise on gifts and other transfers of personal and real property, draft trusts, work with clients' tax specialists, advisors and other professionals.

19 years

20%
Probate 20%

Represent small and large estates with transfers of property during probate administration, handle claims and litigation in probate, prepare fiduciary and other tax returns of the decedent. Advise the executor/personal representative. Represent beneficiaries when not serving as attorney for the estate.

19 years

20%
Real Estate 20%

Assist first-time and repeat home buyers with bank-financed, and for sale by owner (FSBO) & real estate agent assisted purchases/sales. Handle commercial real estate transactions, conduct closings, prepare deeds and handle other transfers of residential real estate and farm land.

19 years

20%
Wills and Living Wills 20%

Draft simple and complex wills, prepare testamentary trusts for clients with a minor child(ren) and pour over wills. Prepare amendments (codicils) to wills. Advise and prepare living wills (Do Not Resuscitate) provision, and all forms of powers of attorney

19 years

20%

Fees and Rates

We have not found any cost information for this lawyer

Contact for Details

Licenses

Licensed in Iowa for 19 years

State: Iowa

Acquired: 2006

Active

No misconduct found

Location

The Law Office of Melvin O. Shaw P.L.C.

(319) 337-6272

Fax

1303 5th Street, Suite 104, Coralville, IA, 52241

melvinshaw.com/
Get Directions

Online Presence

Other places you can find Melvin online.

Melvin O. Shaw's Reviews

Filter Avvo Reviews (88) Refine reviews to match your needs. Use the filters to quickly surface reviews that align with your case or priorities.
Star rating
5 stars 85 4 stars 1
3 stars 0
2 stars 0
1 star 2
Practice Areas
Wills & Living Wills (39) Power Of Attorney (15) Estate Planning (13) Real Estate (9) Probate (7) Contracts & Agreements (4) Residential (4) Business (3) Elder Law (3) Trusts (2) Corporate & Incorporation (1) Debt & Lending Agreements (1) Lawsuits & Disputes (1) Limited Liability Company (LLC) (1)
What Clients Mention
Practice Area Knowledge (37) Recommendation (29) Professionalism (23) Communication Style (21) Character & Conduct (16) Responsiveness (16) Case Results (13) General Knowledge (10) Cost of Services (7) Compassion (5) Advocacy (4) Punctuality (4) Staff & Support (3) Trustworthiness (3)

Showing 6 - 10 of 13 reviews | Case Results

Posted by Norma and Michael | July 31, 2020 | Hired Attorney

Came to our rescue!

We were bogged down with a mortgage lien issue that was stalling the sale of our house. Our realty company was not able to solve the problem. We contacted Mr. Shaw, who returned our call within the hour. He listened carefully, formulated a clear plan, and had the issue resolved within a few days. Asi...de from providing excellent legal service he was most gracious in helping to alleviate our frustration and worry. We highly recommend this gentleman.

Posted by anonymous | July 31, 2019 | Hired Attorney

Fast, efficient and extremely professional

We were very impressed with our experience with Melvin. We called around looking for a lawyer to do our LLC. I called a lawyer we have used before and she was able to do what we needed but seemed unsure and also told us it would take a few weeks. When we called and spoke to Melvin he was very confide...nt and knowing what he was doing and told us it could be done quickly. We chose to go with him we were not let down. He got right on top of things and got everything handled in a much shorter time frame than others had said it could be done. He is very confident and professional and a pleasure to work with. We will definitely do more business with him in the future shall we need to.

Posted by Liz | May 31, 2019 | Hired Attorney

Probate & Estate Planning from Afar

I worked with Mel over that last three or so years to assist me through legal matters including Personals Representative appointment, Estate Planning, and Probate processing. I live in Wisconsin and Mel made all of these processes as simple as he possibly could for me. He is very knowledgeable an...d does whatever he can to assist you, no matter the day or time. I highly recommend working with Mel. Without him, I wouldn’t have been able to get through all of this!

Posted by Kevin | March 21, 2019 | Hired Attorney

Wills, DPOA & HCPOA for both my wife & myself

We hired Melvin to revise our 2001 Wills and Power of Attorney, as our 2 sons are in their 20's now. Melvin was known to us through a previous LLC we had done for us a few years ago. We sat down with Melvin to go over what we would want to revise. We didn't Guardians any more due to the boys' ages. ...We also wanted to keep all Estate and Property as being willed to each of us and then our sons 50/50. In turn, we discussed our wishes upon death. We reviewed both the Durable & Health Care POA's. We made changes with these, as well, to keep within the immediate family. Melvin then gave us a timeline on editing, our further review, any additional editing/reviews, and then setting up a meeting to sign and finalize with Witness participation. His firm did a great job of turning around all the documents and editing after our review. We were then able to schedule a meeting within a couple of weeks. The meeting to sign, re-established what we had agreed upon with the previous documents, and we signed, as did Witnesses, where required by law. We also had the proper documents Notarized. At this point, we were provided sealed and original copies of all documents. Melvin also made sure we had copies we could keep for review or need. Lastly, after filing with the court, Melvin sent us a zipped PDF file of all 6 documents. We can then share with our kids, who will be Executors upon the death of both my wife and myself. In the email, Melvin sent, he thanked us for the responsibility of handling this critical and sensitive information to insure thinks are handled properly within the law, as one or both of us pass away. As an extra piece, Melvin sent a brief, bullet pointed 'to do' list to make sure we follow through with last pieces, such as: shredding the old Wills, contacting our Health Care Providers with POA's, etc. Melvin was professional, thorough, detail-oriented, and personable throughout all of our interactions. I would highly recommend Melvin Shaw from the Law Office of Melvin O. Shaw in Coralville, IA!

Posted by anonymous | March 01, 2018 | Hired Attorney

Wills

We had the good fortune of meeting Mel and were at a time in our lives where we needed to put our affairs in order. After thinking on our future plan for our assets and children, we asked Mel to pull it all together for us. He came back quickly and precisely based on what we needed to have done. A...ctually we were a little embarrassed because he had to wait on us on more than one occasion since our schedules couldn't allow for us both to be present for the signing. However it was completed and we are very pleased with having chosen Mel to finalize this long overdue but much needed task. We will definitely be using him again in the future should we need any more work done.

See All Client Reviews

Melvin O. Shaw's Lawyer Endorsements

Endorse Melvin
L. Craig Nierman headshot
L. Craig Nierman

Probate lawyer | Aug 08

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I recently had the opportunity to work with Melvin on a case; his insights and knowledge were very valuable. Additionally, he is a very engaging and approachable person. I look forward to working with him again."

View All Endorsements
L. Craig Nierman headshot
L. Craig Nierman

Personal injury lawyer

Experience

Rating:  9.2 (Superb)

Honors

2009

Distinguished Black Alumni Award, University of Iowa College of Law

Work Experience

2004 - 2004

Legal Intern, U.S. Attorneys Office Cedar Rapids

2004 - 2004

Intern, University of Iowa Office of the General Counsel

1998 - 2002

Writer and Public Relations Practitioner, University of Iowa Office of Public Relations

Associations

2014 - Present

Systems Unlimited, Inc.

Board Member

2014 - Present

Charter Review Commission, City of Iowa City, Iowa

Member

2012 - Present

The Housing Fellowship

Board of Trustees

2006 - Present

American Bar Association

Member

2006 - Present

Iowa State Bar Association

Member Sections Business, Probate & Real Estate

2001 - Present

Bethel A.M.E. Church

Steward

2017 - 2018

Johnson County Bar Association

President

2016 - 2017

Johnson County Bar Association

Vice President

2015 - 2016

Johnson County Bar Association

Treasurer

2013 - 2014

Johnson County Bar Association

Secretary

Education

2004

University of Iowa College of Law

JD - Juris Doctor

1997

University of Iowa

MA - Masters

1994

University of Missouri

BA - Bachelor of Arts

Speaking Engagements

2014

Estate Planning Seminar

Probate

2011

2009

National Business Institute Estate Planning Basics

2009

National Business Institute Probate Process from Start to Finish

2008

National Business Institute Probate Process from Start to Finish

2007

National Business Institute

Probate

Languages

English

Activity

1

Legal Answers

Legal Answers

Q&A

If only one spouse`s name is on a deed in a equitable distribution state, how is that real estate divided at death or divorce?

01 Dec 2014
Avvo Rating

Our Rating is calculated using information the lawyer has included on their profile in addition to the information we collect from state bar associations and other organizations that license legal professionals. Attorneys who claim their profiles and provide Avvo with more information tend to have a higher rating than those who do not.

What determines Avvo Rating?
  • Experience & background Years licensed, work experience, education
  • Legal community recognition Peer endorsements, associations, awards
  • Legal thought leadership Publications, speaking engagements
  • Discipline Disciplinary information may not be comprehensive, or updated. We recommend that you always check a lawyer's disciplinary status with their respective state bar association before hiring them.
Avvo Rating Levels
10.0 - 9.0 Superb8.9 - 8.0 Excellent7.9 - 7.0 Very Good6.9 - 6.0 Good5.9 - 5.0 Average4.9 - 4.0 Concern3.9 - 3.0 Caution2.9 - 2.0 Strong Caution1.9 - 1.0 Extreme Caution
Learn More About the Avvo Rating