Our People: Kelly Jones
Kelly Jones
Focus Areas of Practice:
Advanced Directives for Healthcare – creation of legal documents used to instruct doctors and loved ones on your wishes for life-sustaining treatments and artificially administered and fluids, as well as creating living wills, appointing a health care proxy, and giving directions for organ donation.
Estate and Trust Litigation – represent trustees, executors, administrators, guardians, beneficiaries, and wards in all manner of claims relating to guardianships, will contests, breaches of fiduciary duties by trustees and other parties, accountings, trust modification and reformation, allegations of undue influence or fraudulent conveyances, and the interpretation and resolution of issues relating to testamentary capacity intent.
Estate Planning – assist clients in creating comprehensive and strategic plans for the management of their property and affairs as it relates to goals and life-changing events.
Guardianship – represent clients seeking authority to act on behalf of minor children, elderly parents, special needs children entering adulthood and other incapacitated individuals to safeguard their person and property.
Mediation Services – assist parties to mediate and negotiate disputes in probate, estate, and trust-related matters.
Non-Probate Asset Distribution – assist clients in setting up and creating beneficiary documents such as transfer on death deeds, transfer on death titles, trusts, etc., to avoid probate.
Probate – represent and assist heirs and administrators in relation to the legal proceedings necessary in taking control of a decedent's probate debts and assets.
Powers of Attorney – assist clients in the creation of legal documents intended to give others authority to manage property, medical, or financial affairs.
Real Property – represent clients needing assistance with title clearing, title opinions, quiet titles, litigation, and conveyances involving real property.
Trusts – assist clients in creating non-probate vessels relating to distribution and holding of property, special-needs situations, charitable giving, tax deductions, and to meet various estate and life-planning goals.
Wills – assist clients in creating documents outlining the distribution of your assets after death and the appointment of guardians for minor children.
Admissions
Oklahoma, including all United States District Courts
Texas, including all United States District Courts
United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri
Cherokee Nation Tribal Court
Choctaw Nation Tribal Court
Muscogee (Creek) Nation Tribal Court
Pawnee Nation Tribal Court
Certified Family and Civil Mediator
Education
Juris Doctor, Thomas M. Cooley Law School, Lansing, MI, 2012
Magna Cum Laude
Top 7% of Class
M.S. -- Public Administration, Central Michigan University, 2013
B.A. -- Business, Northwood University, 2005
Summa Cum Laude
Professional Honors
Super Lawyers Rising Star 2023
Professional Organizations
Co-Chair - Probate & Estate Planning Section – Tulsa County Bar Association
Member – Tulsa Title and Probate Lawyers Association (https://www.ttpla.com/)
Member – Tulsa Estate Planning Forum (https://www.tulsaepf.org/)
Member – National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (https://www.naela.org/)
Member of the Oklahoma Bar Association and the following committees:
Estate Planning, Probate and Trust Committee
Real Property Committee
Title Examination Standards Committee
Member of the Tulsa County Bar Association
Probate & Estate Planning Section
Animal Law Committee
Family Law Committee
Adjunct Professor - Research and Writing – University of Tulsa Masters of Jurisprudence Program, 2013 – 2021
Community Leadership
Early Settlement Mediation (Volunteer)
Heartland Weimaraner Rescue (Volunteer)
Ingham County Veterans' Treatment Court (Michigan)
Legal Aid of Oklahoma (Volunteer)
Life Church – Jenks (Volunteer)
Lectures
Seminar - “Transfer on Death Deeds” – Estate Planning Probate and Trust Committee
Seminar – “Common Law Spouse Conundrum” – Oklahoma City University
Seminar – “Probate Real Estate Sales” – Oklahoma City University
Seminar – “The Plan, the Myth, and the Consequences” – Tulsa Senior Expo
Seminar – “Probate Creditor Claims” - Tulsa Title and Probate Lawyers Association
Published Educational Videos and Information on
Publications
"2 Birds with 1 Voluntary Stone" – Oklahoma Bar Journal, on behalf of the Access to Justice Committee