About...Bernard V. Kearse, III, Esquire

Bernard V. Kearse, III, has practiced law for over 25 years and has concentrated in the estate planning and human resources/employee benefits areas. 

His experience includes designing and drafting wills and trust documents (including irrevocable life insurance trusts) associated with estate planning and elder law, designing and drafting pension, deferred compensation, severance, self-funded medical and other benefit plans (including ESOPs), and representation of clients regarding formation of limited liability companies. 

Bernard is a member of the Georgia, Illinois, South Carolina, Virginia and American Bar Associations.  He graduated from Wofford College in 1972, where he was a member of Phi Beta Kappa.  Mr. Kearse received his Juris Doctor degree from the University of South Carolina School of Law in 1976, where he served as an editor for the South Carolina Law Review, and received a masters in law in estate planning from the University of Miami in 1977.

He is a Supervisory Council member of the Real Property, Trust and Estate Law Section (RPTE) of the American Bar Association.  He is past Chairman of the ESOP Committee of the RPTE Section of the American Bar Association.  He is also a member of the Tax Section of the American Bar Association and a past member of the Pension Advisory Board to the State of Georgia Department of Human Resources.

Mr. Kearse is also a Fellow of The American Bar Foundation (ABF), an organization limited to 1/3 of 1% of the attorneys in America.  Founded in 1955, the Fellows of the ABF is an honorary organization of attorneys, judges and law professors whose professional, public and private careers have demonstrated outstanding dedication to the welfare of their communities and to the highest principles of the legal profession. 

A frequent lecturer on topics within his practice areas, Mr. Kearse has served as an adjunct instructor at Oglethorpe University, Atlanta, Georgia.

Martindale-Hubbell recently listed Kearse & Associates, P.C. in its Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyers, a trusted register in the legal profession dating back almost a hundred years.  This recognition includes only those select law practices that have earned the highest rating in the Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory and have been designated by their colleagues as preeminent in their field.

He was elected to The Charter Class of Fellows in The American College of Employee Benefits Counsel, Inc. in recognition of his distinguished service and professional attainment in the field of employee benefits.

He has previously practiced with both a national and a regional law firm and served as the Employee Benefits Counsel for a Fortune 200 company with approximately 30,000 employees worldwide.

Mr. Kearse is the host of a live radio show called Following Your Passions (8-9 p.m., Tuesdays). Broadcast on web-streaming Radio Sandy Springs, the show focuses on his guests and their passions about work, hobbies and the things that make life worth living. 

Away from the office, Mr. Kearse enjoys writing and is currently working on a series of adventure books for young people.  The first book, entitled Bethany: Adventures of the Mighty Mustard Seed, is complete and two others are well under way.  Visit his website for more information at: www.bethanyadventures.com. 

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