| Biography | Merry H. Balson's practice focuses on non-profit organizations, lifetime and testamentary charitable giving, estate planning, and trust and estate administration. Ms. Balson's non-profit practice includes counseling clients regarding the creation and maintenance of non-profit organizations, including private foundations, supporting organizations, and publicly supported charities. She also advises clients on state, local and federal tax and other compliance issues, including unrelated business income tax, political and legislative activities, charitable donation and solicitation rules, fiduciary duties of board members, property tax and sales tax exemptions. Her estate planning practice emphasizes planning for both taxable and non-taxable estates, preparing wills, revocable and irrevocable trusts, including life insurance trusts, grantor retained annuity trusts, and qualified personal residence trusts, medical and financial powers of attorney, living wills, and guardian designations for minor children. Ms. Balson's trust and estate administration practice includes representing personal representatives, trustees, and beneficiaries in the administration of taxable and non-taxable estates and trusts in Colorado. She earned her B.A. in 1991, magna cum laude, in political science from St. Mary's University in San Antonio, Texas. Ms. Balson graduated with honors from the University of Denver College of Law in 1997 (Order of St. Ives) and served as a law clerk to the Honorable Judge C. Jean Stewart of the Denver Probate Court following graduation. Ms. Balson is a member of the Exempt Organizations Committee of the American Bar Association's Tax Section, and a member of the Real Property Probate and Trust Section of the American Bar Association. She is also an active member of the Trust and Estate Section of the Colorado Bar Association, serving on the Executive Council (2006-2008), the Statutory Revisions Committee (Chair, 2004-2005; Co-Chair, 2003-2004), and the Uniform Estate Tax Apportionment Act subcommittee. Ms. Balson is also co-editor of Council Notes, the Trust and Estate Section's quarterly newsletter. Ms. Balson is also a member of the Rocky Mountain Estate Planning Council, the Women's Estate Planning Council, the Colorado Planned Giving Roundtable, and the Colorado Philanthropic Advisors Network. She has co-authored the "Selecting, Forming and Maintaining the Organization" chapter in A Guide for Colorado Non-profit Organizations (CLE in Colo., Inc.), the "Non-profit Organizations" chapter in the Practitioner's Guide to Colorado Business Organizations (CLE in Colo., Inc.), and the "Principles of Wills" chapter in Colorado Estate Planning Handbook (CLE in Colo., Inc.), and authored the "Uniform Transfers to Minors Act"; chapter in the Gifts to Minors monograph (CLE in Colo., Inc.). In 2009 Ms. Balson became a fellow of The American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC) and a member of its Charitable Planning and Exempt Organizations committee. In 2009 and 2010 Ms. Balson was selected to be among the "Colorado Rising Stars," Non-profit, Estate Planning & Probate (Note that this award is given to no more than 2.5% of attorneys age 40 or under or in practice for 10 years or less in the state) and since 2007 has been selected to be among the Best Lawyers in America, Trusts & Estates. Fellow: of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC), October 2009. Fellow: American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC), December 2009. |