Estate Planning and Wealth Protection
Smith, Gambrell & Russell, LLP’s Estate Planning and Wealth Protection Group advises individuals and families on wealth transfer, wealth protection and related legal matters.
Our attorneys represent a diverse client base, from individuals to large, multi-generational families, including owners of closely-held business interests, non-U.S. citizens and foreign individuals with significant international and U.S.-based interests.
Our clients also span a broad cross section of affluent families, including those who have inherited their wealth from a prior generation and those who are in the process of building their family’s wealth. Our Group includes five main areas of practice: (1) Domestic and International Estate and Gift Tax Planning, (2) Philanthropic and Family Legacy Planning, (3) Administration of Trusts and Estates, (4) Fiduciary and Estate Litigation, and (5) Fiduciary Tax Accounting.
Domestic and International Estate and Gift Tax Planning
The Estate Planning and Wealth Protection Group provides sophisticated legal and tax advice in the traditional areas of generational wealth transfer planning, including work related to:
- Revocable living trusts and Last Wills and Testaments
- Estate tax and lifetime gift planning
- International estate and gift tax planning for non-citizens
- Family bussiness and governance planning
- Grantor trusts and family limited partnerships for family businesses
- Special needs trust planning for persons with disabilities
- Captive life insurance planning
Philanthropic and Family Legacy Planning
- Philanthropic planning with private foundations and charitable trusts
- Advising on operation and administration of charitable trusts and foundations
Administration of Trusts and Estates
- Probating wills and administering trusts; post-mortem family tax planning
- Representation of fiduciaries in tax disputes (income, estate, and gift tax)
- Preparing estate and gift tax returns
Fiduciary and Probate Litigation
SGR’s Fiduciary and Probate Litigation attorneys represent a variety of fiduciaries, including corporate trust departments, individuals, trustees, personal representatives/ executors, guardians and beneficiaries.
These attorneys regularly handle the following diverse types of litigated matters:
- General probate, trust and estate litigation
- Coordination of multi-jurisdictional estate and trust disputes
- Fiduciary removal proceedings
- Judicial accounting disputes and objections to estate and trust accountings
- Breach of fiduciary duty claims, including self-dealing claims
- Will contests, including claims based on undue influence and lack of capacity
Fiduciary Tax Accounting
- Judicial trust account
- Fiduciary income and estate tax accounting
SGR was named a Tier 1 firm for Trusts & Estates Law for the Atlanta, Georgia metropolitan area in the 2011-2012 U.S. News — Best Lawyers “Best Law Firms” rankings.
