Trusts, Wills & Estates

Parsons Behle & Latimer can give you the strategies you need to safeguard your personal and professional properties. Asset protection planning involves making prudent decisions today to protect yourself, your business, and your assets from loss due to lawsuits, creditors, or bankruptcies. Our multidisciplinary team of litigators and experienced tax attorneys provide security for clients’ interests in and out of court. 

Your business is your life’s work, and we can help to protect it. Family businesses are the backbone of the American economy. From agriculture to services, technology and manufacturing, family businesses generate an estimated one-half of the U.S. Gross National Product and pay half of all wages earned in this country. Our attorneys work side by side with our family business clients to create clear succession plans that help family businesses adapt to change and minimize conflict, including inter-generational transfers, tax planning, and family office structuring and management.

We encourage and assist with the tradition of giving to charitable causes and employing tax-advantaged strategies that maximize the value of your gift. We provide guidance to clients to make charitable gifts and practice good stewardship in the most tax-efficient manner.

Our clients rely on our attorneys for assistance with:

• Charitable split-interest trusts
• Charitable annuities
• Donor-advised funds
• Private foundations
• Qualified conservation easements
• Strategies for increasing tax benefits through charitable contributions in connection with sales of businesses, real estate and securities

Disputes involving trusts and estates can be extraordinarily emotional and contentious. Parsons Behle & Latimer's Estate Litigation & Dispute Resolution attorneys have a deep understanding of the law and significant experience helping clients protect their financial and family legacies through litigation, mediation and other dispute resolution processes. We also represent trustees and estate fiduciaries in connection with tax audits and valuation disputes.

Wills, trusts, powers of attorney and other estate planning documents can play a critical role in ensuring that your property is protected and will be preserved and distributed according to your wishes in the event of your incapacity or death. Parsons Behle & Latimer's estate planning attorneys work closely with clients to develop a wide range of customized estate planning documents that will meet each client’s individual needs and desires.

Parsons Behle & Latimer's Private Client and Estate Planning attorneys offer a comprehensive set of estate, wealth and tax planning services. We represent a wide range of clients, from individuals and families to private foundations, family offices and closely held businesses. We pride ourselves on our ability to blend innovative tax and other planning strategies with the practical implications of passing wealth from one generation to the next.

Parsons Behle & Latimer's attorneys work with clients to provide peace of mind by making the probate and estate administration process easier and more efficient. We advise clients on all aspects of the probate process and help fiduciaries navigate the many complexities involved in proper estate administration. We work closely with fiduciaries and their other professional advisors to resolve complicated problems with skill and efficiency.

Trustees play a critical role in carrying out the wishes of decedents. That role often presents complex challenges that must be handled with thoughtfulness and professionalism. Parsons Behle & Latimer's Private Client and Estate Planning attorneys understand those challenges and the importance of proper trust administration in the estate planning process. We provide legal guidance to trustees as they endeavor to fulfill their crucial fiduciary duties. We work closely with trustees and their other professional advisors on all aspects of the trust administration process, from proper record keeping and tax compliance, to the interpretation of trust instruments and the distribution of trust assets.