The firm’s name is an acronym built from the surnames of its three co-founders — Hewitt, Waicker, and Keelty — a structural fact that signals something about how the practice was built: as a collaborative professional enterprise rather than a single-attorney office that expanded around one name.
Overview
HWK Law Group, LLC is a Maryland-based law and title firm practicing in estate planning, elder law, real estate, and business services. Its founding trio — Nicole R. Hewitt, Jessica L. Waicker, and Christopher W. Keelty — each brought distinct professional backgrounds that shaped the firm’s current service range. The firm operates from its primary location at 1447 York Road, Suite 800, in Lutherville, Maryland, occupying 8,000 square feet of office space. It has expanded to three East Coast locations.
The firm also operates a subsidiary title company, Lawyers Express Title LLC, which provides title and settlement services in Maryland, Florida, and Pennsylvania. That subsidiary handles the real estate transaction side of the firm’s practice, with Waicker having previously served as a title manager at a multi-state title company before the firm was founded.
Nicole Hewitt has practiced estate planning since 2007, giving the firm’s estate planning practice a foundation of more than seventeen years of experience. Her academic credentials include an LL.M. in Taxation from Georgetown University Law Center — an advanced degree that deepens her capability in estate tax and related planning strategies. She is licensed in Maryland and Florida. Christopher Keelty clerked for two Baltimore County Circuit Court judges and managed a title company before joining the co-founders. The firm’s attorneys collectively hold Maryland, Florida, and Pennsylvania bar admissions and title licenses in all three states.
The firm has received recognition from Baltimore Magazine and expanded its Lutherville office to accommodate growth.
Practice Areas
Estate Planning and Administration. HWK drafts wills, revocable trusts, irrevocable trusts, powers of attorney, advance directives, and related documents. It also handles estate and trust administration after a death, guiding personal representatives and trustees through the compliance process.
Elder Care Planning. The firm advises clients and their families on planning for incapacity, long-term care considerations, and asset protection in the context of aging. This includes planning that accounts for the possibility of future need for skilled nursing care or other elder care services.
Special Needs Planning. For clients with disabilities or family members with disabilities, the firm structures special needs trusts and advises on preserving eligibility for government benefit programs while supplementing those benefits through a trust.
Business and Commercial Services. The firm handles business formation, commercial contracts, and related corporate matters for business clients.
Real Estate Services. Through both its legal practice and the Lawyers Express Title LLC subsidiary, the firm handles real estate transactions, contracts, and closings in Maryland, Florida, and Pennsylvania.
Title and Settlement Services. Lawyers Express Title LLC handles complete title searches, title insurance, and settlement services for real estate transactions in the three-state service area. Jessica Waicker’s prior experience as a title manager at a multi-state title company gives this subsidiary an operational foundation built before HWK was formed.
Guardianship. The firm handles guardianship proceedings for clients who need to be appointed as legal guardian of an incapacitated adult or minor.
Attorney Profiles
Nicole R. Hewitt is a co-founding member of HWK Law Group. She earned her B.A. in Political Science from Loyola University Maryland and her J.D. from the University of Baltimore School of Law, followed by an LL.M. in Taxation from Georgetown University Law Center, with concentration certificates in Estate Planning and Business Law. She has practiced estate planning since 2007. She is a licensed Maryland Title Insurance Producer (No. 64153) and a Pennsylvania Non-Resident Title Agent (No. 986885), as well as a Notary Public in Maryland. Prior to private practice, she worked at Ernst & Young and Arthur Andersen. She serves on the Maryvale Preparatory School Board of Trustees (2018-2024), is a member of the Baltimore Estate Planning Council, the Catholic Business Network of Baltimore, and the National Aging in Place Council (NAIPC) Baltimore Chapter. She is admitted to the bars of Maryland and Florida.
Jessica L. Waicker is a co-founding member. She earned her B.A. from Washington College and her J.D. from the University of Baltimore School of Law. Before co-founding HWK, she worked as an associate at a prominent mid-sized Baltimore law firm and served as the title manager of a multi-state title company. She co-founded Lawyers Express Title LLC alongside HWK Law Group. She holds a Maryland Title Insurance Producer license and is a Notary Public in Maryland. She is admitted to the Maryland bar.
Christopher W. Keelty is a co-founding member. He earned his B.S. in Business/Finance and Spanish from Mount St. Mary’s University (1998) and his J.D. from the Catholic University of America Columbus School of Law (2002). He clerked for the Honorable James T. Smith Jr. and the Honorable J. Norris Byrnes at the Circuit Court for Baltimore County, then served as managing attorney of a title company at Bodie Dolina Hobbs Friddell & Grenzer P.C. He is a Maryland Title Insurance Producer (No. 99923109) and a Notary Public in Maryland. He is admitted to the Maryland bar.
Chester Hobbs focuses on estate planning, trust drafting, commercial law, bankruptcy, corporate law, LLC formation, and individual and business tax planning. He is admitted to the Maryland bar.
Jake Polivka specializes in estate and trust planning and estate administration, and is based in Towson. He earned his J.D. from the University of Maryland Carey School of Law. He is admitted to the Maryland bar.
Elizabeth Doory is an attorney at the firm admitted to the Maryland bar. Further credential details are not publicly listed.
Location and Service Area
1447 York Rd., Suite 800, Lutherville, MD 21093. Phone: (410) 567-5500. Website: https://hwklawgroup.com/
The firm serves Maryland (Baltimore County and City, Anne Arundel, Carroll, Frederick, Harford, Howard, and Washington Counties), Florida, and Pennsylvania through its law practice and the Lawyers Express Title LLC subsidiary. Three East Coast locations are in operation.
Consultation details are not specified in publicly available materials.
Client Focus
HWK Law Group serves individuals, families, and businesses. Estate planning clients include individuals across wealth levels seeking to organize their affairs, elder clients and their families navigating care planning and incapacity, and families with members who have disabilities requiring specialized trust structures. Business clients use the firm for formation, commercial transactions, and related needs.
The multi-state licensing structure — Maryland, Florida, and Pennsylvania for attorneys and title — allows the firm to serve clients with property or interests across those states without handoff to outside counsel for each jurisdiction.
FAQ
What does HWK stand for?
The firm’s name is an acronym of the surnames of its three co-founders: Hewitt, Waicker, and Keelty. The firm was built as a joint enterprise from the outset.
Does the firm handle real estate transactions as well as estate planning?
Yes. The firm handles real estate through both its legal practice and through Lawyers Express Title LLC, a subsidiary that provides title searches, title insurance, and settlement services in Maryland, Florida, and Pennsylvania.
What is the LL.M. in Taxation that Nicole Hewitt holds?
An LL.M. (Master of Laws) in Taxation is an advanced law degree obtained after the J.D. by attorneys who want specialized expertise in tax law. Nicole Hewitt earned hers from Georgetown University Law Center, one of the leading tax LL.M. programs in the country. This is particularly relevant to estate tax planning for higher-value estates.
In which states does the firm practice?
The firm and its attorneys are licensed in Maryland, Florida, and Pennsylvania. Its title subsidiary operates across all three states. The main office is in Lutherville, Maryland.
How does the firm approach elder care planning?
HWK addresses elder care planning as part of its estate and trust practice, advising on incapacity planning, long-term care considerations, and the legal structures that support those goals. Chester Hobbs also advises on business and tax planning that can intersect with elder care and succession scenarios.
Closing
Three co-founders who each came from distinct professional vantage points — tax and estate planning, title management and litigation, and judicial clerkship followed by creditor-side title work — built HWK into a practice that handles the full intersection of estate planning, real estate, and business law across Maryland, Florida, and Pennsylvania.