MICHAEL FRISBIE

CONTACT

LOCATION

169 N. Broad Street
Doylestown, PA 18901

  • Temple University School of Law – Estate Planning Certificate awarded 2016
  • Rutgers University School of Law – Camden, Juris Doctor awarded 1996
    • Dean’s List, Hunter Advanced Moot Court, Environmental Law Society, Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program, Phi Delta Phi, and American Jurisprudence Award (during 1L at Widener)
    • Internships: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Rutgers Small Business Counseling Clinic, and Rutgers Environmental Law Clinic
  • The Pennsylvania State University – State College – Bachelor of Arts in History awarded 1990
    • Dean’s List, Undergraduate Teaching Assistant, Phi Alpha Theta (History Honor Society), and the Penn State Marching Blue Band
  • Stroudsburg High School – Stroudsburg, PA – 1986, Valedictorian
  • Pennsylvania, New Jersey (inactive); U.S.D.C. for the Eastern and Middle Districts of PA, and the District Court of New Jersey; Bucks, Lehigh, and Monroe County Court of Common Pleas
  • 2020 Chair of the Orphans Court Section of the Bucks County Bar Association
  • Bar Association Member – Bucks (YLD Chair 2000). Past Member of Monroe and Pike County
  • Arbitrator for Common Pleas Arbitrations in Bucks, Lehigh, and Monroe including Chair
  • Court Appointed Counsel for Alleged Incapacitated Persons in Guardianships
  • Court Appointed Administrator in Estate Administration
  • Court Appointed Discovery Master in civil cases
  • 2024 Continuing Legal Education presenter on “Training and Best Practices for Court-Appointed Counsel in Guardianships”
  • Numerous presentations in Bucks and Montgomery County on Estate Planning
  • 2020 Continuing Legal Education presenter on Estate Litigation entitled “Mom Really Did Like Me Better – The Basics of Estate Litigation”
  • 2020 Continuing Legal Education presenter on The Paycheck Protection Program entitled “The PPP – A Practitioner’s Guide to Forgiveness”
  • Continuing Legal Education presenter on Civil Litigation entitled “Arbitration Practice in Philadelphia County: A Survivor’s Guide”
  • National Institute of Trial Advocacy

COMMUNITY

Mike is an Eagle Scout and was Scoutmaster for his son’s troop and an Assistant Scoutmaster for his daughter’s troop

  • Wills for Heroes volunteer. “Wills for Heroes” provides police, fire, emergency medical personnel, other first responders and military veterans – those on the frontlines for our personal safety – the tools they need to prepare adequately for the future.
  • Washington Crossing Council of the Boy Scouts of America (Scouts BSA) – past Vice President of Executive Board of Directors and Member at large.
  • Past Assistant Scoutmaster, Troop 6 Girls, Doylestown Fire Company
  • Past Scoutmaster Troop 6 Boys, Doylestown United Methodist Church
  • Warrington Soccer and Doylestown Athletic Association (DAA) – past head and assistant coach for soccer and basketball teams
  • Active at the River Crossing YMCA

My FAMILY PRACTICE

Mike lives with his wife, Michele, and family in Doylestown. When I first opened my practice in 2022, Michele and I were raising two teenagers, CJ and Ellie. We were all active in the Bucks County community and we spent way too much time with our pets, Beetlejuice, Baxter and Buddy.

As the last few years have passed, CJ recently graduated college with a degree in immunology and infectious diseases and a math minor. His published thesis is on his LinkedIn page. He plans to research and work towards an advanced degree. Ellie is in her junior year at college majoring in History and Music. She loves studying LBJ and his role in the civil rights movement. She is involved in the music groups at college where she plays piano, sings and plays trumpet. When we get together now, we do a lot of laughing and cooking, still love to do active things and spend time with our pets Baxter and Buddy.

Music has always been a part of my life. My Dad was a high school band director. I learned to play the tuba and later the bass guitar. At Penn State, I played the sousaphone in the Marching Blue Band and traveled to see Penn State beat Miami in the Fiesta Bowl and win the National Championship. I later played in a “not very good” rock band but loved it. My children each play the piano and other instruments. I really enjoyed listening to them make jazz music at Central Bucks West. My musical skills are rusty, but I love making music and playing Classic Rock songs with my talented children.

Fitness is an integral part of our lives. Michele, also an attorney, served on the YMCA Board of Directors for 6 years. She is a personal trainer, fitness instructor and fitness advocate. I enjoy friendly fitness competitions with my friends, and have challenged myself with P90X, Tough Mudders, and an Arnold Pump and Run. CJ runs, plays basketball, Brazilian jiu jitsu, and lifts weights.  Ellie was a runner and played soccer, but now loves walking the dog and backpacking on the Appalachian Trail.

Mike is an Eagle Scout and was Scoutmaster/Assistant Scoutmaster for both of his children. In 2021, he backpacked Philmont Scout Ranch in New Mexico with CJ and in 2022, he returned to Philmont with Ellie.

My Story

From Humble Roots to Client Advocate

I grew up in Stroudsburg and come from a long line of teachers. My parents and grandparents were teachers, my Mom was a home economics teacher, and my Dad was a band director. We had a garden, and we cut our own firewood. On my grandparents’ dairy farm outside Scranton, I learned how to drive a tractor and bale hay. Most importantly, I learned how to work hard. We lived a wholesome and productive life with solid values that have been passed down through the generations.

A legacy of grit and perseverance

My grandparents got married right out of high school and started a dairy farm. They made it through the depression, raising four children. They had to be skilled businesspeople and effective planners to manage their crops, livestock, and budget through the winter and challenging times. No one was giving them any handouts. They had to put food on the table every day. They had to plan for their own retirement even though “farmers never retire”. Farming wasn’t a job — it was a way of life. They had purpose and courage. They had hope.

When I was a young attorney and would go to court in nearby Scranton, I would often stop by my grandparents’ farm for a visit or to help them out. They would ask questions about the types of things I was working on, and I would explain a matter or trial issue in one of my cases. I remember one day, while explaining a fight over a legal issue I had just argued in court, my grandfather stopped me and said, “What on earth are you talking about, Mike? It makes no sense!”

That was an important and humbling moment for me because it made me realize that I need to talk to my audience. I had just argued my case to the Judge and other attorneys, but I was no longer talking to them. My grandfather was a very intelligent man but not versed in legal jargon. From then on, I knew that I needed to communicate with my clients in a way they could understand. Everyone has a different background and their own experience. Whatever that is, it is my job to communicate what needs to be communicated. If I cannot communicate effectively so that my clients can understand me, then I am not doing my job.

These strong principles form the foundation for how I live my life and practice law. They are the reasons why I bring a genuine sense of empathy and compassion to every client I serve. 

– Mike