Trusts & Estates

Our Trusts and Estates practice was established during the early years of the firm to address issues concerning transfer of wealth of business executives, professionals, high net-worth individuals and the principals of our privately held business clients. Working as counselors and trusted advisors, we develop strategies that help our clients achieve their financial and personal objectives and provide for their families' needs through tax and succession planning.

We approach this more personal area of practice with the same commitment as we do our other areas, combining sophisticated tax planning experience with sensitivity and practical solutions. Our focus is on preserving clients' assets, avoiding family acrimony and, where there are closely held or family-owned businesses, planning for management and ownership continuity and succession.

We employ a wide range of estate and tax planning tools to ensure that our clients' objectives are accomplished, including wills, health care proxies, powers of attorney, generation skipping transfers, family limited partnerships, life insurance trusts, revocable and irrevocable trusts, as well as charitable and other gift-giving devices. We also provide trust and estate administration and tax preparation services. In the unfortunate event of contested proceedings, we handle litigation in collaboration with our Litigation practice group.

Capabilities

Key capabilities of our Trusts and Estates practice include:

• Business succession planning
• Contested will and accounting proceedings and related litigation issues
• Creation of private foundations and charities
• Estate plans
• Development of charitable giving programs
• GRATs
• Health care proxies
• HIPPA authorizations
• Life insurance trusts
• Living wills
• Personal tax planning
• Powers of attorney
• Probate and estate administration
• Qualified personal residence trusts
• QTIP trusts
• Retirement plan benefits structuring
• Tax Preparation
• Trusts
• Wills