Dawn E. McFadden

Dawn E. McFadden is a founding partner of McFadden Bushnell LLC in Shaker Heights, Ohio. Her practice focuses on elder law planning, special needs planning, general estate planning, and estate administration. She assists individuals and families making decisions about future care, asset transfers, and the legal needs of relatives with disabilities. Her work aims to organize complicated planning matters into practical steps that clients and their families can understand.

Dawn earned a B.A. in Political Science from Bowling Green State University and a J.D., cum laude, from Case Western Reserve University School of Law, where she received Order of the Barristers recognition. Her education provided a foundation for legal research, advocacy, and the drafting involved in estate and care planning. She later developed experience at Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice and Jones Day before establishing her current practice.

Dawn advises clients on estate plans, elder law considerations, special needs arrangements, and probate-related administration. Her work may involve coordinating decisions among family members who need to plan for long-term care or protect resources for an individual with disabilities. She also participates in continuing legal education and has helped shape programs dedicated to elder law and special needs planning, extending her work beyond individual client matters.

Dawn E. McFadden co-chaired the Ohio State Bar Association Elder Law Institute in 2020 and 2021 and helped establish its separate Special Needs Planning Seminar. She also previously co-chaired the Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association’s Small Firm & Solo Practitioner section. Admitted in Ohio, Florida, New York, and North Carolina, she brings broad legal experience and professional leadership to planning matters affecting families and older adults.

Law Office Affiliations

• Attorney, McFadden Bushnell, LLC
• Member, Ohio State Bar Association

Licensed State

• Ohio

Education

• Case Western Reserve University
  Juris Doctor (JD)
• Bowling Green State University
  Bachelor of Arts (BA)

Awards & Badges