Meet the Staff of E. Steven Lauer, P.A.—Vero Beach Attorneys

Meet the staff members of the Vero Beach estate planning and litigation law firm, E. Steven Lauer, P.A.  Attorney Steven Lauer and his team of dedicated and experienced professionals have extensive backgrounds in the areas of:

• Will preparation and probate
• Real estate closings and property transfers
• Estate planning and litigation
• Tax planning, research, and preparation
• Elder law

Vero Beach Probate Attorney—E. Steven Lauer

St. Louis, MO native Steve Lauer was the valedictorian of his Cocoa (FL) High School graduating class. He then attended Duke University, where he received the Burlington Industries Scholarship. While at Duke, Steve was a member of the Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity and served on the AB Duke Scholarship Selection Committee. He graduated in 1974 with high honors and a degree in Management Science.

After graduation, attorney Lauer took the North Carolina Certified Public Accountants exam, which he passed in 1974 on the first seating. He worked briefly as a public accountant for Dobson, Jones and Bjerning in Merritt Island, FL, where he handled both audit and tax projects. In 2000, he became a North Carolina certified public accountant (CPA). 

Legal Career & Certifications 

In September 1974, attorney Lauer enrolled in the College of Law at the University of Florida, where he served as both a legal research and legal writing instructor. Upon graduating with honors in 1976, he joined a Ft. Lauderdale boutique firm as a tax attorney. His practice included all aspects of taxation, including estate planning, estate and trust administration, tax controversies and audits, as well as retirement plan design, drafting, and planning and other general tax matters.

In 1983, Steve was among the first group of attorneys to be Certified in Taxation by the Florida Bar. With a move to Vero Beach in 1985, Steve opened a small law office and focused his attention on wills, trusts, estates, probate, and tax law. He earned a second certification, this time in Wills, Trusts and Estates, from the Florida Bar in 1994.

Steve was a director and treasurer of the Riverside Theater, a director, president and Volunteer-of-the-Year of the American Cancer Society. He has also been active in the First Presbyterian Church of Vero Beach, Florida as a deacon and a member of the Endowment Committee.

Admitted to Practice

• Florida State Bar (1977)
• US Tax Court (1980)
• US District Court, Southern District of Florida (1981)
• US Court of Appeals, Fifth and Eleventh Circuits

Professional Organizations

• Indian River County Bar Association
• Broward County Bar Association
• American Bar Association
• The Florida Bar
• Estate Planning Council of Broward County
• Estate Planning Council of Indian River County
• Rotary Club of Vero Beach 

Tax Accountant—Francine Piersol 

Francine joined the firm in 2004, after earning a B.S. degree from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and operating her own tax, accounting, and investment business in New York for 18 years. She holds the special E.A. or “enrolled agent” designation, which means she is a federally authorized tax practitioner and is licensed to represent tax payers before the IRS. Francine also earned a Graduate Tax Certificate from the Institute of Tax Studies at the State University of New York's Buffalo School of Management.

Francine's extensive tax experience and keen insight are a valuable addition to our firm. She is a great resource for our staff as well as our individual, corporate, partnership, fiduciary, and estate clients, who rely on her for help with federal and state tax returns, gift tax issues, tax research and reporting, trust accounting, and court filings. 

Probate Paralegal—Rosanne Thompson 

Roseanne is a paralegal whose work focuses on probate law. She received an A.A. degree in Humanities from Onondaga Community College in Syracuse, NY, as well as a Legal Secretarial diploma from the Powelson Business Institute in Syracuse. She has also completed a course in Estate and Trust Administration at the Indian River Community College in Vero Beach. Roseann began her career as a legal secretary at the Dade County Attorney’s Office in Miami. She joined our staff in 1985 and has consistently provided clients with excellent service and outstanding legal assistance. 

Litigation and Real Estate Paralegal—Michelle Dales 

Michelle received her paralegal training from the American Institute of Paralegal Studies. She works in the real estate and litigation areas, providing research and preparing legal documents in addition to managing our office. Michelle joined our firm in 1999 and has been an integral part of our success ever since.

Whether you have questions about estate planning, income and gift taxes, or wills and probate, our staff is ready to help. Contact us using our web form or call our Vero Beach office at (772) 234-4200.