Practices

Estate, Gift and Generation Skipping Taxes

Estate planning is a personal and highly individualized matter. We believe the first step in the planning process is to inform a client of the available alternatives. We then work with the client to identify his or her wishes and to develop the documents to accomplish the client’s objectives.

Estate planning encompasses everything from planning for your lifetime to planning for after your death. Proper planning will allow you, and your family, to receive the full benefit of everything you have worked so hard to acquire. Unless you plan, your estate may be unnecessarily diminished if you become incapacitated during your lifetime. Without an estate plan, the state statute will determine who receives your assets and administers your estate at your death and your estate may pay substantial estate taxes unnecessarily. Furthermore, without a plan, your family business may not be set up in the most advantageous manner for you and, ultimately, the next generation of owners in your family.

Many issues affect what estate plan is best for you and your family. Who will manage assets for your minor child if you die prematurely? ho will handle your assets and make decisions about your medical care if you become disabled? How can you protect your family financially if you have to go in a nursing home? What can you do to minimize taxes at your death, including the generation-skipping tax? How can you protect your spouse and your children if you have a “blended family”? What type of business arrangement is best if you own a family business? Your estate plan should reflect your personal value system and your own unique circumstances. Our lawyers are trained and experienced in all areas of estate planning, including by not limited to:

• Business and Succession Planning
• Corporate, Partnership, and Limited Liability Company Law
• Elder Law
• Guardianships and Conservatorships for Minors, Legally Incapacitated Adults, and the Developmentally Disabled
• Medicaid Planning
• Medical Powers of Attorney
• Pre- and Post-Nuptial Agreements
• Probate and Trust Administration
• Probate and Trust Litigation
• Special Needs Trusts
• Step-parent Adoptions
• Taxation of Estates, Gifts, and Individual and Corporate Income
• Trust Law
• Wills

Few matters are as important as estate planning. You need professionals who are honest, able, responsive, and compassionate. Our department has an experienced team of lawyers and staff in the estate planning area, including a CPA.