Mary has practiced law for 20 years in the area of trial advocacy and has extensive litigation and jury trial experience. Mary's uses her tested skills to help families, businesses and individuals solve disputes over wills, trusts, powers of attorney and other fiduciary and estate matters. Mary has both recovered for and defended parties in estate and trust disputes where assets worth thousands to millions were in dispute. These cases can be very emotional and clients appreciate Mary’s steady and calm problem solving as well as her in-depth knowledge of the risks and benefits of taking cases to a jury. Estate, trust and other fiduciary cases touch many areas of the law including real estate, tax, corporate, commercial and intellectual property. By teaming with other attorneys at McGuire, Wood & Bissette with specialties in these areas of law, Mary can make sure clients receive the best possible service at the best possible value. In addition to litigation and trials, Mary handles matters involving trustee vacancies, trust modifications and terminations requiring court approval, including issues involving charitable trusts. She also helps families and individuals facing difficult choices about seeking guardianship for relatives with diminished capacity, particularly when those cases are contested.Mary serves on the statewide Litigation Section Council and the Estate Planning and Fiduciary Law Section’s Fiduciary Litigation Committee for the North Carolina Bar Association. In the community, Mary is a Council Member on the Family Advisory Council for the Family Support Network of Mission Children's Hospital and is a Parent Mentor for its Parent to Parent Program. She serves as a volunteer attorney with Pisgah Legal Services’ Mountain Area Volunteer Lawyer Program. Mary is a Member and Volunteer with the Western North Carolina Down Syndrome Alliance and volunteers with the Special Olympics. She served as Treasurer for the local 28th Judicial District Bar, has served on the Board of Directors of Child Abuse Prevention Services and the Mountain Sports Festival. Mary is a Graduate of Leadership Asheville.
