Ann Hetherwick Cahill

About

Ann Hetherwick (“Hether”) Cahill’s litigation practice focuses on probate and trust litigation, family law, guardianships and conservatorships, and appeals.  In probate litigation matters, Hether has represented clients in will contests, actions involving the interpretation and termination of trusts, and trustee removal actions.  She has represented fiduciaries and beneficiaries regarding the proper administration of trusts and estates.  Matters representative of her probate and family law practice include:
As a former law clerk on the Massachusetts Appeals Court, Hether utilizes her appellate experience and research and writing skills to represent both appellants and appellees.  She is a member of the post-conviction panel of the Committee for Public Counsel Services to represent criminal defendants on appeal.  Hether’s appellate experience includes:
Hether is ranked at the highest level of legal ability and ethics, “AV,” in the benchmark Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory.  In 2009, 2011, 2012, and 2017 Hether was named a “Rising Star” in the “Massachusetts Super Lawyers” list published by the Thomson Reuters rating service in Boston Magazine.  The Rising Star award is limited to 2.5% of lawyers in Massachusetts under the age of 40 who have been practicing for less than 10 years.
In 2014, Hether was selected to join the Editorial Board of the Massachusetts Law Review, the longest continually run law review in the country, on which she currently serves as the Case Comments Editor.
Her publications include:
Hether joined the Private Client Group of Burns & Levinson in January 2016, after working at Sally & Fitch LLP for nearly eight years.  Prior to private practice, she served as a law clerk to the Honorable Joseph A. Trainor of the Massachusetts Appeals Court for two years.  She is a graduate of Skidmore College (B.A., philosophy/government, 2000) and Suffolk University Law School (J.D., 2006).  While at Suffolk, Hether was a member of the Suffolk Transnational Law Review, received the Best Brief Award in her Legal Practice Skills Course, served as a student prosecutor at the East Boston District Attorney’s Office, and interned in the civil division at the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Boston.  She worked as a litigation legal assistant at the law firm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP in New York prior to law school and in Boston during law school.
In May 2016, she co-taught a course Guardianship, Conservatorship, and Special Needs Planning through Newton Community Education.  In June and September 2016 and May and October 2017, she co-taught a course concerning estate planning and litigation through Newton Community Education.  In October 2015, 2016, and 2017, Hether participated as a panelist on the MCLE "Taking Depositions Workshop."  She has been involved in the Boston Chamber of Commerce Women's Leadership Program (2016-2017 year), Brookline Community Foundation's Professional Advisors Committee (since 2017), Dana-Farber Leadership Council, Suffolk University Law School by serving as a mentor to law school students, and Kids In Need of Defense (“KIND”) by representing children pro bono in immigration cases.  Hether is admitted to the bars of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts, and the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals.   She is also a member of the Massachusetts and Boston Bar Associations.