Our attorneys incorporate the most sophisticated income, estate and gift tax planning techniques into traditional estate planning to generate optimum tax benefits while maintaining the flexibility to effectively manage myriad personal and family-owned assets. We tailor estate plans to the individual needs of each client by making innovative use of tax-efficient vehicles, such as sophisticated wills, lifetime retained-interest trusts, grantor trusts, offshore trusts, life insurance trusts, charitable trusts and intrafamily sales and transfers. These vehicles are funded with assets carefully selected to take full advantage of the benefits available under the Internal Revenue Code and to complement each client’s personal and financial situation. For clients with interests in family-owned businesses, estate planning may also include management succession planning, buy/sell agreements, restructuring agreements for closely held corporations and agreements for intrafamily transfers of corporate and partnership interests.
Willkie has significant experience in the administration of estates of all sizes. In instances where an estate plan was not established during an individual’s lifetime, we advise the executors on post-mortem estate planning techniques, enabling the estate to take advantage of tax benefits that might otherwise have been lost. We also represent individual and corporate fiduciaries, offering them counsel on compliance with the strict standard of fiduciary conduct imposed upon their decisions, including the laws governing investment policy.
In close collaboration with state and local tax attorneys, as needed, our team also provides guidance on state and local tax issues for individuals, family businesses and trusts, including the implications of migrating from one state to another, the purchase of additional residences, and the creation of trusts and selection of fiduciaries in other states.
We also advise on retirement account planning, and gift and estate tax return preparation, and our team provides support with respect to audits, accountings and general tax compliance.