Kevin Whitaker
Founding PartnerBio
Attorney Kevin Whitaker is a mediator, business advisor, and trial lawyer with the law firm Wilson & Whitaker, LLC located south of Boston, on the South Shore in Weymouth, Massachusetts (MA).
Kevin is graduate of Middlebury College (1994) with degrees in political science and psychology and concentrations in mathematical analysis and foreign literature. After graduating from college Kevin worked in telecommunications and took graduate courses in law and international political economy through the Harvard University extension school.
During this time, Kevin volunteered with the government watchdog group Common Cause of Massachusetts. After working on campaign finance reform and other measures at the state house, Kevin was named and served as Legislative Director until his departure for Washington D.C. and his attendance at the AFL- CIO Organizing Institute.
Here he earned a certificate in campaign organizing and began travelling the country and working as a campaign organizer. His efforts as an organizer led to his acceptance to a lead organizer position with the Laborers’ International Union of North America (LIUNA) where he oversaw organizing activities in Tennessee and surrounding areas. As an organizer Kevin took part in every aspect of message development; recruitment; and organizing activity, including negotiations and actions involving the courts and the National Labor Relations Board headquartered in Atlanta.
After his final assignment as an organizer came to successful resolution, Kevin returned home to Massachusetts where he worked with disadvantaged and troubled teens while attending law school at the Southern New England School of Law on a full academic scholarship.
While a student he authored several articles for the school newspaper Res Ipsa, was elected and served on the Student Bar Association as a representative and its Vice President, and became certified as a Mediator with Mediation Works Incorporated , Inc. (MWI) before volunteering with MWI at the Dorchester District Court and Quincy District Court’s early mediation programs.
As a student, Kevin was a member of both the Cybercrimes and ILSA International Law moot court teams where he competed nationally and compiled impressive victories. Finishing first in his class at law school, Kevin was named the class valedictorian in 2000. In addition to delivering the valedictory address at graduation, he was also recognized with honors from West Publishing in the areas of contracts, property law, and torts.
After passing the bar exam on his first attempt, Kevin went into private practice in his hometown of Weymouth, MA. Having travelled nationally as a campaign organizer and after given consideration to the pros and cons of practicing in larger traditional firms, Kevin chose to seek an innovative practice that would be professionally rewarding, permit him time to raise a family, and offer the opportunity to make meaningful contributions to his community.
In 2001, Kevin and James Wilson began working together on certain legal matters which ultimately led to their founding the law firm Wilson & Whitaker, LLC in Weymouth, MA where both continue to practice law from.
Kevin is a recognized member of both the Massachusetts Bar and the United States District Court of Massachusetts. In 2005, Kevin was a recipient of the Stanley Rodman Prize in Trial Advocacy in recognition for his excellence in trial advocacy skills.
In addition to further developing his own skills, Kevin has coached and taught trial skills to local students through the Massachusetts Bar Association (MBA) High School Mock Trial Program and he has served as a judge for the national law school moot court competition’s in Boston.
Professionally, he is a member of the American Bar Association, Norfolk County Bar Association, Massachusetts Bar Association, American Association of Justice (formerly ATLA), and the Massachusetts Academy of Trial Attorneys. In addition he holds memberships in both the Massachusetts Municipal Association and the United States Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship. He is an elected member of the SNESL Alumni Association Board of Directors and is its past Treasurer and Elections Chairman.
In his practice, Kevin has successfully represented and defended business owners and estates in many contexts. He has advanced the cases of widows, families, deceased plaintiffs, business partners, shareholders, and others in complex business disputes, probate challenges and contests, real estate conflicts, and wrongful death actions. As an attorney, he has both successfully challenged probate distributions and defended executors and trustees in claims being made against them.
As a business advisor he has worked with companies and owners from throughout the United States and from countries such as Brazil, India, and China. While he is involved in issues such as intellectual property and international trade at times, Kevin remains largely focused on the needs of individuals and the interests of private closely held businesses, including local family businesses and small business owners.
Kevin’s continued passion and dedicated work with local companies, shareholders, and families in striving towards resolving their business, probate law, and estate issues continues to establish Kevin as a leader in complex and interdisciplinary areas of law. Kevin enjoys working with clients in solving problems, asset protection, and estate planning. This work helps ensure both his clients business and their families’ continued success.
In addition to his law practice, Kevin remains privileged to serve as an elected Councilor at Large in Weymouth, Massachusetts where he resides with his wife and their two children. He is a member of the Weymouth Commission on Disabilities and serves as the Chairman of the Ordinance Committee, Vice-Chairman of the Rules Committee, and is a member of Economic Development, Senior Citizens, and Budget Management Committees. Kevin keeps active with many local athletic organizations, volunteers his services with several nonprofits, and supports charitable organizations.
You can read posts from the Massachusetts Lawyer Blog (http://www.MassachusettsLawyerBlog.com) where Kevin routinely authors posts on topics of interest in Massachusetts law. His articles are visited by thousands of visitors seeking information he publishes on weekly.