Bell Nunnally & Martin LLP has added R. Barrett Richards as a partner and member of the Heath Care, Tax and Private Clients and Estate Planning practices. Richards joins the firm with more than 30 years of experience, most recently with his own firm.

“Barrett is a premier attorney, and we are confident that he will thrive in our client-driven, results-focused culture. As the firm continues to grow strategically, we take great pride in being a place that attracts professionals of Barrett’s caliber and experience,” said James Skochdopole, managing partner of Bell Nunnally.

Richards provides business, estate planning, financial, regulatory and transactional guidance to businesses, high-net-worth individuals and health care providers. Specifically, he advises clients on a broad array of transactional, estate planning, health care and tax issues, including: HIPAA, Stark Law, Anti-Kickback, Medicare and Medicaid compliance for health care institutions; business reorganizations, mergers, acquisitions and succession strategies; estate planning, trust, asset protection, generation-skipping transfers and related representation; and federal and state tax concerns, with an emphasis on income and estate taxes.

Richards is board certified in Heath Law, Tax Law and Estate Planning and Probate Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. He is one of only 52 attorneys statewide to earn board certification in Health Law, and his numerous certifications have earned him distinction as the only lawyer in Texas to combine a Health Law certification with a complementary certification in either Estate Planning and Probate Law or Tax Law.

Active in the legal community, Richards is a member of the American Bar Association, the State Bar of Texas and the Dallas Bar Association, for which he previously served as the chair of the Health Law Section. In addition, he is a member of the American Health Lawyers Association, the Healthcare Financial Management Association and the Dallas Estate Planning Council. He is also a Life Fellow of the Texas Bar Foundation.

Richards is a frequent author and speaker, having been published numerous times in, among other publications, Texas Lawyer.

Outside the office, Richards has volunteered for multiple civic and charitable organizations, including: the Epilepsy Association, the United Way and several local school district advisory committees.

Richards is a graduate of Baylor University where he earned both a J.D. (1973) and a B.A. (1972) and Southern Methodist University’s Dedman School of Law, where he received an LL.M. in Taxation (1974). He continues to give back to Baylor, serving as an annual guest lecturer at the Hankamer School of Business, where he also sits on the MBA in Healthcare Administration advisory board.

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