Law office marks 125 years serving Piscataquis County

By Stuart Hedstrom 
Staff Writer

    DOVER-FOXCROFT — For 125 years C.W. & H.M. Hayes, P.A., known locally as “Hayes Law Office,” has been providing legal services to Piscataquis County and the surrounding region.

Observer photo/Stuart Hedstrom

HAYES LAW OFFICE — C.W. & H.M. Hayes, P.A., known locally as “Hayes Law Office”, has served Piscataquis County for 125 years. Today the attorneys are Tonya H. Johnson, Esq.  and Neil H. Hamlin, Esq.

    “We represent over 80 local businesses,” said Tonya H. Johnson, Esq., who is joined by Neil H. Hamlin, Esq. as the attorneys at C.W. & H.M. Hayes, P.A. “We serve as their clerk or registered agent. We make sure the corporate books are kept up to date and we are available for any legal services they may need,” she said. CW. & H.M. Hayes, P.A also is available to represent clients for other general practice legal matters.
    This year Johnson has reached 20 years with C.W. & H.M. Hayes, P.A., joining after graduating from Suffolk Law School. Johnson said about a year ago she resumed handling litigation cases, “but there isn’t much the two of us can’t handle.”
    “I do primarily real estate,” Hamlin said. Hamlin practiced primarily real estate law and title insurance for 30 years at his own practice in Milo before merging with C.W. & H.M. Hayes, P.A. in 2006, for nearly four decades of combined experience in the legal profession.

Observer photo/Stuart Hedstrom

DOVER-FOXCROFT LOCATION — Located at 5 Lincoln Street in Dover-Foxcroft, clients and potential clients can contact C.W. & H.M. Hayes, P.A. at 564-3318 or through the website at www.cwhmhayes.com.

    When asked what he likes best about the job, Hamlin said, “I think I still enjoy the variety of people you meet on my end of the business. I deal with a lot of local people but you get to meet people moving into the area buying houses — it’s a good way to meet people.
    “One of the things I like about real estate is it’s fairly non-adversarial,” Hamlin said, with an owner looking to sell and buyer looking to make a purchase. “Usually people have a common interest in making the deal work,” he said.
    Johnson said she, by contrast, likes the challenge that can come with representing a client. “I like providing a great service and getting a good result,” she said.
    For Johnson, no two days at C.W. & H.M. Hayes, P.A. are ever alike. “I have been here for 20 years and I can honestly say that still hasn’t happened,” she said. “Every day we try to do the best we can for our clients.”
    C.W. & H.M. Hayes, P.A. attorneys work hard to serve their clients, and try to keep expenses down. Johnson said in the current economy some area residents may try to go without a lawyer for a legal matter “and then they are hiring us to fix it.”
    Hamlin said costs are much greater to have a lawyer go back and make needed adjustments. He said the cost to complete a will could be $125 with an attorney, but if done incorrectly litigation costs could hypothetically be up to several thousand dollars.
    “You see more of that in a downturn economy,” Hamlin said.
    C.W. & H.M. Hayes, P.A. attorneys pride themselves on prompt service, with 24-hour voicemail checked frequently and responded to in a timely manner. The business website, www.cwhmhayes.com, includes an e-mail inquiry feature, which Johnson said provides clients and potential clients with another method to get in touch.
    “We couldn’t do it if it wasn’t for our experienced paralegals,” Johnson said. Tami Ogden has been with C.W. & H.M. Hayes, P.A. for over three decades this year while Amanda Sickles has been with them for 19 years. Johnson said the four work very well together to meet the needs of all the C.W. & H.M. Hayes, P.A. clients.
    In years past the number of attorneys has been greater than the two there at the present time. Johnson said they would consider adding another if the ideal candidate came along, as she said one possibility could be a local high school graduate who has recently completed law school.

Observer photo/Stuart Hedstrom

125TH ANNIVERSARY — Since 1889 C.W. & H.M. Hayes, P.A. has been attending to the legal needs of the region’s residents. The attorneys at ‘Hayes Law Office” are Tonya H. Johnson, Esq. and Neil H. Hamlin, Esq.

    For much of its history C.W. & H.M. Hayes, P.A. has been owned by a member of the Hayes family, with Stuart E. Hayes serving as the third generation of legal practitioners. His partners included James H. H. White and John L. Easton, Jr., as well as his son-in-law, Kevin L. Stitham.  The family ownership chain came to an end when Kevin L. Stitham left the firm in 1998 to become a judge, and Johnson then became the sole owner.
    “We kept the name because of the commitment to those who came before,” she said, adding that many of their clients have remained with the firm from when it was still owned by the Hayes family.
    Today C.W. & H.M. Hayes, P.A. continues well over a century of community involvement, supporting a number of local organizations such as two local Kiwanis clubs, Heartwise, sports groups, school yearbooks and more.
    C.W. & H.M. Hayes, P.A. is located at 5 Lincoln Street in Dover-Foxcroft. For more information, please call 564-3314 or go to www.cwhmhayes.com.