Trusts & Estates

Overview

Our Trusts & Estates practice group advises individuals, families, and financial advisors in New Jersey and New York in connection with wealth preservation, including trust and estate planning and gifting to spouses, children, charities, and others. Estate planning is essential for even modest estates in order to provide for children, appoint responsible individuals as guardians for minors, and select fiduciaries to serve as trustees and executors of estates. For clients with large or more complex estates, planning provides a level of certainty that can reduce or eliminate costly probate litigation. When niche issues arise, we collaborate with Pashman Stein Walder Hayden attorneys in family law, corporate law, real estate, and litigation, as well as outside advisors, for additional insight to help us best serve our clients’ needs.

Estate and Gift Planning

Our Trusts & Estates attorneys help individuals and fiduciaries — including professionals, corporate executives, trust companies, business owners, and multigenerational families with significant wealth — achieve their business, financial, and family objectives efficiently while minimizing the gift, inheritance, and estate tax impact of their decisions.

The members of our team have broad experience and are well-versed in tax, trust, and estate laws impacting our clients. We regularly address a broad range of practical estate planning and administration challenges, such as:

Wealth transfer documents including wills, revocable trusts, irrevocable trusts, insurance trusts, special needs trusts, personal residence trusts (“QPRTs”), grantor retained annuity trusts (“GRATs”), and family limited liability companies
Medical care proxies and directives, and durable powers of attorney
Charitable planning, including family foundations, charitable remainder trusts and charitable lead trusts, and gift taxation, to honor a loved one’s wishes
Business continuity for family-owned businesses, including succession and management planning

Estate, Trust, and Probate Administration

Our Trusts & Estates attorneys handle all aspects of trusts, estates, and probate administration, as well as provide assistance to fiduciaries, including in connection with estate and trust administration, marshaling of assets, asset distribution, federal and state estate and inheritance taxation, debt payment, and counseling executors, administrators, and trustees on their fiduciary obligations.

Trusts, Estates, and Fiduciary Litigation

Our litigation team has extensive experience representing individuals, organizations, and fiduciaries on a wide range of trusts and estates disputes. From will contests, construction of wills, elective share claims and contested accountings to the performance of fiduciary duties, including allegations of undue influence, self-dealing, mismanagement, and fraud, our attorneys vigorously pursue our clients’ interests and strategically position our cases for the best possible outcome, through alternative dispute resolution or litigation when necessary.