Role & Experience
Melissa McLaughlin, CPA, leads tax strategy for clients of Nugen Law through the firm’s affiliate, Tax Care, LLC. A licensed Certified Public Accountant for more than forty years—and the owner of a longstanding Auburn CPA practice for twenty‑five of those years—Melissa brings deep experience in individual, fiduciary, and small‑business taxation. She connects tax reality to legal planning by coordinating with attorneys on estate planning, asset protection, trust administration, and Medicaid planning matters so that documents and tax outcomes work together.
How She Helps Clients
Clients rely on Melissa to translate complex tax considerations into practical steps. She reviews how wills, revocable and irrevocable trusts, beneficiary designations, and titling will play out at tax time; highlights opportunities to minimize income and transfer taxes; and helps clients prepare for long‑term care costs without losing sight of family and legacy goals. In Medicaid‑related planning, Melissa organizes financial documentation, clarifies spend‑down implications, and coordinates with counsel so strategies are documented correctly and reported accurately.
Integrated Planning & Collaboration
Melissa’s work is highly collaborative. She partners with the firm’s attorneys, paralegals, and client‑service team—as well as outside financial advisors and accountants—to ensure plans are implementable and compliant. Her support includes cash‑flow and tax‑aware funding of trusts, beneficiary alignment, fiduciary accounting and information returns, estimated‑tax planning, and clear client checklists at each stage. The result is a coordinated plan that reduces surprises and keeps matters moving on schedule.
Background & Community
Melissa has called Auburn, Indiana, home for more than three decades and has served on the boards of several civic organizations during that time. Her long tenure in the community informs a steady, service‑oriented approach grounded in ethics, accuracy, and responsiveness.
Outside the Office
Melissa and her husband, John, enjoy a large family with four adult children and twelve grandchildren. She loves to read and tends a flower garden that keeps her outside as often as Indiana weather allows.
What This Means for Clients
Working with Melissa means your legal plan is evaluated through a tax lens from the start. You can expect clear explanations, careful coordination, and deliverables that connect estate planning, asset protection, and Medicaid planning with the tax steps required to implement them—so you move forward with confidence and fewer surprises at tax time.
