Areas of practice

Frank Feilmeyer is in the general practice of law including but not limited to business law, corporate law, government, government contracts, municipal law, real estate, taxation, tax returns, wills, trusts, estate planning & probate law, and zoning, planning and land use.

Frank Feilmeyer's practice includes commercial and residential lending, for example, he has acted as lender's counsel for multimillion-dollar loan refinances; lender's counsel for mortgage commercial and residential mortgage loan foreclosures; borrower's counsel for a multimillion-dollar, HUD-backed loan refinance for low- and moderate-income housing project, local borrower's title counsel for multimillion-dollar loan refinance for low- and moderate-income housing project; developer's and borrower's counsel for multimillion dollar loan for high-rise commercial/residential condominium project; counsel for residential and commercial builders and contractors; and has worked on many residential and commercial subdivision projects for both developer and local government. As a municipal attorney, Frank has a deep understanding of planning, zoning, and development processes.

Frank's practice includes business and personal estate planning and post-death administration. Frank has experience with complex, high-net worth estate planning techniques, including credit shelter trusts, irrevocable life insurance trusts, charitable remainder and lead trusts, and working with retirement assets. Frank has formed and counsels numerous businesses, including corporations, partnerships, and limited liability companies. As a preparer of both personal and business income tax returns, Frank is able to provide tax advice along with business and estate planning.

Professional experience

Frank has been in the practice of law since 1991. He started his legal career as a Law Clerk for the Iowa Court of Appeals working with the Hon. Dick R. Schlegel from 1990 to 1991.

Frank is a member of the Iowa Academy of Trust and Estate Counsel, The Iowa State Bar Association, Iowa Municipal Attorneys Association, and the Story County Bar Association.

In 1991, Frank moved to Ames and began practicing with a long-time Ames firm then known as Smith, Nutty, Sharp, Benson & Jahn, successors of the Hirschburg & Reyonolds law firm. Frank joined the Pasley and Singer Law Firm in May 2008 as a partner. Frank has served as city attorney for Gilbert (since 1991), Huxley (1994-2006), Luther (since 2017), Sheldahl (1991-2001), Slater (1994-2012), and Zearing (1996-2017).

Frank is currently serving as chairperson of the Title Standards Committee of the Iowa State Bar Association, of which he has been a member since 2008. He is the past chair of the Real Estate and Title Law Section Council and served as a member of the Council from 2008 to 2018. He has also served as the chairperson of the Real Property Committee and has been a member of the Committee since 2008. He served on the Real Property Committee's legislation subcommittee (2008-12) and received the "Excellence in Legislative Advocacy Award" from the board of governors of The Iowa State Bar Association for his work on numerous legislative issues.

Frank served as The Iowa State Bar Association stakeholder representative on the Electronic Services System Coordinating Committee, the managing body of the state-wide Iowa Land Records internet land record system from 2008 to 2018. Frank is an active member of the Iowa Municipal Attorneys Association, having served as president (2006-07), vice president (2005-06), secretary/treasurer (2004-05), and director (2003-04). He is also a member of the International Municipal Lawyers Association. Frank has served as president (2001-02), vice president (2000-01), and secretary/treasurer (1999-2000) of the Story County Bar Association.

Bar admissions

• Iowa Supreme Court, 1990
• U.S. District Court, Southern District of Iowa, 1991
• U.S. District Court, Northern District of Iowa, 1992
• U.S. Tax Court, 2003

Education

• University of Iowa, College of Law, Juris Doctor, 1990
  Managing Editor, Iowa Law Review, Vol. 75, 1989-1990
• University of Iowa, College of Liberal Arts, Bachelor of Arts in political science, with honors and Bachelor of Arts in economics, 1987
• Author, “A Rescission Approach to Vendor's Damages After Forfeiture of an Installment Real Estate Contract,” 74 Iowa Law Review, 901 (1989). Forfeiture is a remedy by which a seller can take back land and improvements sold on contract. Because of the nature of the remedy, the seller cannot claim damages above the contract payments retained. The note argues that certain types damages, particularly injury to the property, should be allowed.

Community involvement

In his “spare time”, Frank and his wife Vikki follow their sons around to swim meets, where Frank often is on deck working as a USA Swimming certified official. He is also presently a member of the board of directors of the Ames Cyclone Acquatic Club. Frank was a Cub Scouts den leader from 2008 to 2017, guiding two dens through to the Arrow of Light, and enjoys camping and hiking with his Scouts. He was also a Little League Baseball coach from 2008 to 2016.

Frank is a member of the Rotary Club of Ames, Iowa, for which he has also served as a member of the board of directors (2009-12). He is a multiple Paul Harris Fellow.

Frank served as a member of the board of directors of Habitat for Humanity of Central Iowa, Inc. (2001-05) and Heartland Senior Services Foundation, Inc. (2000-03). He was also appointed a Human Relations Hearing Officer for the City of Ames (1992-98).

Frank is a graduate of Leadership Ames, a member of Class IX (1995-96). He also served as the coordinator of the “State and County Government” class session for Leadership Ames classes X (1996-97), XI (1997-98), and XII (1998-99), which included meetings with representatives of executive, legislative, and judicial offices of state and county government.

Documents

•  Basic Will and Power of Attorney Form — SHORT form for collecting information to prepare a will, trust, power of attorney, or living will.
•  Power of Attorney Memorandum — a short memorandum about the Durable Power of Attorney, living will, medical power of attorney, and why it is important.
•  What Cities Should Know about the FCC's "Shot Clock" Ruling, Cityscape (March 2010).  City zoning procedures should be reviewed in light of the FCC's ruling defining reasonable periods for municipal review of applications for wireless facilities.
•  Overview of Residential Real Estate Transactions in Iowa. This is a short overview of the steps involved in a residential real estate transaction in the Ames, Iowa area. The overview breaks the typical transaction into six basic phases and describes the common steps. The intent is to provide a basic familiarity with these steps and the terminology frequently used.