Main Practice Areas
Elder Law and Special Needs Planning
Elder Law focuses on the needs of seniors and individuals with disabilities covering areas like long-term care planning, Medicaid/Medicare, estate planning, guardianship, and elder abuse protection. Jessica Wortham will focus on what needs to be done to ensure you financial security, autonomy, and rights protection. She can assist with long-term care planning, estate planning, incapacity planning, address elder abuse/fraud/neglect, managing resident rights, retirement planning, and various housing issues.
Special Needs Planning is designed to support individuals with disabilities to make sure they receive care and benefits without interfering with their eligibility for public assistance. Trusts may need to be created to prevent them from losing benefits through inheritance and a plan can be created to make sure a guardian is in place if the current caretaker passes away or becomes incapacitated.
At this time, we are not equipped to do Crisis Planning, however, if it appears you do need Crisis Planning done, we can assist in finding you some attorneys that can meet your needs.
Wills, Estates, Trusts, Guardianships
A Wills and Estates attorney can help you managing, protect, and distribute assets to minimize taxes and navigate probate court. Jessica can walk you through different options to make sure that you decide what happens to your property after you die OR you are incapacitated, not a court. A court may make decisions that go against your wishes or order someone to be in charge of your estate that you do not want. A good attorney can help you develop strategies to reduce estate tax burdens, protect assets from creditors, handle business succession, making sure assets are distributed properly, appointing guardians for minor children, designating beneficiaries for insurance or accounts, and making sure there is a durable financial and medical power of attorney.
Artificial Intelligence (AI, Chat GPT) and other DIY Wills do not offer legal advice or prevent you from creating a document that will be invalid in Court. Meaning that cheap or free Will may end up costing your family thousands of dollars in legal fees if the Court tosses it out. The internet also will fail to let you know of alternatives to protect your estate from creditors or other bad actors. DIY Wills do not protect you and your property in case you become incapacitated. Although the cheap wills look like a good deal, talk to an estate attorney first. Almost all estate attorneys, including Maple Leaf Law, have flat-rate pricing packages that are less than 1% of the average Kansas home's value and you can pick a package that works for you with your budget.
If you have a child, a savings account, a home, or any other property, you may benefit from a free consultation with Maple Leaf Law to make sure your loved ones and property are protected.
Elder Law, Wills, Estates, Trusts, Special Needs Planning, Guardianships Lawyer
About Maple Leaf Law LLC
Jessica Wortham's office is located in the heart of Baldwin City, Kansas within the Baldwin Chamber of Commerce Building at 719 High Street. She is starting Maple Leaf Law LLC and named it to encompass not just the beautiful maple trees that grace the city, but that maple leaves symbolize resiliency, unity, growth, and changes. Jessica Wortham with Maple Leaf Law LLC seeks to advise families as they grow and change through the years.
Solo practitioner and owner, Jessica (Brumm) Wortham, is a 4th generation Baldwinite and is excited to be returning to her hometown with her husband, children, dog, and cat. Jessica graduated Baldwin High School in 2000 and University of Kansas in 2005. She entered the banking world and worked as a teller, teller supervisor, and cash auditor for several years before starting law school at Texas Wesleyan School of Law in 2009. She graduated law school in 2012 and spend the next 13 years as a prosecutor in Dallas, Fort Worth, Longview, and Tyler, Texas. She has dedicated her legal career to helping victims and their families navigate the courtroom. Jessica is excited to bring her wealth of experience to assist her family, friends, and neighbors.
Jessica is dual licensed with both the Kansas State Bar and the Texas State Bar. She offers virtual meetings for clients that are not physically capable of coming to the Baldwin City office. For clients that have transportation or mobility issues, Jessica may be able to meet you at a location near you so long as the location can offer a private space to talk about confidential legal matters. Areas that she may be able to travel to include but are not limited to: Douglas, Jefferson, Leavenworth, Johnson, Miami, Franklin, Osage, and Shawnee.
Jessica is trauma-informed and has been trained from resources created by the Karen Purvis Institute of Child Development as both an attorney and as a former-foster parent. Jessica strives to create a safe, trustworthy environment and a law practice that avoids re-traumatization. She supports healing instead of causing further harm. She encourages collaboration and offers choices to promote empowerment for her clients. When a case is done right, it can be life-changing in very positive ways for families and the community. Jessica is dedicated to telling you the truth. She will take the time to make sure you understand what law applies to your situation, all options available going forward, the consequences of each choice, and giving you the chance to choose your own path that works best for you, even if that means not hiring her.
This is not a big flashy law firm. Jessica offers a personalized holistic experience to keep you and your family out of costly trials that drain your wallet, time, and energy. Clients are more than just case numbers. Jessica Wortham became a lawyer to help her community and, as your hometown lawyer, she is dedicated to helping you too.
Please call, text, email, or click the "Book a Consult" button to schedule an appointment to start investing in protecting your loved ones, your money, your property, your pets, and your peace of mind. You can book a quick phone call so you do not have to worry about playing phone tag if you need to meet outside of the office or outside of traditional 8-5 office hours. If you are ready to start your estate planning journey, you can book a free consultation today.