Ferrell J. Townsend

Bio

• Litigation regarding Estate, Trusts, Guardianships and Municipal laws.
• Drafts, files, and argues regarding Petitions, Answers, Briefs, and Preliminary Objections for Orphans’ Court litigation. and appellate issues regarding Pennsylvania Open Space Act.
• Attends and conducts various municipal meetings and public hearings as a Municipal Solicitor.

Previous experience includes a Chester County law firm where, as an Associate Attorney, he:                                  

• Managed litigation for complex matters in the Civil, Family and Orphans’ Court Divisions.
• Drafted and filed initial Complaints, Answers, and Preliminary Objections for Mortgage Foreclosures, Quiet Title Actions, Bankruptcy adversary proceedings and breach of fiduciary duties actions.
• Argued motions and petitions in proceedings relating to Equitable Distribution, Divorce, and Orphans’ Court.
• Prepared Family Settlement Agreements, Non-Disclosures, and Waiver, Release, and Indemnity Agreements
• Probated Last Will and Testaments and coordinated estate and trust administration with fiduciaries.
• Conducted extensive legal research using Lexis Nexis on complex issues including fraudulent transfers.

Ferrell also served as a Judicial Law Clerk for the Court of Common Pleas of Chester County where he:                   

• Researched and prepared memoranda on current case law in the Civil and Orphans’ Court Divisions.
• Assisted in drafting over 100 Orders and Decrees, outlined, drafted, and edited 8 Appellate Court Opinions, and prepared jury charges for jury trials.
• Audited and prepared adjudications for Estates, Trusts, and Guardianship Accountings.
• Reviewed court files to determine legal issues presented in motions, petitions, preliminary objections, etc.
• Assisted during settlement conferences, administrative conferences, pre-trial conferences, and jury trials.
• Provided legal counsel to Court Administration, Register of Wills, and Prothonotary’s Office and non-legal procedural advice to attorneys appearing before the Judge, especially regarding Chester County local rules.
• Tracked legal filings to ensure litigants have complied with our orders and to ensure compliance with the time limitations of Pa.R.J.A. No. 703.
• Generated and developed Chester County local rules regarding Orphans’ Court matters including adoption procedures, guardianships, minor’s actions, and estate administration compliance.

Prior to completing law school, Ferrell had many diverse experiences as a consultant for non-profits when he:

• Drafted and edited strategic plans, diversity and inclusion reports, and fundraising guidelines.
• Presented strategic plans and capital campaign initiatives to current clients, including Augustinian schools and universities, and prepared and presented responses to requests for proposals to potential clients.
• Conducted feasibility studies and assisted with nonprofit board governance for clients.
• Coordinated overall design and publication of reports, newsletters, proposals, and presentations
  to clients’ strategic planning committees, executive teams, and boards of trustees.

As an intern, Ferrell worked with the Defender Association of Philadelphia and represented clients in preliminary hearings and misdemeanor trials in the Philadelphia Municipal Court and conducted client interviews, developed case theories, negotiated with Assistant District Attorneys, prepared pretrial motions, and argued motions in the Philadelphia Municipal Court.

He also worked as a Judicial Clerk intern for the Court of Common Pleas of Delaware County in Media, PA, where he:

• Drafted seven memorandums of opinion for submission to Superior Court of Pennsylvania.
• Researched trends in juvenile life sentencing and PA Post Conviction Relief Act (PCRA) claims.
• Accompanied judge to court proceedings, discussed Rules of Criminal Procedure, and observed preliminary hearings, sentencing hearings, and side-bar discussions.