Curriculum Vitae
CURRICULUM VITAE
OF
MARTHA L. RIDGWAY
EDUCATION
Trained
Mediator
CDR Associates, Boulder, Colorado
January 2003
The
University of Kansas School of Law, Lawrence, Kansas
Juris Doctor, January 1981
Washburn
University of Topeka, Topeka, Kansas
Bachelor of Arts, History and German, May 1978
Magna Cum Laude, Departmental Honors
COURT ADMISSIONS
United States Court of Appeals, 10th Circuit, May 1981
United States
District Court, District of Kansas, May 1981
Supreme Court
and all Courts of the State of Kansas, May 1981
United States
District Court, District of Colorado, November 1988
Supreme Court
and all Courts of the State of Colorado, September 1988
LEGAL EXPERIENCE
MARTHA L. RIDGWAY, P.C.
Louisville, Colorado
Principal, January 1, 2008 - present
RIDGWAY, ROMEO & VINCENT, LLC
Louisville, Colorado
Member and Senior Partner, January 1, 1996 - present
RIDGWAY AND ROMEO, LLC
Boulder, Colorado
Member and Senior Partner, January 1, 1995 - December
31, 1995
LAW OFFICES OF MARTHA L. RIDGWAY
Boulder, Colorado
Principal, February 1, 1992 - December 31, 1994
EDWARDS, TERRILL, BRETT & RIDGWAY
Boulder, Colorado
Partner, November 1, 1988 - January 31, 1992
All practice in Colorado has emphasized elder and disability law,
probate litigation, guardianship and conservatorship, guardian ad
litem for impaired adults, mediation, estate administration,
Medicaid eligibility, abuse, neglect and financial exploitation of
the elderly, estate planning, family law and dependency and
neglect.
KANSAS LEGAL SERVICES
August 1985 - August 1988
Wyandotte-Leavenworth Legal Services,
Kansas City, Kansas
Senior Citizens Law Project/Public Benefits
Attorney, April 1987 -
July 1988
Represented elderly clients in
Medicaid; Social Security; S.S.I.; nursing home; guardianship and
conservatorship; fraud, abuse, neglect and financial exploitation;
and litigation in each of these areas.
Member, Statewide Complex Litigation Panel
Kansas Legal Services of Olathe, Olathe,
Kansas
Litigation Coordinator, November 1986 -
March 1987
Supervised office and assumed
responsibility for all
cases during three attorneys' leaves of absences.
Wyandotte-Leavenworth Legal Services, Kansas
City, Kansas
Senior Citizens Law Project Attorney, August
1985 - October 1986
Practice
emphasized issues affecting the elderly.
HYATT
LEGAL SERVICES - BLOCK MANAGEMENT COMPANY
July 1982 - July 1985
Kansas City, Kansas office
Managing Attorney, September 1983 - July 1985
Managed office, supervised two
staff attorneys and four
legal assistants, and maintained an extensive caseload in
general civil practice and misdemeanor defense.
Lenexa, Kansas office
Staff Attorney, February 1983 - September 1983
Practiced primarily in the areas
of domestic relations; bankruptcy; probate; municipal court; and
misdemeanor defense.
Block Management Company
(Hyatt Legal Services' Corporate
Headquarters)
Kansas City, Missouri
Director of Legal Systems, June 1982 -
February 1983
Drafted and revised legal
documents, pleadings and forms
for Hyatt Legal Services' offices nationwide.
HORNER, DUCKERS AND CORNWELL
Kansas City, Kansas
Associate Attorney, January 1981 - May 1982
Practiced primarily in the areas of insurance defense;
personal injury; domestic relations; collections; bankruptcy;
and criminal defense.
DOUGLAS COUNTY LEGAL AID SOCIETY, INC.
Lawrence, Kansas
Student Attorney and Managing Student Attorney, January 1980
- December 1980
Represented indigent clients in domestic
relations;
bankruptcy; misdemeanor defense; and public benefits
cases under the supervision of a licensed attorney.
PROFESSIONAL
AFFILIATIONS AND VOLUNTEER ORGANIZATIONS
National
Academy of Elder Law Attorneys, Inc.
Colorado Bar Association
Co-founder
and first co-chairperson, CBA Elder Law Committee
Colorado Women's Bar Association
Boulder County Bar Association
AWARDS AND HONORS
Boulder
County Developmental Disabilities Center (now known as Imagine!),
Volunteer of the Year,
2000.
Boulder County Bar
Association John Robert Marshall Award, 1997, for
“commitment and
dedication in undertaking volunteer legal services to the
elderly and less
fortunate of Boulder County.”
Boulder County Bar
Association, 1996, special award for the most hours
ever committed to a
single pro bono case.
Boulder County Bar
Association, Lawyer for All Seasons Award, 1992,
recognizing a bar member
“who has exhibited exceptional dedication to the
profession and the
community, whose contributions may have gone
unnoticed, and who merits
special recognition by colleagues in the legal
profession.”
Kansas Legal Services,
Excellence in Litigation Award, 1987.
CONTINUING LEGAL
EDUCATION AND COMMUNITY PRESENTATIONS
Balfour Fall Lecture Series
Alzheimer's Care: Legal Concerns and Solutions
October 23, 2008
Boulder County Aging Services, Caregiver Expo
Understanding Financial and Legal Matters for Caregivers
June 18, 2008
CBA Elder Law Committee
Mediation of Probate Litigation Cases
October 18, 2007
Huntington's Disease Society of America, Rocky
Mountain Chapter
Help for Today - Hope for Tomorrow
Planning for the Future: Life Care, Financial and Legal
Issues
September 29, 2007
Network North
Abuse, Neglect and Financial Exploitation of the
Elderly
August 7, 2007
CLE in Colorado, Inc.
Lawyers' Professional Liability in Colorado:
Preventing Legal Malpractice and
Disciplinary
Actions
January 2006
Boulder County Bar Association
Ethical Considerations in Representing Mentally Ill
Clients in Family Law
Cases
December 15, 2004
Balfour Retirement Community
Alzheimer’s Care:
Legal Topics
May 20, 2004
Hospice of Boulder County and Boulder Valley
Rotary Club
Legal and Financial
Consideration in End-of-Life Care
May 4, 2004
The Guardianship Alliance
The BIG Changes and Implementation
Defining, Refined and Applying the “New”
Guardianship and Conservatorship
Law
October 17, 2003
CLE in Colorado, Inc.
Litigating Contested Wills
Overview and Case Law Update
September 5, 2003
Colorado Women’s Bar Association Annual
Convention
Civil,
Criminal and Administrative Remedies in Cases of Abuse,
Neglect and
Financial
Exploitation of the Elderly
May 17, 2003
Alzheimer’s Association Annual Symposium
Guardianships
May 7, 2003
Imagine! (formerly the Boulder County
Developmental Disabilities Center)
Special Needs Trusts
May 3, 2003
(presented annually from approximately 1997 - 2002)
Colorado Bar Association
Elder Law Committee
Probate Litigation: It’s Sexier Than You Think
February 20, 2003
Boulder County Bar Association
Tax, Estate Planning and Probate and Civil Litigation
Section
Probate Litigation: It’s Sexier Than You Think
December 11, 2002
Elderhostel
Advance Directives and Right to Die Issues
July, 2001
(Also presented in 1998 and 2000)
Colorado Bar Association Annual Convention
Financial Exploitation of the Elderly and Disabled
September, 1999
Boulder County Bar Association
Tax, Estate Planning and Probate Section
Medicaid Update
February, 1999
Advising the Elderly
Part III
Asset
Protection
September
11, 1998
The Elder Law
Institute
The 3rd Biennial Advanced Elder Law
Institute Representing Services
Case Problem:
Fraudulent Transfer Workshop
So You Want
to Sue the State . . .
February
24, 1998
The Elder Law
Institute
CLA, CBA
Critical Issues in Elder Law and Managed Health Care
Legal Issues
Regarding Managed Health Care
Legal
Representation of the Elder Client
Alternatives
Available for the Crisis in Managed Care for the Elderly
September 12,
1997
1997 Bridge the Gap Conference - A Legal
Overview
Guardianship and
Conservatorship
Overview of Probate
Institute for
Advanced Legal Studies
Common Elder Law Topics
April 25, 1997
The Boulder Women’s
Bar Association Second Annual Convention
A Room of One’s Own: Women Practicing Law in the 90s
Marketing Your Law Practice
February 29,
1996
Continuing Education
Series
Trusts and Guardianship Issues
1996
CLE in Colorado,
Inc.
New Songs for Old Dogs - Everything You Didn’t Learn in
Family Law 101
(because it
didn’t exist)
Changes in the Probate Code - After You’ve
Gone
June, 1995
PESI
Colorado Medicaid Law and Estate Planning
General Medicaid Eligibility Criteria in
Colorado
December 2, 1994
CLE in Colorado,
Inc.
1994 Elder Law Update
Tips for Establishing, Marketing, and
Maintaining an Elder Law Practice
June, 1994
The Institute for
Advanced Legal Studies
The Fourth Annual Guardian Ad Litem Training
Program
GAL Accountability and Boundaries of Behavior
May 18, 1994
CLE in Colorado,
Inc.
Representing Clients with HIV and AIDS
Medical Directives for PLWA’s
October, 1993
CLE in Colorado,
Inc.
Introduction to Elder Law Part II
Elder Abuse, Neglect, and Exploitation
February, 1993
CLE in Colorado,
Inc.
Guardianships and Conservatorships
Alternatives to Guardianship and Conservatorship
September, 1992
Colorado Trial
Lawyer’s Association
People’s Law School
Rights of the Elderly
Fall, 1990
Leading the Way into
the Nineties-Colorado Women’s Bar Association
Special Problems of Representing the
Elderly: Medicaid and Spousal
Impoverishment
June 9, 1990
Tri-Cities Caregiver
Education Series
Financial and Legal Planning for Caregivers
May 16, 1989
Louisville Senior Center
Senior Citizens Law
Project
Public Benefits Available to Senior
Citizens: What Every Practitioner
Representing
Elderly Clients Should Know
February 17, 1988
PUBLICATIONS
Estate Planning, Probate, and Public Benefits Eligibility,
Lawyers' Professional Liability in Colorado:
Preventing Legal Malpractice and Disciplinary Actions, CLE in
Colorado, Inc., 2005
Will Preparation
for Individuals Lacking Testamentary Capacity, The Colorado
Lawyer, Vol.33, No. 8, August 2004 (co-authored with Herb
Tucker and
Spencer Crona)
Advance Medical
Directives and the Authority to Compel Medical Treatment,
The Colorado Lawyer, Vol. 29, No. 3, March 2000
Medicaid
Eligibility for Long-Term Care, Colorado Handbook of Elder Law
CLE in Colorado, Inc., 1992
Revised in 1997 and 2002
Representative
Payee, Colorado Handbook of Elder Law
CLE in Colorado, Inc., 1992 (co-authored with Deborah
Cox)
Revised in 1997 and 2002
The Sunday Boulder
Daily Camera
Joint Tenancy of
Land, Accounts has Advantages, Disadvantages
February 5, 1989
EXPERT OPINION/TESTIMONY
Martha has served as an expert witness in a number of cases in the following areas:
guardianship and conservatorship; probate; estate administration; estate planning; public benefits; attorney's fees in probate cases; standard of care in legal malpractice; breach of fiduciary duty; and representing a client with a disability.
Please contact Martha for more information.
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