ESSENSON LAW FIRM - Key Persons
Barbara J. Welch, a native of Sarasota, graduated Cum Laude from the University of Central Florida before receiving her Juris Doctor from Boston University School of Law in 1998, having interned during law school with Greater Boston Legal Services as a legal aid attorney and having an extended summer internship in the Consumer Protection Division of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts' Attorney General's office. After passing the Massachusetts bar in 1998, Ms. Welch worked with solo practitioners in Boston in the areas of employment discrimination, civil rights, international business ventures, tort law, and transactional law for a year, and then for two years, worked for John Hancock Financial Services in Boston analyzing and adjudicating policyholder claims as part of the alternative dispute resolution portion of Hancock's class action settlement. After moving back home to Sarasota, Ms. Welch assisted legal professionals in both Massachusetts and Sarasota with legal research, consultation on case strategy, and preparation of briefs, pleadings, and memoranda, and also volunteered for Gulf Coast Legal Aid, before joining the Essenson Law Firm in 2003. Ms. Welch, who is a member of the Florida Bar and the Sarasota County Bar Association, and is also admitted to practice in Massachusetts and in the Federal District Court for the Middle District of Florida, has given presentations on end-of-life considerations, the role of inventory attorneys, was one of a three-lawyer panel discussing issues related to Undue Influence at the 2018 12th Judicial Circuit Bench Bar Conference, and was one of a two-lawyer panel discussing Mental Capacity in Estate Planning at the next 12th Judicial Circuit Bench Bar Conference held in 2023. From 2020 to 2021, Ms. Welch chaired the Solo/Small Firm Section of the Sarasota County Bar Association.
Barbara J. Welch, a native of Sarasota, graduated Cum Laude from the University of Central Florida before receiving her Juris Doctor from Boston University School of Law in 1998. Ms. Welch, who has been with the firm since 2003, is a member of the Florida Bar and the Sarasota County Bar Association, and is also admitted to practice in Massachusetts and in the Federal District Court for the Middle District of Florida.
Holly C. Keith grew up on Anna Maria Island. She is proud of her local roots, having graduated from Manatee High School and New College of Florida. Holly majored in Foreign Languages in her undergraduate studies: French, Spanish, and Ancient Greek; and she enjoys communicating directly to French and Spanish speaking clients. She was recognized as a Miami Scholar at University of Miami School of Law, where she earned her Juris Doctor. Holly has been a practicing member of the Florida Bar since 2014.
James L. Essenson, a native of New York City, is a Summa Cum Laude graduate of New York University, Washington Square College of Arts and Sciences, a member of Phi Beta Kappa and a graduate of the State University of New York at Buffalo, School of Law, receiving his Juris Doctor degree in 1977. Mr. Essenson is a member of the Florida Bar, the Sarasota County Bar Association, the New York State Bar Association, and the Erie County Bar Association. Mr. Essenson is also admitted to practice in New York, the Federal District Courts for the Western District of New York, the Middle District of Florida, and the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.
Matthew J. Kelly, a native of New York, has lived in Sarasota for 17 years. After graduating from the University of South Florida, he received his Juris Doctor from Stetson University College of Law in 2014, where he competed as a member of Stetson's Alternative Dispute Resolution Team, and received the Victor O. Wehle Award for Excellence in Trial Advocacy. Mr. Kelly, who has been with the firm since 2013, is a member of the Florida Bar and the Sarasota County Bar Association, and is also admitted to practice in the Federal District Court for the Middle District of Florida.