Among the attorneys at Lanman Rayne Nelson Reade, one holds a Registered Nurse credential alongside her Certified Elder Law Attorney designation — a combination that shapes how the firm thinks about legal problems that are inseparable from medical reality. Patricia Nelson-Reade, Of Counsel, brings that clinical background to a firm that has assembled fourteen attorneys across two Maine offices to address estate planning, elder law, business, tax, and real estate under one roof. The breadth is deliberate: clients dealing with aging, long-term care, and property rarely need just one of those things.
Overview
Lanman Rayne Nelson Reade operates from Falmouth and Bridgton, Maine, serving the Greater Portland metropolitan area and the Lakes Region communities to the northwest. The firm’s name reflects its key partners: Managing Attorney Kate Lanman leads the Business and Tax Practice Group; Jason Rayne handles probate and estate administration; Patricia Nelson-Reade serves as Of Counsel with a Certified Elder Law Attorney designation; and Greta Atchinson directs the Estate Planning and Elder Law Practice Group.
With fourteen attorneys, the firm is large for the Maine market and organized for it. A client coordinator handles intake and matches clients with the attorney whose focus aligns with the matter at hand — a structure that prevents clients from being routed to a generalist when they need someone with a specific background. The firm also operates Black Point Title, an in-house title company that handles real estate closings without requiring clients to engage outside title services.
Multiple attorneys have received recognition beyond state borders: Patricia Nelson-Reade is listed in Best Lawyers in America and New England Super Lawyers and named among the Top 50 Women Attorneys in New England. Kate Lanman holds Super Lawyers Rising Star recognition and a Best Lawyers Business Edition listing. Jason Rayne and Tracy Ferland also hold Super Lawyers Rising Star recognition. Tracy Ferland serves as Incoming Chair of the Elder Law Section of the Maine State Bar Association and sits on the Maine Board of Bar Examiners.
Practice Areas
Estate Planning and Elder Law. This is the firm’s primary practice orientation. Services span wills, trusts, advance directives, powers of attorney, long-term care planning, Medicaid planning, probate, guardianship, and conservatorship. The elder law work addresses the legal and financial decisions families face when a parent or spouse is aging, declining, or entering long-term care. Several attorneys in this group have credentials and recognitions that indicate active involvement in the state and national elder law community.
Special Needs Planning. The estate planning group handles planning for families with members who have disabilities, including special needs trusts structured to preserve government benefit eligibility while allowing inherited or gifted assets to benefit the individual.
Business and Tax. Kate Lanman’s group handles corporate counsel for established businesses and startups, LLC and partnership agreement drafting, general business advising, mergers and acquisitions, and tax planning. Zion Mercado, with a Certificate in Transactional Law with Distinction from the University of Maine School of Law, works in this group, as does Jamie Spaulding, who holds an award for excellence in intellectual property law and brings litigation and IP Clinic experience. The group also handles trademark registration and shareholder agreements.
Real Estate. The firm’s real estate practice includes residential and commercial closings, with title work handled through Black Point Title, the in-house title company. Toni Berube handles estate administration alongside real estate transactions, which is a practical combination: property often needs to be sold or transferred as part of estate settlement.
Probate and Estate Administration. Jason Rayne leads the probate and estate administration work. This includes guiding personal representatives and beneficiaries through formal probate proceedings, administering trusts after a grantor’s death, and resolving disputes that arise in the course of administration.
Attorney Profiles
Kate Lanman is the Managing Attorney and head of the Business and Tax Practice Group. She earned her J.D. from the University of Maine School of Law and her B.A. from McGill University in Montreal. She brings prior experience from a public accounting firm to her business and tax work. She holds Super Lawyers Rising Star recognition and a Best Lawyers Business Edition listing. Admitted to the Maine bar.
Patricia Nelson-Reade serves as Of Counsel in estate planning and elder law. She holds a J.D. from the University of Maine School of Law, where she served as Editor-in-Chief of the Maine Law Review, and a B.A. from the University of North Florida (summa cum laude). She is a Certified Elder Law Attorney (CELA) and also holds a Registered Nurse (RN) credential — a combination that is exceptionally rare and directly relevant to elder law practice. She is listed in Best Lawyers in America, New England Super Lawyers, and the Top 50 Women Attorneys in New England. Admitted to the Maine bar.
Jason Rayne handles probate and estate administration. He earned his J.D. from the University of Maine School of Law, where he received the Pro Bono Publico Award, and his B.A. from the University of New Hampshire. He holds Super Lawyers Rising Star recognition and is admitted to the Maine bar.
Greta Atchinson is the Director of the Estate Planning and Elder Law Practice Group. She earned her J.D. from the University of Maine School of Law and her B.A. from the University of Maine at Farmington. She is admitted in both Maine and Massachusetts.
Jessica Braun practices estate planning and elder law. She holds a J.D. from the University of Maine School of Law and a B.A. from Mount Holyoke College, along with certificates in Mediation, Nonprofit Management, and Global Studies. Admitted to the Maine bar.
Amy Dow focuses on elder law and is admitted to both the Maine and Florida bars — a combination that directly serves clients with ties to both states. She earned her J.D. from Boston College Law School, her B.A. from the State University of New York, and a counseling degree from Palm Beach Atlantic University. She previously practiced elder law in Florida.
Tracy Ferland earned her J.D. from the University of Maine School of Law magna cum laude (2011) and her B.A. from the University of Maine with honors. She is Incoming Chair of the Elder Law Section of the Maine State Bar Association, a Board Member of the Maine Board of Bar Examiners, and a Board Member of the Maine Assistance Program for Lawyers and Judges. She holds Super Lawyers Rising Star recognition. Admitted to the Maine bar.
Vanessa Record practices estate planning. She earned her J.D. from the University of Richmond Law School cum laude, where she was a McNeill Law Society member, and her B.A. from Mary Washington University. She is a member of the Maine Estate Planning Council and is admitted to Maine, Rhode Island, and Virginia bars.
Toni Berube handles estate administration and real estate. She earned her J.D. from New England Law Boston in 2020 through the Justice Sandra Day O’Connor Honors Program and her B.A. from Liberty University summa cum laude. Admitted to Maine and Massachusetts bars.
Kylie Germann practices estate planning and probate. She earned her J.D. from Suffolk University Law School and her B.A. from Suffolk University Madrid (cum laude, with three years of study abroad in Spain). She is a member of the National College of Probate Judges. Admitted to the Maine bar.
Tracy Grisez serves as Of Counsel in estate planning and elder law. She earned her J.D. from the University of Baltimore School of Law, where she received the Laurie A. Gibson Award. She has a prior career in HR and executive management in a medical practice and is a member of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys. Admitted to Maine and New Hampshire bars.
Zion Mercado works in the Business and Tax group. He earned his J.D. from the University of Maine School of Law with a Certificate in Transactional Law with Distinction and received the Commercial Law Award. He previously served as Managing Editor of the Student Journal of Information Privacy Law. Admitted to the Maine bar.
Jamie Spaulding serves as Of Counsel in business law. He earned his J.D. from the University of Maine School of Law, where he received the ABA/BNA Award for Excellence in Intellectual Property Law and worked as an IP Clinic student attorney, and his B.A. from Wake Forest University. Admitted to the Maine bar.
Michael Friedman is a retired attorney who practiced real estate for approximately forty years across New York City, New Jersey, and Maine. He earned his J.D. from New York Law School and his B.A. from Rutgers University. He served as President of the Greater Bridgton Lakes Region Chamber of Commerce. Admitted in Maine and New York.
Location and Service Area
Lanman Rayne Nelson Reade’s primary office is located at 261 US Route 1, Suite 201, Falmouth, ME 04105. Phone: (207) 671-5454. The Bridgton office is at 103 Main Street, Suite 4, Bridgton, ME 04009; phone (207) 647-8360. The website is www.lanmanrayne.com/
The firm serves the Greater Portland area and the Lakes Region communities. Amy Dow’s dual Maine and Florida bar admissions allow the firm to serve clients with legal ties to both states.
Client Focus
The firm serves individuals and families navigating estate planning, long-term care decisions, and the complexities of aging — along with businesses that need transactional counsel and property owners who need real estate closing services. The client coordinator intake model ensures that each matter reaches an attorney with relevant expertise rather than a generalist. Clients with cross-state needs — particularly those splitting time between Maine and Florida — benefit from Amy Dow’s dual licensure. The in-house Black Point Title company reduces friction in real estate transactions by handling title work without sending clients to outside vendors.
FAQ
What makes the firm’s elder law practice unusual compared to a standard estate planning practice?
The elder law group includes Patricia Nelson-Reade, who holds both a Certified Elder Law Attorney designation and a Registered Nurse credential. That combination — clinical and legal training — is rare in any practice and directly relevant to cases where health status, medical decision-making, and legal planning are intertwined. The group also includes Tracy Ferland, Incoming Chair of the Maine State Bar Association Elder Law Section, and Tracy Grisez, a member of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys.
Does the firm handle clients who have legal needs in both Maine and Florida?
Yes. Amy Dow is admitted to both the Maine and Florida bars and previously practiced elder law in Florida. She handles matters for clients with ties to both states, which is a common situation among Maine residents who winter in Florida or maintain property in both states.
What is Black Point Title, and how does it benefit real estate clients?
Black Point Title is the firm’s in-house title company, which handles title work for real estate closings. Clients who use the firm for a real estate transaction do not need to arrange separate title services from an outside company. This simplifies the process and keeps the transaction within a single professional relationship.
How does the firm match clients with the right attorney?
A client coordinator handles intake and assigns each matter to the attorney whose practice focus best matches the client’s needs. With fourteen attorneys across multiple practice groups, this routing step is important — it ensures that a business formation question goes to the business and tax group, not the estate planning group, and vice versa.
Can the firm handle both estate planning and the eventual estate administration after death?
Yes. The firm covers both sides of that process. Attorneys in the estate planning group prepare wills, trusts, and related documents during a client’s lifetime. Jason Rayne’s probate and estate administration practice then handles the administration of those plans after death, including formal probate proceedings and trust administration.
Closing
Fourteen attorneys across two Maine offices, an in-house title company, a dual Maine-Florida licensed elder law attorney, and an Of Counsel who combines a law degree with a nursing credential form the foundation of Lanman Rayne Nelson Reade. The firm is structured for clients whose needs span multiple legal areas — a Maine reality where estate planning, property ownership, and long-term care are rarely problems that can be addressed one at a time.