Foley Alabama Attorneys
(205) 990-7000

Gulf Coast 251.948.2168

DEE ASTHANA

Managing Partner

Dee is passionate about all areas of Estate Law and enjoys litigating estate disputes and winning favorable outcomes for her clients.  At Southern Estate Lawyers, her practice focuses on Estates and Trust Litigation; Will Contests; and Probate and Estate Planning. Further, as managing partner she spearheads firm operations at Southern Estate Lawyers while leading a talented team of professionals focused on the needs of our clients.

Dee is skilled at drafting complex estate plans for Alabama residents, and has litigated estate disputes all across Alabama. Dee’s most successful cases have included:

  • Representing a special needs heir in a will contest and a contested guardianship, and obtaining a $3,000,000.00 settlement for her client;
  • Obtaining an $800,000.00 settlement where she held a non-relative caregiver accountable for undue influence which resulted in our client losing his inheritance completely under a trust;
  • Defending a client and protecting their inheritance when accused of practicing undue influence and taking advantage of the diminished mental capacity of an elder;
  • Estate litigation on behalf of a widow whose case spanned over two states, Alabama and Illinois. Dee obtained a $1,500,000.00 settlement for this grieving widow after the sudden death of her husband, when her step-children attempted to interfere with her inheritance;
  • Trust Litigation settlement of $445,000 concerning a trust set up for a special needs beneficiary where trustee breached fiduciary duties; and
  • $400,000.00 settlement in an Estate and Trust Litigation matter regarding changes made to an Estate Plan to significantly enhance the inheritance of one of the beneficiaries.

Dee is also the managing partner at an affiliated law firm, Caldwell Wenzel & Asthana where she is a familiar face across the Gulf Coast overseeing the accident and personal injury law operations of the firm.

Outside of work, Dee is a busy mom of three children.  She loves watching them play soccer, and she spends most of her time outside of work with her husband and children.  She is also an avid reader and has an extensive library of leadership and management books.  Exercise and nutrition are also important to her, so she hits the gym as often as she can.

Education

  • J.D. (with Distinction), University of Western Ontario, Province of Ontario, Canada, 2010 
  • B.Eng. (Chemical Engineering), McMaster University, Province of Ontario, Canada, 2006

Awards

  • Winner of the Michael C. McInerney Award for highest standing in Property Law
  • Winner of the Goodmans Award for highest average in courses in the area of Tax Law
  • Winner of the Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt Award for highest standing in Income Tax and Corporate Taxation
  • Winner of the Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt Award for best-written paper in Corporate Law
  • Winner of the South Asian Bar Association (SABA) Student Award for Academic Excellence and Participation in SABA
  • Winner of the Diana Majury-Cheryl Waldrum Award for significant contribution in the area of Sex Discrimination and the Legal Process
  • Winner of the Law Society of Upper Canada Prize for Academic Excellence 
  • Winner of the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada Prize for Academic Excellence 

Publication

  • Georgetown Journal of Gender and the Law – “Gender Politics: Refugee Definition & the Safe Third Country Agreement”; 2010-2011 general issue.  Georgetown University Law Center, Washington D.C.
  • While in law school, Deepti completed this paper which addressed the procedural barriers encountered by refugee women in applying for asylum in Canada and the United States of America.

Bar Admissions

Recognition/Boards

  • Lawyers of Distinction – Nominated and accepted as one of the Top 10% of Alabama attorneys in Civil Litigation
  • Alabama State Bar – Unauthorized Practice of Law Committee
  • Jennifer Claire Moore Foundation (Peer Helpers) – Board of Directors, Past Member
  • Baldwin County Bar Association – Probate Court Committee, Past Member

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