Attorney & Staff
Nancy L. Thompson is the founding member of Nancy L. Thompson Law Office PC. Her background covers all practice areas of the firm, including representing consumers, farmers and small businesses in bankruptcy, representing debtors in negotiations with lenders, litigating unfair debt collection cases against collectors and credit reporting agencies, and in preventing foreclosures. Before founding Thompson Law Office, she served for seven years as the Farm Law Attorney for the Nebraska Legal Aid Society and thirteen years as an attorney with the Center for Rural Affairs leading projects dealing with agricultural credit and beginning farmers. Since 1996 she has been in private practice working in the area of consumer and farm bankruptcy, debtor and creditor law, and agricultural law. She also works part-time at the Iowa Legal Aid Society handling bankruptcy cases for debtors in the Southern District of Iowa. Nancy was Chair of the Iowa State Bar Association Commercial and Bankruptcy Section from 2006 to 2008. She was named Outstanding Section Chair for Legislative Advocacy in 2007 for her work leading the effort to update and improve Iowa's personal property exemptions on behalf of debtors. She is frequently asked to speak at legal seminars in Iowa on the subject of bankruptcy and foreclosure.
Education
J.D., with honors, University of Iowa College of Law, Iowa City, Iowa, 1984
President, Environmental Law Society
Member, Equal Justice Society
B.A., Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa, 1981
Alpha Lambda Delta Honor Society
Pi Sigma Alpha Honor Society
Admitted
Iowa State Bar, 1984; Nebraska State Bar, 1984
U. S. District Court of Nebraska, 1984
U. S. District Courts of Iowa (Southern and Northern Districts), 2001
Professional Memberships
Iowa State Bar Association (Commercial and Bankruptcy Law Section Council)
National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys
National Association of Consumer Advocates
Legal Teaching
Adjunct Instructor of Administrative Law, University of South Dakota, 1998
Legal Authorships
"Anti-Corporate Farming Laws," Encyclopedia of the Great Plains, Univ. of Neb. Press 2004
"Rise of the Dormant Commerce Clause," ISBA Agricultural Law Section Newsletter, 2003
"Initiative 300 After Twenty Years," The Nebraska Lawyer, 2001
Raising Hogs Legally in Nebraska, Nebraska Pork Producers Ass. and Center for Rural Affairs, 1998
Financing Beginning Farmers, Center for Rural Affairs, 1995
A Farmer's Handbook on Livestock Regulation in Nebraska, Center for Rural Affairs, 1994
Farm Mediation and Debt Restructuring in Nebraska, Nebraska Dept. of Agriculture, 1989
Rebuilding Family Farms through Bankruptcy, Center for Rural Affairs, 1987
"Reagan Farm Debt Relief Plan," National Legal Services Clearinghouse Review, 1984
Volunteer and Public Service
Iowa Legal Aid Society Hotline for Older Iowans, 2002 to 2006
Board of Directors, Nebraska Legal Services Corporation, 1999 to 2000
Vice-President, Board of Directors, Legal Aid Society of Nebraska, 1994 to 2000
Melissa Ansley Brooks is a seven year veteran to Nancy L. Thompson Law Office PC as law office manager and bankruptcy paralegal. She holds her Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Simpson College in Indianola, Iowa and a Master’s degree in legal studies from the George Washington University in Washington, D.C. In her capacity as a paralegal, Melissa works directly with clients in completing intake information and the client questionnaire as well as fielding routine questions about bankruptcy and the filing process. She can be reached via email at melissaatthompsonlaw@gmail.com.
The Thompson Law Office also partners with other legal professionals in the Des Moines area regarding the representation of consumers. These attorneys include Jeff Mathias.
